Topic: Saving broad bean seed

[lezelle]

Hi Ya, Having just been down the plot and picked the last of my broad beans (red epicure) I wondered if it is possible to save some seed for next year. I believe it's not an F1 hybrid from what I can find on line. I like the red beans so do I treat them like self saved runners? I have shelled them all where the runners  are left to dry on the plant then shelled. Have I blown it or will they still be good to save? any advice would be most welcome. thanks

[Tee Gee]

I usually left the beans in the pod until they went brittle then I shelled them.

All I can suggest is you save some of what you have saved but do not rely on them 100% come regular sowing time.

Early next year you could sow a few earlier than usual to determine viability.

If they fail then you will still have time to buy some new seed!

As they say: Nothing Ventured, Nothing gained!

[galina]

Broad beans do cross like runner beans, so in an allotment situation you will have a number of crossed beans.  If you have left them to mature before shelling, then they would be viable, but you will have your own F1s.  There is another issue about only using late beans, the earlier ones having been picked and eaten.  This selects your beans for lateness.  For seed saving you would aim for early as well as late pods, Lez.

With those considerations in mind, try the seeds, but in addition to normal seeds and compare their performance in your situation.  Like TeeGee said, don't rely on them as the only seed for next year. 

[lezelle]

Hi Ya, Thanks for the replies and I will give them a try and see. I will also lay in some new seed as well. Cheers both

[JanG]

I’ve just been saving seed too from Black Russian broad beans I grew and saved seed from last year. They have smallish black beans.
I found more than  nine out of ten were the black I hoped for. So that’s perhaps a bit of an indication.

Most of the others were green but interestingly a few were a rather good red even though I didn’t grow any red seeded ones last year. Perhaps crossing green and black can produce red. Would take much more understanding of broad bean genes to know what might have happened!

[Paulh]

Green and Black produce a rather nice range of chocolate ....

[Digeroo]

Hi.  I have often saved Broad bean seeds and they germinate well.  However, as soon as they begin to dry I find that the voles move in and eat them.   I have not found a way to protect them.  They get under netting no problems.   They seem almost tame and simply stare at me.  A metre away they are still chewing, a foot away I might grab the little blighter.  But no it's off at the last moment.
I am not sure they come up true to type they are outbreeders.