Guv's Gardens
Photo: Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sun
- Full sun.
- Soil
- Well-drained and moist.
- Soil pH
- 6.0-7.0.
- Water
- Keep soil moist, especially at flowering.
- Hardiness
- Frost-tender warm-season crop; grown Australia-wide.
- Height and spread
- Dwarf types to about 45 cm; climbing types about 2 m or more (need support).
Guv's tipBeans dislike transplanting, so sow them direct. Keep the soil moist, especially at flowering, and pick pods young and often.
Through the year
Timings are for temperate Australia. Tropical and arid gardens follow different seasons.
When to plant
Temperate and cool areas: spring-summer after frost (Tasmania Nov-Dec). Warm climates: much of the year.
Harvest or flowering
From about 8 weeks after sowing; pick pods young and often.
Pruning
None; support climbing types.
Making more plants
Seed sown direct (dislikes transplanting).
Watch out for
Aphids
Look for: Clusters of small sap-suckers on new growth; curled leaves; sticky honeydew.
What to do: Hose off, encourage natural predators, or use insecticidal soap or a registered pyrethrum spray.
Snails and slugs
Look for: Holes chewed in leaves and seedlings; slime trails.
What to do: Hand-pick at night, protect seedlings, and use a registered snail and slug bait sparingly (e.g. iron-based).
Bean rust
Uromyces appendiculatusLook for: Small rusty-brown pustules, mainly on leaf undersides; leaves yellow and drop.
What to do: Remove affected leaves, avoid wetting foliage, rotate crops, and use a registered fungicide (e.g. sulfur) if needed.
Always read and follow the label on any treatment, and check it is approved for use where you live.
Safety and spread
Pets and people: Not listed by the ASPCA. Plain green beans (raw or cooked) are generally safe for dogs.
Weed risk: Not listed as a weed on Weeds Australia or the Queensland restricted invasive plant list.
Growing somewhere else? See this plant for the UK and the USA.
The Plant Doctor and the Guv's book
Printable pest and disease charts with real photographs, and all 50 Australia plants in one book.
