[Bantymad]

Can i save some of my runner beans to plant next year? if so do i leave in pods or take out? sorry if its a daft question but only started with vegies this year.

[JayG]

Leave the pods on the plant until they are as brown and dry-looking as possible.

Choose the biggest and best-filled ones to save seed from, dry the seeds for a few days before storing in a paper bag in a cool dry place.

You may or may not get beans exactly the same as this year depending on whether yours were cross-pollinated with others or not, but you are unlikely to finish up with anything too weird!

[DD.]

but you are unlikely to finish up with anything too weird!

He says.

I've ended up with purple, short podded runner beans off "Enorma".

[JayG]

but you are unlikely to finish up with anything too weird!

He says.

I've ended up with purple, short podded runner beans off "Enorma".

    What did they taste like? When can we buy them in the shops?

[DD.]

Taste OK -not in shops, yield too poor for Tesc*.

Ended up after a few years of saving with a right mixture. The purple podded climbing French beans crossed with the Enorma. Also had green climbing French beans and all sorts of colour combination of flowers.

[JayG]

I've never actually had a problem with saved runner bean seeds but then again I don't grow French beans and no-one else in the immediate area grows runner beans as far as I'm aware.

Strangely enough the T&M "Celebration" sown straight from the original packet this year had variations in flower colour, but that's another story (known only to T&M!)

[Bantymad]

Thanks all, will take me chances and see what happens then.

[jansoldman]

make sure you leave them "on the vine" until they are really dry and brown and then add on another 2 weeks before you pull the plants up.
Otherwise they will start to go mushy and smelly in april just before you want to start them off again !

[Bantymad]

Oh yuk, ok will do. Thanks again.

[Give it a go]

Wiil the seed beans halt the production of flowers? Would it be best to wait a while longer?

[JayG]

Wiil the seed beans halt the production of flowers? Would it be best to wait a while longer?

Yes, although you could always "sacrifice" one particularly healthy plant as the producer of next year's seed and keep picking all the others.