Growing Beans - climbing, also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners

Phaseolus vulgaris, Phaseolus coccineus : Fabaceae / the pea or legume family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
        P              

(Best months for growing Beans - climbing in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 61°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 4 - 8 inches apart
  • Harvest in 9-11 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Sweetcorn, spinach, lettuce, summer savory, dill, carrots, brassicas, beets, radish, strawberry, cucumbers, zucchini, tagates minuta (wild marigold)
  • Avoid growing close to: Alliums (Chives, leek, garlic, onions), Florence fennel

Your comments and tips

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18 May 20, Linda (Australia - tropical climate)
Just wondering if you could be experiencing an ant problem? So ants here in the tropics, especially ginger ants actually attack seedling and plants above and below the ground. They are very small and some times not so easy to detect. Just a thought from past experience similar to your problem. I didn't suspect them at first thinking they were just looking for insects but in fact they are eating/sucking the life out of my plants. In my case I used a product called Amdro at the nest site.
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22 Apr 20, M (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
When planting beans, wet the soil the day before planting them. Then plant them and cover over with soil. Do not water again for 4 days unless it is very hot. After 4 days give a very light watering if the surface soil looks dry. They should germinate within a few days. Little plants need little waterings. Good idea to water in the morning.
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22 Apr 20, Anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I suggest you buy a general gardening fertiliser. Blood and bone is not a complete all round fertiliser and seasol is not a fertiliser.
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22 Apr 20, Anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I don't grow them in the autumn, I grow them in the spring. The bean fly gets them this time of the year. Was told to put boron in the soil before planting.
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07 Apr 20, Don McLeod (New Zealand - temperate climate)
I bought a few years ago a different scarlet runner flowers white & red they have turned out to be a perenial not an annual like most modern runners . Query can I cut back while the leaves are green or do I have to leave and let die back so the root system gets more nourishment ? Thanks
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20 Apr 20, Claudia (Australia - temperate climate)
Scarlet runner bean aka 7 year bean is a perennial bean. It will die back in the cooler months and shoot up again when warm enough. You can cut them back, compost, seaweed solution and mulch. When it starts to shoot up again, it will need a good feed.
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08 Apr 20, anon (Australia - temperate climate)
My thoughts on this are, you paid $3-5 for a packet of seeds and they probably produced $20- 30 worth of beans. That is a pretty good investment. If you like, let a few mature and keep the seeds for planting in the future. Why bother messing around with old plants trimming them and looking after them for months. Your soil needs a good working over and resting and manure compost etc added to build it up for the next season of plants.
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06 Apr 20, Jeanette Hagan (New Zealand - temperate climate)
We bought a packet of bean seeds about 6 years ago from M10. Unfortunately we lost the packet and can't identify the name of the bean. Can anyone help. The seed is black when you plant it. The beans are a climbing bean. Very flat and Matt (not shiny). They are the BEST tasting bean and produce prolifically. We save the seed annually, but would love to know what they are. Please!
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07 Apr 20, Toni Robertson (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Hi www.koanga.org.nz have a black runner bean seed called Takamatua. Check the photo on their site. Great range of NZ heritage seeds on this site.
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06 Apr 20, Anon (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)
Go to a seed selling website and look through the beans seeds they sell, you will probably find what you grew. Try Boondie Seeds or Eden Seeds.
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Showing 61 - 70 of 268 comments
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Since I'm from North America, my answer is a "canned/typical" answer. MANY people use the 3 sisters planting here -- -- The "Three Sisters" planting method is a traditional Indigenous companion planting technique using corn, beans, and squash together in clusters. Today’s gardeners will want to keep in mind that Indigenous cultivators who originated Three Sisters farming would have been growing dent, flint, or flour corn rather than sweet corn. The corn stalks serve as a living trellis for their sister beans. Although you can grow sweet corn as a substitute for the flint type, avoid popcorn. The stalks of these plants are short enough that they might be overwhelmed by the other plants. Don’t attempt to substitute bush beans for the pole type, as the former won’t climb. You can choose whichever type of squash or pumpkin suits your fancy for this sister planting. Keep in mind that summer squashes tend to grow more bushy than vine-like, so they don’t make the best groundcover. In addition to the Three Sisters, you may also want to sow other tall plants, like sunflower, Jerusalem artichoke, or amaranth, in the spaces between the hills. There, squash vines will provide groundcover for them. In addition to attracting pollinators, these extra plants can produce a crop, too. Sow them at the same time you sow the corn to give them a head start on the squash vines. This planting creates a symbiotic system where corn provides a stalk for beans to climb, beans add nitrogen to the soil, and squash covers the ground to retain moisture and suppress weeds, offering a balanced, sustainable food source. The sequence involves planting corn first, then beans a few weeks later, and squash after the beans have started to grow, ensuring each plant supports the others as they mature. Plant the corn and beans on a mound -- and the squash around the mound -- plant the additional plants (if desired) between the mounds (sunflower, Jerusalem artichoke, or amaranth, or other tall plant). So in your case : 1. build your mounds & plant your SWEET corn in the middle of the mound (also plant the additional plants between the mound if desired - don't forget the boron for the corn), give it a couple of weeks, then 2. plant your POLE beans (or Green bean, string bean, snap bean), once the beans are going, 3. plant your WINTER squash around the mound. IF YOU ARE IN A VERY ARID AREA -- mounds dry out quickly, so you'll need to water MORE OR skip mounding and plant this formation flat.

- Celeste Archer

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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