Do these pole beans ever have beans?

[J Golden]

Last year, I planted Italian Green beans and enjoyed them. This year I planted the Kentucky King, a bush bean that looks like a string bean and tastes like an Italian Green Bean. They were somewhat slow in growing, so I also planted the Kentucky Wonder pole bean. The bush bean gave me some beans this weekend, but the pole beans and growing like Jack and the beanstalk but I have yet to see a bean on them. Do these things ever have beans or are they going to be like my gorgeous watermelon vines when I was 13 that had vines and vines and vines but no watermelon?

Jose

[Pat Kiewicz]

Pole beans are normally a bit later to start bearing than bush beans, but they will bear more continuously.

Because I only eat the beans fresh and don't can or freeze them, I prefer pole beans for the longer (and less rushed) harvest. Picking most of them while standing up is also a big advantage.

[J Golden]

Thanks. I'll be looking forward to them.

J

[Boron Elgar]

If you wish to harvest easily (at least for bush beans), do what I do...grow in containers. I have a table on my deck filled with 6 to 10 inch pots, each with 5 to 9 bean plants in it. Well fed, well watered, they are prolific producers and easily harvested. Bush beans seem particularly suited to the culture.

I am growing Blue Lake, Romano, haricot vert and one other bush type I cannot recall at the moment.

Boron

[lgb]

If you're not satisfied with the yield, try Northeaster next year. I've always had good luck with them (in Zone 5) and they can get quite long without getting stringy.