Is it too early to plant out?

French Beans are very tender and cannot take the slightest frost before sulking or giving up the ghost entirely, and you are right in that late April in your area, weather forecast depending, would be a good time to aim to plant them outside. Even then, best to have something ready to cover them, like a cloche or some fleece, if cold nights arrive

If the roots are poking through the bottom of the pot, then it is better to move them to a larger pot so that they will keep growing. Are they dwarf beans?  If so, you can keep them happy in five inch pots for a few weeks, safely inside in the warm, somewhere well lit but not in direct sunshine.


Hope that helps... your little boy wil enjoy being involved, I'm sure 

I would stick them in the ground, nothing worse than a lanky plant they never recover.

If you don’t have fancy cloches or fleece, just put a cardboard box on them at night

As you can see from the other replies - definitely too early. I presume they have gone levy because you've sown them indoors somewhere. Do you have access to a greenhouse? If so, pot them on into large pots covering more of the plant stem, put them in the greenhouse and hope for the best. If no greenhouse then they are probably doomed as they'll just get leggier indoors and die off outdoors. So sow again late April and learn from the experience - it's what we all do!

Hi folks,

Thank you for all of your replies. And my apologies - I thought I had posted a thank you but clearly failed to press the right button somehow.

Si