[raisedbed]

Dear All

I have only been growing veg for about 5 months now so have absolutely no knowledge on the subject other than what's on the packet.  So here is my first, no doubt many more will follow, lack of knowledge question.

The above plants have all being growing well and produced good harvests to date.  The past couple of days thou the amount produced has started to noticeably(sp?) drop off and some of the plants are looking well past their best. Already had one mange tout die.

So are these plants beginning to die off early or I am actually getting towards the end of their lifecycle.

Thanks

Raisedbed

[Aunt Sally]

"mange tout, Dwarf beans and Green Beans"

Do you mean mange tout...

Dwarf French Beans and Runner Beans :?:

[DD.]

I'm picking my third sowing of mange tout. First two have well shot it, as expected.

[raisedbed]

Aunt Sally,

You are of course correct I am growing Mange tout, Dwarf french beans and Runner beans.

Like I said I have a slight knowledge gap.  

Thanks

Raisedbed

[Aunt Sally]

I've never grown mange tout and I'm growing French beans for the first time this year. They've cropped very will so far and the plants are looking healthy but are beginning to slow down production.  I'll  give them some tomato fertiliser to see if that will give them a boost.  Runner Beans will just be starting to produce a good crop now and should go on till the weather gets too cool for them.

[Aunt Sally]

You can sow some more French Beans NOW and cover with cloches in September !

[DD.]

I've got fed up with mange tout. They're hard to shell & not much to shout about when you get inside.  

[Aunt Sally]

       :roll:

[gobs]

I'm picking my third sowing of mange tout. First two have well shot it, as expected.

They are a pea, so as maistro is putting it enigmatically, naturally short lived, successional sowings you do if you want them most of the season.

With the beans, if you miss and leave pods on, seed production starts, so flowering will become more scarce.

[pushrod]

my mange tout have been brilliant but are now finished. As already said - successional planting is the way to a longer cropping period.

My DFBs are now cropping and runner beans are still a month away.

[DD.]

as maistro is putting it enigmatically,

Is that good or bad?

[yummy]

I put some mange tout in 3 weeks ago (my first two lots got pigeoned!). I've surrounded them with fleece and they are 8 inches high now. It might not be too late to sow some more?

[DD.]

Go for it. I've just put some 'normal' peas in. Be prepared for mildew though.

[Porffor]

my original mange tout finished cropping and one died.. but the others hung around.. to my surprise they are in flower again! I planted french beans at the base of them to 'overtake' onto the canes! not too many though so they should be alright. my main french beans are a little further away.

[diggerjoe]

my mange tout are still going well - too well really  family are now sick of them neighbours have gone on holiday - might be to escape mangetoutitsis I had never grown them before and it was only a short row about 10ft and I grew the yellow ones - lesson learned for next year