Phaseolus vulgaris

Seed type: OP

A high-yielding climbing French bean producing round green pods. Plants easily grow over 2 metres tall and have a longer harvest period than dwarf beans. Highly recommended.

An early crop can be started as transplants in pots about the beginning of April with the help of a little heat. After growing a month or so, the seedlings will be ready for transplanting at the end of April to the beginning of May into an unheated greenhouse or tunnel.

Outdoors sowings are started about a month later. At the beginning of May, sow 3 seeds into pots kept in an unheated tunnel or greenhouse. This will give 2 to 3 plants per pot, which should then be transplanted outdoors from the end of May to the beginning of June.

As they grow, the viney stems start to 'run' and need to be trained off the ground. An easy way to do this is by constructing a wigwam of eight 8-foot canes, followed by transplanting one pot (with its 2 or 3 plants) beside each cane. As they grow, the plants are trained up the canes, producing pods that hang down from the stems.

100 seeds per pack