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Can anyone tell me the best way to dry out the last of my beans (broad, runner & french) ready to plant next year. I spread some out on newspaper in the garage, but they seem to be going soft. Is it too cold in the garage.

I tend to put mine somewhere warmer, I have a pantry that is unheated but indoors and I usually put them there.

I just leave mine on the "vine" until they are dry.  If indoors you need some where dry, preferably with some airflow and warmish..

What we have done is to take the beans out of there pods and put them on a plate in the windowsill. And they have seemed to have dried out OK. We have left them there for a bout a week or two. but this is our first time we have done anything like this. For next year if we still have an allotment.

When it was bit warmer I hung mine up into GH..with open windows they dried very quickly. After shelling them I bring them indoors and carry on drying the beans on trays or shallow cardboard boxes.
Last of my beans are still in GH..but as they are not drying that well anymore, I shall bring them indoors and lay them on newspaper on dining table.. ;D...once dry I process as described above.

I put mine on the radiator.  Had good germination.  I have found slower drying can lead to them going mouldy. 

I hung up the whole bean vines in a shed one year and the dried leaves made a terrible mess.

Airing cupboard for me.

Made trays out of newspaper, and left a layer of beans in each one on a trunk in the bedroom for about two weeks. Lots of trays of beans, bit eccentric looking but I don't suppose that would stop many people on this forum  :)

Thanks everyone so far. So is it better to let them dry first still in the pods. I have already removed them from their pods and got them in trays.

Yes let them dry on the pod if for saving for re-sowing.

Will that be leave them on the pod and still on the plant, or pick them first and leave them in the pod?

I leave them on the plant, but would have picked by now as getting too damp now.

You could put them in a dry greenhouse. Just be carefull the mice dont get'em first  :P  ;D

I think that you need to take them inside to dry before the frost gets at the pod.  Certain varieties such as Major Cook produce very fleshy pods very late and they simply do not dry on the plant outside.

I did have some beans in a seed swap that went mouldy when I sowed them.  Luckily I had not sown all of them so the next batch I rinsed in Aloe Vera joice first. 

I found out the hard way one year that there can be insect infestation from the bean seds, which then spread into hy other various saved seeds!  Trick is to freeze for 24 hours all bean seed (once properly dried). I put them in little screw-top jars now and freeze them in those, and then store them in the same jars.  I  grow a lot of beans for drying and eating (eg haricot) and always freeze these too, before storing. 
Here I leave all the beans on the plants until properly dry, and harvest them over several weeks, keep them in the kitchen a few more days, and only then pod them.  It's a lovely job to do on a sunny autumn day (if you have one!)

Quote from: Digeroo on October 20, 2011, 23:38:20
I think that you need to take them inside to dry before the frost gets at the pod.  Certain varieties such as Major Cook produce very fleshy pods very late and they simply do not dry on the plant outside.

I did have some beans in a seed swap that went mouldy when I sowed them.  Luckily I had not sown all of them so the next batch I rinsed in Aloe Vera joice first. 

Getting mouldy after sowing, especially with white seeded varieties, is probably a cultural problem.  Most likely conditions were too damp.   This is why direct sown white bean seeds are a problem in damp UK conditions on heavy soil.  Less of an issue on sandy soil.  I pre-grow beans indoors and transplant and only water from below.  If it is a little too dry, germination will be delayed a few days - no problem - if too wet, seeds are lost.   WHat does Aloe Vera juice do?  I have heard of a one hour soak in camomile tea for beans but never tried it.

once i've dried my beans / seeds store them in jars with a silicon gel sachet like you get in shoe boxes, bags etc stops them getting damp.

If you leave them too long you lose the seeds. I take peas indoors for drying once the pods start turning brown. Where beans are concerned, I leave them till it's clear the plants aren't going to develop further, then pick them and dry them indoors. Beans take a while to dry, so I've got almost none from this year for JayB's seed swap, just a few Black Magic runners.

QuoteCertain varieties such as Major Cook produce very fleshy pods very late and they simply do not dry on the plant outside.

Funny this is the first year I've grown them, and they were the the driest of all the pods, very early on. I wonder if that was my strain of Major Cooks, or just the growing conditions?