Don't worry they are still in their packets. But I am thinking of having a dedicated area just for beans. I have some long lengths of rebar and the idea is to build a structure that I can tie the canes to each year and grow the beans up. Then after the harvest and the canes are stacked for the winter I will dig big trench and fill it with all the rubbish and compost ready to use again next year. What are your thoughts.
Sounds quite sensible. Have you thought of doing a Munty frame to make picking easier?
No munty frame for me, they look like they take up too much room. Crossed poles and a top runner will do me. Sometimes a teepee frame if I have room and some different beans to try.
Sounds like a good plan Ace. Rebar is such useful stuff.
I rather fancied a Munty frame for my own beans but started quietly last year in our new veggie plot with a couple of obelisks with beans sown at each post. Nothing germinated.
Heat? Drought? Mice? Might try sowing in pots in a more controlled environment and then plant out later.
A plotholder next to me did this for many years. His frame was made up of old scaffolding pipes. He always had an excellent crop.
About 20 years ago, I managed to get some stretcher poles for a contribution which one of the local hospitals were discarding due to the new style stretchers. Being aluminium, they serve the purpose well. I also managed to get some fishing net from a friend of mine which will probably outlast me!!
My frame was made from a swing my kids played on when they were little and that is 40+ years ago.
All I did was remove the cross bar and replaced it with a longer one. The legs were bolted together with fish plates so I removed the plates and drilled the top of the legs and joined each pair of legs with one bolt in each.
This meant the posts swivelled on this bolt meaning I could spread the legs as much as I wanted for stability.
At the end of the season the legs folded together and this along wth the crossbar was stored until required the following season.
For the record the new tenant on my plot has inherited them.
(http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Content/B/Beans-Runner/Bean%20&%20Pea%20frames.jpg)
I was thinking about Munty frames. They are supposed to face south? Does that mean the short poles poles are at the south end, or the tall ones?
If you can get one an old polytunnel frame is excellent... netting up the outside the beans will grow up and over, the leaves outside and the beans hang down inside for easy harvesting.
Quote from: NightWish on February 16, 2019, 11:49:32
I was thinking about Munty frames. They are supposed to face south? Does that mean the short poles poles are at the south end, or the tall ones?
The tall ones are at the south end so the sun can get underneath the frame, then you can grow things underneath as long as you are careful not to tread on them when you pick the beans ;)
this year will be a standard A frame 14ft long steel bar 28 10ft 1/2 inch fibre glass poles the type used for green flags in golf ive tried allsorts of frames shapes and sizes but this one always seems to be the best sturdy as im by the coast and put together in an hour fibre glass poles robust and dont rot
I need to try something stronger. We have wind problems and they easily get blown over.
QuoteI need to try something stronger. We have wind problems and they easily get blown over.
I use an idea from my Boy scout days; I use guy ropes!
In the attached photo you can just make out a steel stake driven into the ground between the two sets of canes. Then I suspend two wires from the top of the frame and tie these to the said stake.
I find the 'A' frames can not go inwards, outwards or sideways choose how windy it is!
On the traditional frame, tying some canes diagonally across the canes on each side gives the frame rigidity in that direction as well.