[Lottie Digger]

Can anyone tell why my French and Runner beans have grown like this please. I used the same variety last year and they were wonderful!!

[DD.]

Welcome to the forums, sorry your first post is a tale of woe.

What compost are you using?

[Lottie Digger]

Erin multipurpose...the peas liked it!

[DD.]

Not herbicide then!

[JayG]

Did the shoots originally appear like that or were they OK to start with?

Must say the compost looks a bit wet, although to finish up like yours seems like a rather extreme reaction; tip one out and see what the roots look like; could be rotting away.

[Kleftiwallah]

It looks as if they have all been 'nipped' by a frost.     Cheers,   Tony.

[Lottie Digger]

When the seed opened they were already brown and shrivelled. They have been in my conservatory so no frost nip. They appear to have good healthy roots but no leaves.

[JayG]

How deep did you sow the seeds? (I'm pretty baffled and definitely clutching at straws here but the roots all seem to be growing upwards.)

[mumofstig]

so they do...well spotted !!

[hightide]

Lottie I have the same problem.

These are Climbing French Bean Sultana purchased from Moles Seeds. I planted 20 of them in pots of John Innes seed compost ;out of these, three failed to germinate, four came up like yours the rest have made leaves but are distorted, only one is what I would say is true.

The pots are in gravel trays in my conservatory, so no slugs, the cotylions are somewhat brown and shrivelled, but it is as if the plant is blind - no growing tip.

The only thing I can think of is too much water, but with the recent warm weather evaporation has been high. The outside door is open during the day for the dog so the temperature while high would not have been excessive.

Piccys attached for information.

[Lottie Digger]

Hightide....I'm glad it's not just me....I'm not sure it's too much water as I did the same as last year.
 The roots are not growing upwards, the seed is about an inch deep with roots radiating to the side and then following the root trainer grooves to the bottom.
I have since chitted some seeds on kitchen paper and planted them up in the same compost and they are growing more normally.
 I think the seeds would have benefited from an overnight soak but it wasn't meantioned on the packet, I just remember my Dad doing this years ago.

Never mind I will just have to sew a bit earlier next year just in case...thank you all for your suggestions.

Happy Growing!!

[gremlin]

Looks like the "Bean Seed Fly".   Delia Platura.   A brand new pest to me this year.  Supposed to be especially active because of the hot dry weather brought them out early.

98% of my greenhouse sown bean seeds have failed this year across 5 varities, four types of compost, 6 lots of sucessional sowing.  (I was desperate)  I have acheived 7 seedlings out of 400 seeds.
I finally spotted and identified the evil maggots eating the seeds and shoots. 

(Oh the shame of having to go to the garden centre to buy commercially grown runner, french and broad bean plants.....)

[Lottie Digger]

Thanks Gremlin for the info, I think I might have to join you buying commercially grown beans

[Kristen]

(Oh the shame of having to go to the garden centre to buy commercially grown runner, french and broad bean plants.....)

I find that a false moustache, glasses and a hat pulled well down does the trick - although I am hard to distinguish from everyone else who is there ...

[Robster]

When I used to sow unchitted beans into root trainers I'd always have a couple come up like this.  Not as many as Lottie Digger though.  Always a few.  I don't think I get so many when chitted, or at least I have not noticed it as a problem yet.