[mebanana]

Hello,

I live in Scotland and have found myself in charge of a veg garden and unheated greenhouse.

Yesterday I started off tomatoes, aubergines and chillis in seed propagator trays and put strawberry plants in a strawberry pot. 

Today I am thinking peas and beans.

Am I right in saying I should hold off on french/runner/borlotti beans for now?

What about my broad beans and peas?  I was thinking to plant them in 3" pots today.  Or should I go for direct in the soil?  How many plants will I need so a family of 4 has a decent amount?

I am so worried about all this as I've never done it before and have been devouring various books/websites to see what to do.  I hope nothing dies!!

[Yorkie]

I would hold off on the beans you mention for now, unless you have a greenhouse to put them in until the risk of frost has passed (early June for you).

I don't grow BBeans but peas can be started now - I would personally sow them direct but net them against the pigeons.  If you can't protect them then perhaps sow them in guttering (peas) or pots (BB).

You will need a lot of peas - metres rather than feet - to get a decent crop for a family of four over a respectable cropping period.

[MoreWhisky]

Have you put your peas in the ground yet Yorkie? i havent but am dying to )

[UrbanG]

I have 8 runner bean sprouts on my kitchen window sill which are about 4" at the moment and hoping I haven't started them to early to plant out when we are sure of no frost.

I also planted some peas this weekend in a massive round pot as I have heard they can 'tackle' a bit of frost but not to much.

I'd say Runners inside over the next few weeks and bang the peas outside now.

[mebanana]

Sooo, broad beans are ok to go in pots just now inside in a cool place?

Peas I should plant out direct?  Even though it's a wee bit colder up here?

Thanks for all your help so far!

[Ivah]

I reckon it is a waste of time and seed to sow any peas or beans direct in the ground, particularly early sowings.
I have already sown Broad Beans, just germinated, in rootrainers and they are in a cold greenhouse. They are Masterpiece Green Longpod as I think green Broad Beans are a superior flavour. I shall plant them out under a cloche the first week in April.
I have just sown some Mangetout Peas Sugar Ann and would expect to put them out initially with a cloche about April 10th.
I only grow maincrop ordinary Peas Hurst Greenshaft which again I start in rootrainers about April 1st to plant out about 1st May.
Runner Beans I sow, you guessed it in rootrainers, about May 1st to plant out about June 1st.
I've given up growing French Beans outside just grow a short row of Cobra in a cold greenhouse which I start about third week in April.
You can see from how I protect everything I am a bit exposed at 600'. If you are in the city I would guess the warming and sheltering effect would make your timings about the same as mine.
Quantities are difficult. My vegetable area is divided into 25'x10' beds so I tend to grow 25' rows of everything. Broad Beans I sow 128 seeds (rootrainers come in sets of 32 if you are not familiar with them), Greenshaft 8x32x2 peas per cell for 2 25' rows, Runner Beans again 128 seeds but produces slightly too many plants, use about 100 for 25'. How much you need for a family of 4 I don't know but I guess you could use all the Broad Beans and Peas and about half the Runner Beans assuming you are using a freezer.  

[Yorkie]

Have you put your peas in the ground yet Yorkie? i havent but am dying to )

Haven't done anything yet, MW.  No digging, planning, sowing etc.  House move has rather put the kybosh on advance thought.  That, and the snow 

Still, there's always Easter!