[New shoot]

I grow climbing french beans up other veg like tomatoes, which I plant in cheapo builders buckets with a few drainage holes drilled in the bottom.  2 beans up each tomato in the greenhouse will provide a decent crop for no extra space 

[rw3272]

Very simply; I like french beans but dont really like runners all that much!

Both of ours have only just started. The frenchies are marginally ahead

[hubballi]

Ok, I have got them in the greenhouse this year but still very poor 

[Kirpi]

Definitely worth it - freeze better as others have said, prefer the taste and can squeeze them in just about anywhere on the rotation of beds. Not in flower yet but with the upturn in weather I am hopeful.

[TerryB]

First time growing in greenhouse and they have done well, been picking them for 3 weeks.
They also help shade the greenhouse from all the sun we've been getting.
1st lot of dwarf outside just starting to flower.

[Spudman]

Is it worth sowing some dwarf French beans at this late stage (apparently summer is on its way!)?

Spud

[mumofstig]

I thought so 
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=96913.msg1075712#msg1075712

[Spudman]

Thankyou.... I'll give some a go, amongst other things, this weekend!

Spud

[Goosegirl]

I have always planted a climbing French bean in my greenhouse (used to do two but couldn't gain access!) and they have done really well and the pods grow straight too. Trying dwarf ones this time and they are ready for picking and the leaves are spotless! Will never do them outside as they don't do well and their pods curl. 

[hubballi]

Mine are curling in the greenhouse 

[Aunt Sally]

French beans are brilliant.  I grow about 30 or more plants each year (Delinel).

I only grow them to freeze as they are excellent when frozen.  They keep me going all through the winter and longer.

Why on earth have you got them in the greenhouse hubballi ?   I just dib a hole in the ground and drop the seen in.

[shokkyy]

I like growing the tall ones in wigwams, max crop in min space. I did Blauhilde last year and loved them, and it does make them easier to pick when they're not green. Doing them again this year, as well as a first try of Cosse Violette.

I always freeze loads too, one of the few green veg that are almost as nice from frozen as they are fresh.

[spuriousmonkey]

I have 5 varieties of dwarf beans at the moment. And of each variety at least 50 plants.

Last year I had about 25 plants of 2 varieties.

I believe I am going to have more beans than I can eat this year.

I reduced the size of my potato area to grow more beans. I don't have a good spot to store potatoes, and half of the varieties I am growing are cultivated for dried beans. I figured that it will just also be easier to store dried beans than potatoes for me personally.

Another reason to plant dwarf beans is that half of my allotment had really really poorly drained soil. I improved it a lot already, but last year potatoes turned out to be a disaster in this area. it got waterlogged and I couldn't harvest the potatoes without destroying the soil structure. So I decided to concentrate a bit more on dwarf beans in this area. And they are doing quite well there at the moment.


Not that I don't have runner beans. I have 3 different varieties of those also.

I deliberately also decided to grow dwarf beans because I don't want to build tall structures all over my allotment.

I'm quite happy with my dwarf french beans so far. They all started to flower now and some have tiny bean pods. And because I have different varieties it all also looks quite pretty. They all have different colour flowers for instance.

[Chrysalis]

Feeling very jealous now. My beans are only just flowering after a cold wet start. Climbing French in deep baskets and runners up my spectacular munty, along with some borlotti.

Stop making my mouth water, folks - it's embarrassing drooling over the laptop (and not a sign of George Clooney ) 

[Erfurt]

French beans are brilliant......... I just dib a hole in the ground and drop the seen in.

Yeah, thats the way to go. Its worth trying cos seeds cost less than a packet of smokes and go up so take no room.



PS should be saving seeds so cost=nothing