Hi there,
I've always grown dwarf beans and have found them pretty reliable. However, they are a pain to pick, and when it rains, they get filthy. So I was wondering about climbing french beans - do they crop in the same way as dwarf - ie prolific and earlier than runners?
Does anyone else have a preference?
Thanks,
Sarah.
I have not noticed the cropping period, as I have not grown runners before this year. However, I have always tended to grow climbing french beans because of the ease of picking and also the amount of crop available for the allotted ground.
I am growing corona d'or and borlotti. And prince as dwarf beans.
This is my first time growing climbing french beans as have always stuck with dwarf before. I am absolutely thrilled with them, particularly my Dinahs Climbing Blue (which are actually purple.) They are proving very prolific, lovely texture beans, much easier to pick. Mine started cropping at the same time as my runners - a couple of weeks ago, but then I was late putting them in and they all were planted out at the same time.
A couple of my borlottis are climbing, the rest are dwarf - and they've got lovely canes to climb up too......
climbers tend to be slightly later than dwarf
Hi Sarah
I tried growing climbing French (cobra) a couple or so years ago - and they were dismal. Last year I was given some labelled dwarf French Tendergreen and they climbed and went a bit mad (so think labels were switched as Tendergreen are def. dwarf) and I got a lovely dry bean harvest.
This year I was given climbing borlotti and they've done nicely. First three sowings of dwarf have been lousy. Runners lousy. I'm hoping for a late harvest of the new dwarfs!
So think on my plot, the best thing is not to try to grow them deliberately!! But they're definitely later than dwarfs. Not sure about earlier than runners cos I wasn't looking to pick them fresh. Ask Tim? He seems to have got FBs coming out of his ears!
moonbells
I'm growing Blue Lake and Cherokee Trail of Tears - both for the first time.
I'm picking loads from both, but I think Cherokee T O T are slightly more prolific. My runners - Polestar are a washout. I shall stay with climbing french beans next year and will certainly use the remaining Cherokee in a wigwam again - pun intended :P.
Tricia
hey tricia - I'm doing trail of tears too. I grew them last year and thought they had a wonderful flavour - quite nutty.
They cropped prolifically and towards the end of the season i got sick of eating them and let some dry on the plants - providing me with the seed for this years plants. mine haven't started cropping yet because I put them in a bit late...
Sarah.
Sarah - yes!
I suppose our most prolific are Cobra.
not got any beans yet at all. Lots of flowers on my runners and my french beans are still only small.
funny, I was thinking of going back to dwarf to save the trouble of putting up canes and tying in etc. Blue lake are fabulous and I also like to grow the violet varieties such as Cosse Violette because they are easier to see when picking and you don't miss any
We prefer climbing french beans because you get long straight beans, that are clean. Dwarf beans, once the crop starts, tend to make the plants flop over, and the beans are mucky and readily available to slugs, unless you grow them in containers.
We grow Fasold, Neckar Queen, Cobra, Diamant, Rustico and Eva. We are getting quite a good crop at the moment. Of these varieties, I think Fasold is my favourite.
Runner beans are flowering their little hearts out, but it is heartbreaking to see the amount of flower on the ground, and very few beans set. We have had a few pickings, but there you go, you have good years and bad years. I think now the weather has cooled down a bit we should get enough for our needs.
The other bugbear was the wind yesterday. Played havoc with the sweetcorn. Pretty nigh on flattened it.
i grow dwarf over climbing, because i have found dwarf really reliable and they keep cropping forever!
yes they do fall over a bit but i dont mind as i wash the veg anyways, and the slubs dont have them either.
i have grown hildora twice now (love it!) and purple teepee this year as well, easy to pick because of the colour contrast. tasty too
i am growing borlotti climbing, but not for the bean but for the inside beans. they are starting to come along now, will have some fresh and maybe be able to store surplus in the freezer.
i wont switch to all climbing because i found varieties i like, they are reliable, and i dont want too much overshading on my plot. they keep the ground mulched in a better way too, i find
My dwarf french beans have been my success story this year- can't believe how many I'm getting from just one row- but they are pretty back-breaking to pick, & I'd been wondering about climbers for next year, so thanks for this thread!
It has to be Climbing every time for me. Dwarf are such a pain to harvest, stooped over trying to pick them out of the mud. I'm growing Cobra and Borlotti this year with fabulous results. Other Lottie holders are complaining about flower drop on their Runners this year but mine are growing marvelously. Long straight Cobras with no strings and they're delish. No more dwarfs for me...in fact in America there is a sport called Dwarf Tossing...I wonder if that's their plants onto the compost heap...LOl... ;D
Climbing every time....
I have grown Dwarfs... Tendergreen, purple queen and Neckar gold.. but am much happier with my HSL climbing varieties... got Blue Coco, Top of the Pole and Mr Fearns Purple Flowered... all doing great!
;D
For the last couple of seasons I've grown climbing French beans up each side of a metal rose arch (£5 from Wilkos - with a few extra strings added) - they are incredibly easy to pick and look gorgeous, dangling prettily from the top. I tried purple ones this year thinking they'd be easier to see but of course the stems are purple too, so no luck there... good croppers though. Wish I could remember their name!