Beans and peas are relatively easy to grow, making them a great choice for a novice gardener or a new plot of land. These legumes also have a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-producing bacteria, and can therefore improve the nutrition of the soil in which they are found. Follow these instructions for growing beans or peas - and then eat them straight from the plant, to discover their true flavor!
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Part 1: Planning a Bean Farm
Step 1. Choose a suitable location
Beans generally need direct sunlight for at least six hours a day. They grow very well in warmer climates. Some bean varieties, such as those that were traditionally grown in corn fields, tolerate shade better and will still produce without the need for direct sunlight or 6 hours of lighting per day.
Create a solar diagram to determine which part of your garden is best suited for beans
Step 2. Choose a bean variety that suits your tastes and geographic location
Each species has different lighting, space, planting and harvesting requirements, not to mention flavor. Some beans are suitable for eating raw, while others need to be shelled and dried for use in cooking. There are two general categories of beans:
- Runner beans grow tall and need support. They are very pleasing to the eye and mostly take up vertical space.
- Bushy beans are compact and do not need supports. They don't create much shade, so they can be planted more easily next to other plants.
Method 2 of 3: Part 2: Planning a Pea Farm
Step 1. Choose a suitable location
Although peas usually need at least 6 hours of sunshine per day, they are better suited to colder climates. If you live in a warm climate area, plant them in an area that doesn't get direct sunlight or that stays in the shade during the hottest hours - a spot partially shaded by a tree would be ideal.
Create a solar diagram to determine which part of your garden is best suited for peas
Step 2. Choose a pea variety that suits your tastes and geographic location
Each species has different lighting, space, planting and harvesting requirements, not to mention the different flavor. Additionally, some species grow tall and need support (a great way to use vertical space), while others are more compact (and won't create much shade for other plants). There are three general categories of peas:
- Garden peas are grown only for their seeds, and must be shelled after harvest. There are varieties that grow in height and others that are shorter.
- Snow peas are grown for their flat, sweet pods and their seeds. It is not necessary to shell them, as they are completely edible, but they taste best when harvested unripe. There are varieties that grow in height and others that are shorter.
- Round-poded snow peas are also grown for seeds and pods, but they are thicker than regular snow peas and look more like green beans. They are only available in climbing varieties.
Method 3 of 3: Part 3: Planting Beans and Peas
Step 1. Decide the number of plants you want to plant
The number will be limited by the space requirements of the variety you have chosen. If you plan to plant rows, be sure to leave enough space between them for easy access - particularly if you are choosing a climbing variety.
Step 2. Get some seeds
The seeds are the beans and peas themselves, so unlike other types of seeds, you will need relatively fresh seeds. Fresh beans or peas bought at the market will do well; fresh seeds bought at the grocery store might do as well, but you will probably not know the exact species and many of them will not hatch. Alternatively, you can buy dry seeds if they are not very old (check the date on the package). Frozen or canned beans and peas are useless in this case.
For dry beans, test them before using them. Soak a few in water, then place them in a wet paper towel and fold it. Keep the handkerchief slightly damp (wet it about once a day), and after two or three days, open it and check. If you notice any shoots growing from the hatched bean, it will be a good sign that they are healthy and that you can proceed with planting. If they haven't changed at all, give them a couple more days, and if you still don't get results, change beans
Step 3. Prepare the ground
Place some soil in a suitable sized container (unfertilized potting soil will do) or dig up the soil where you want to plant the seeds. You will need about 6 inches of loose, rich soil. If your soil is mostly clay or sandy, you will likely get better results in a pot - or buy some compost and potting soil, mix them with the earth you dug - about 1: 1 - and put it back in place, so you form a small mound.
Don't overdo the fertilizer. Remember that beans and peas can make their own nitrogen. If you add too much nitrogen to the soil with fertilizer, the plant will grow a lot, but it will produce less fruit
Step 4. Consider sowing at intervals
If you're only going to grow a few plants, that might not be a problem; however, if you want to plant 15, you may have too much to do at harvest time. In addition, some bean species are "determined", meaning they will flower and bear fruit in a single moment. You will only get one large crop, then the plants will die. Others are "indeterminate" and will flower and bear fruit throughout their growth (several weeks or months). You won't get as many pods at once - usually no more than 5-6 ripe pods per plant every couple of days - but you can harvest them for much longer.
- Assuming you're growing an indeterminate variety, two plants will produce enough for one person (as a side dish) every couple of days. Use this reference to calculate how often you will want to eat beans and how many people will eat them.
- For certain species, you can prepare a good meal or two with the beans or preserve them by drying them, canning them, putting them in oil, etc.
Step 5. Plant the seeds
Stick a finger into the soil where you will plant, about 2.5 to 5 cm, and put the seed in that hole. Repack the soil above it (to ensure contact with the soil, which is critical for germination) and water "gently" (to avoid exposing the seed again). For example, pour water on your hand and sprinkle it where you planted the seed.
- Although different from variety to variety, the beans should be planted about a week or two before the expected date of the last spring frost. Try to plant in soil that is above 16 ° C. Remember that varieties with colored seeds are more likely to germinate in cold soils than varieties with white seeds.
- Peas are usually planted about six to eight weeks before the last frost (soil temperature 10 ° C or higher). Some peas (snow peas) prefer cooler temperatures and are more of a spring and fall plant in most climates. Again, the variety you have decided to plant may have different needs.
- If you buy real packaged seeds ready for planting, you will be able to read about the directions to plant more than you need and reduce the number to a more manageable amount. You can do this, but remember that if you don't remove enough seeds (or soon enough), the seedlings will start competing for nutrients, and their growth will either slow down or die.
- You can plant the seeds more or less where you want them to grow. Some will not germinate, so plant a few in each spot to make sure you grow enough plants. For example, if your plants should be six inches apart, plant three seeds every six inches. Don't plant them too close; if they all germinate, it will be difficult to remove the unwanted ones without hurting the ones you want to save.
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Plantingpeas_848 If you are sowing a large area with beans or peas, doing it by hand can be an exhausting job. Consider using a planter machine or a tractor with a seeder.
- Depending on the variety and if you have planted fresh, dry or germinated seeds, you will be able to see the first shoots emerge from the surface in 2 - 10 days.
Step 6. Give the plants support.
Most peas and beans are climbing plants. You will therefore need something they can grow on: a fence, a net between two posts, individual posts for each plant, or a bean hut (made from 3-4 bamboo canes tied together). It is best to have the supports ready when you sow. The props will help you mark the location of the seeds.
If you want to grow peas or beans along a metal fence - especially one that borders your neighbor - make sure you don't have a problem sacrificing anything that grows on the other side. If the fence is hit by the sun on the outside, it is better not to use it as a support; most of the plant will grow on the sunniest side
Step 7. Prepare a watering schedule
Water the plants at least once a day - and even more often if the weather is dry - but remember that too much water is just as bad as drought. To test the soil, push a finger into the earth. If your finger gets muddy or wet, you are watering too much; your finger should be wet or dry.
Water with a sprinkler on a pump or watering can. Do not use a pump directly on the seeds; you will wash them away or drown them
Step 8. As soon as the seedlings reach 2.5 - 5 cm in height, attach them to the vertical surface
If you drop them, they could rot on the surface and they could climb onto a neighbor's property and it would be difficult to detach them without breaking them. Keep checking them and getting them to join support. They grow fast!
At this point, plants can receive more direct watering, but still avoid using the pump directly to do so
Step 9. Collect pea shoots if you wish
Pea sprouts are delicious, raw or cooked. When the peas reach 10 - 15 cm in height, you can cut the two upper "layers" of leaves and take them to the kitchen. Don't cut more though; the stem becomes fibrous as it grows, so only cut the tip, which is softer. The pea plant will continue to grow, and you can harvest this delicacy several times.
Step 10. Watch the plants grow
The flowers will begin to appear a few weeks after the seedling emerges - beans and peas produce flowers of many different colors, including white, pink and purple, so you may want to place some in a flower garden as well. When a flower dries up, a pod will grow from that point.
Step 11. Collect the pods
If you have planted a variety whose pods are edible, pick them up and eat them when they are larger. If it is not an edible pod variety, wait until the pods are full and you can see the bulges caused by the peas and beans inside. Pick them up, open them, and use the peas or beans inside them.
- Some varieties, such as snow peas, taste best when picked slightly unripe.
- Collect them the same day you use them - and just before eating them if possible. Their flavor will begin to wane as soon as you harvest them.
- Always harvest the pods before they stay too long on the plant. A taste of a pod that is too large will tell you why; even if they are not harmful, they are not very good either. The texture is rough and they lose their sweetness.
Step 12. Let a few pods fully mature near the end of the growing season
If you like your chosen strain, you can use the seeds to plant it again the following year.
Advice
- Consider a mixed crop to improve the health of your soil and crop.
- To better plan your cultivation, ask an expert for advice.
- Growers water pea plants with 70ml of water per plant every two days.
Warnings
- If you see bugs on peas - small green or brown bugs (aphids), tiny whiteflies, or something that looks like white fluff under the leaves (another type of whitefly) - at a minimum, wash them off with dish soap and water. If there is a branch all over it, cut the branch and throw it, then wash the adjacent branches; if they are all over the plant, pull the plant out and throw it away. Different plants will be more or less vulnerable to disease, so look in the botanical books for diseases and pests that affect peas and beans.
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Most peas and beans are prone to powdery mildew and other pests. If you see white film or dust on some leaves, cut off the affected branch, even if it has peas or flowers on it, and throw it away. Do not use it as compost and do not leave it near other plants. It is possible to spot an infestation early and deal with it, but if most of a plant is infected, weed it out and discard it - then look closely at the plants next to it. If you get a severe infestation, don't plant peas or tomatoes in the same land the following year; they will be infected immediately. If you don't deal with the infestation right away, the leaves and stem will begin to dry out and turn brown, causing the entire plant to die quickly (and possibly spreading powdery mildew to nearby plants!).
When the first symptoms appear, make a 9: 1 solution of water and powdered milk and spray it under and over the plants once or twice a week. You will neutralize infestations in the early stages and prevent future infestations. You can alternate with a light solution of apple cider vinegar or baking soda. You will likely be able to fight off the infestation before it reaches its final stages
- Don't grow the same plant in the same spot for more than a year or two; rotate crops in your garden to prevent soil-related diseases from building up over time.
