Runner Beans

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karstopography
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Runner Beans

#1

Post: # 18287Unread post karstopography
Sat Apr 25, 2020 8:22 am

Any of you well seasoned gardeners grown Runner Beans? Would love to hear about your experience with these, especially anyone way down south along the Gulf of Mexico coast. Thinking of growing these for the pretty bird and bee attracting flowers, but also I am interested in what they might be like in the kitchen, flavor wise.
Zone 9b, located in the Columbia bottomlands, annual rainfall 46”

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brownrexx
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Re: Runner Beans

#2

Post: # 18288Unread post brownrexx
Sat Apr 25, 2020 8:27 am

I grew Scarlet Runner beans and the hummingbirds absolutely loved the red flowers. Unfortunately the Japanese Beetles also loved them so I quit growing them. The beans were pretty and tasted OK but they were the size of large Lima beans and we prefer smaller beans.

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Labradors
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Re: Runner Beans

#3

Post: # 18317Unread post Labradors
Sat Apr 25, 2020 11:35 am

They are delicious and do well in the north. Pick them when they are about 8" long and slice the whole thing as thin as you can, pod and all. Don't wait too long to pick them though or they become stringy. You can cut out the strings by slicing the whole bean thinly where the strings are, but they are best when young and tender.

Insuk's Wang Kong is supposed to be an excellent variety that may do well in the south. I don't know, but it does very well here.

Linda

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worth1
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Re: Runner Beans

#4

Post: # 18334Unread post worth1
Sat Apr 25, 2020 1:35 pm

Start them way early in little 4 inch pots in the house or a green house.
I hauled mine in and out of the house depending on the weather.
Let runners get to about a foot long or so and transplant in the garden.
This will give you a head start on the heat.
They wont bloom in your heat or mine and if you protect the root system where you live from freezing they should come back the next spring.
Worth
25 miles southeast of Waterloo Texas.

You can't argue with a closed mind.
You might as well be arguing with a cat.

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karstopography
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Re: Runner Beans

#5

Post: # 18344Unread post karstopography
Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:17 pm

I was thinking of putting them in the fall. Most years, we don’t really get a freeze, maybe a light frost and not until December at the earliest. I thought if I put them sometime very end of summer or early in the fall I could get a crop in before things got too cool. Might be a bad idea, though.
Zone 9b, located in the Columbia bottomlands, annual rainfall 46”

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worth1
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Re: Runner Beans

#6

Post: # 18346Unread post worth1
Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:21 pm

Nothing is a bad idea until it is proven it is a bad idea.
I had an airplane plant growing in the crotch of a hackberry tree for years down there.
Worth
25 miles southeast of Waterloo Texas.

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Hatgirl
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Re: Runner Beans

#7

Post: # 18452Unread post Hatgirl
Sun Apr 26, 2020 12:05 pm

We grow them every year - we even have one plant that has survived every Irish winter for a decade. Very unusual!
You eat the whole pod, not just the seeds. Pick them before the string thickens - it takes some trial and error to figure out the ideal size - top and tail them, chop them up, blanch them and enjoy!
The variety we usually grow is Scarlet Emperor.

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PlainJane
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Re: Runner Beans

#8

Post: # 18455Unread post PlainJane
Sun Apr 26, 2020 12:20 pm

I’ve found they don’t really like the relentless heat and humidity in N. Florida so I only attempt them in the fall. Same is true of many other pole beans I’ve tried. Red Noodle does great in the heat and the flowers are pretty, albeit not as spectacular as runners.
“Never try to outstubborn a cat.”
- Robert A. Heinlein

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karstopography
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Re: Runner Beans

#9

Post: # 18483Unread post karstopography
Sun Apr 26, 2020 8:06 pm

I ordered some Painted Lady Runner Pole Beans and might try them this fall, maybe in the space where my speckled butter beans are currently. I also ordered some of the Red Noodle beans, those might go where the French filet beans are happily growing, those French beans probably will fail when it gets really hot.
Zone 9b, located in the Columbia bottomlands, annual rainfall 46”

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wykvlvr
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Re: Runner Beans

#10

Post: # 57614Unread post wykvlvr
Fri Nov 19, 2021 1:32 pm

Grin cool not heat is my problem so I tried runners this year. And of course we had a dry hot summer where they sulked. But they did well once it cooled off and even handled a couple of light freezes with minimal loss of leaves. I will grow them again.
Wyoming
Zone 5
Elevation : 6,063 ft
Climate : semi-arid
Avg annual rainfall = 16 inches

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Spike
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Re: Runner Beans

#11

Post: # 57616Unread post Spike
Fri Nov 19, 2021 1:52 pm

I grow them cause they are pretty and the bees love them! Plus they grow like crazy with little to no attention!
There is freedom waiting for you, On the breezes of the sky, And you ask 'What if I fall?' Oh but my darling, What if you fly?

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Tormato
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Re: Runner Beans

#12

Post: # 57623Unread post Tormato
Fri Nov 19, 2021 5:04 pm

The vines still grow good in hot weather. It's just that every single flower will drop.

rxkeith
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Re: Runner Beans

#13

Post: # 57629Unread post rxkeith
Fri Nov 19, 2021 7:31 pm

i have grown aerons purple pod runner a few years. seed came from annette barcley in B.C. pretty flowers that attract hummers.
they do well here in the north, and i am able to save seed. i haven't cooked any, but they have a nice crispy taste. crispy like a stalk
of celery. i grew one gigandes this year. i thought it was a lima bean, but its a runner. that one plant produced a dozen seeds for me.
thats it. it is normally more productive than that. the bean might need more company maybe, or it could be it was just a poor year for
pole beans here. i am on the fence about growing it again. we did have hot weather, dry too. might explain the poor production.


keith

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MissS
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Re: Runner Beans

#14

Post: # 57637Unread post MissS
Fri Nov 19, 2021 9:22 pm

Runner beans have done well for me here in the north. I first grew them to attract and feed the hummingbirds. The birds did use them regularly. The beans themselves taste very good but not as good as my favorite pole beans. I use the whole pod and harvest them before they become stringy. They do have the most gorgeous bean seeds that I have ever seen. The Japanese Beetles finally found my yard and yes they do enjoy dining on the plants. Any bean is now a challenge to grow.
~ Patti ~

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GoDawgs
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Re: Runner Beans

#15

Post: # 57668Unread post GoDawgs
Sat Nov 20, 2021 6:02 am

For years I have been on the fence about growing runner beans. They look really pretty but I always wondered about their eating quality. From the posts below it seems they don't do well in the heat so down here that means planting in the fall. That's always an iffy proposition as sometimes September can be as hot as torrid August and legumes don't germinate well in hot soil. I have recently worked around that with fall bush beans planted in late August by covering their well moistened planted rows with soaked newspapers folded twice lengthwise.

Any tips from any of you in hot weather areas?

What varieties are you all growing?

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Tormato
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Re: Runner Beans

#16

Post: # 57675Unread post Tormato
Sat Nov 20, 2021 6:52 am

Eating quality is good, although one may need to get used to a rougher pod surface. Insuk's Wang Kong may have higher heat tolerance than most, from what I've read.

zeedman
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Re: Runner Beans

#17

Post: # 57908Unread post zeedman
Tue Nov 23, 2021 12:26 am

I grow quite a few runner beans (2 each year) but even this far North, the blossoms will drop in hot weather. But they keep blooming, and if there is even a 1-2 day cool snap, the vines will set dozens of pods. Spraying down the vines with a hose in the afternoon seems to help too. Some of the semi-domesticated heirlooms from Mexico & the Southwest seem to handle the heat better, and set a more reliable seed crop. The finickiest runner beans seem to be those with white blossoms & large white seeds (Gigandes, Bianco de Spagna, Piekny Jas) which have all been temperamental here. I have yet to get a really good crop - but those HUGE shellies are delicious, and worth the effort.

While the immature pods of all varieties can be eaten as snaps, they have a course texture (as others have mentioned) and are best sliced thinly. Personally, if common beans can be grown, I would choose them for snaps... but in cool maritime climates, where common beans can struggle, runner beans are a more reliable option. The U.K has devoted much more attention to breeding runner beans for use as snaps, and has numerous named varieties.

For those in hot climates like the OP, I would suggest either trying hyacinth beans, or sword beans. Both are tropical, strong climbers, have attractive blossoms, and are sweet smelling. I can't vouch for whether they would attract hummingbirds, but the flowers are conspicuous, so it wouldn't surprise me. The seeds should be considered toxic, but the immature pods of hyacinth beans (in their 'snow pea' stage) can be cooked as green beans.
"But though an old man, I am but a young gardener.“ - Thomas Jefferson

NarnianGarden
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Re: Runner Beans

#18

Post: # 76744Unread post NarnianGarden
Sun Aug 21, 2022 3:32 pm

This is the first time I'm trying to grow Runner bean (a variety with lovely red flowers), and so far, ants have bit off several flowers...
Currently I got four (4) pods hanging on the branches - this is not going to feed anyone ..!

I did read that the whole plant is edible, including the leaves. So in order to get some nutrition, I may have to use some new leaves for a veggie stew.. and flowers in a salad. Better than nothing :)

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wykvlvr
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Re: Runner Beans

#19

Post: # 76748Unread post wykvlvr
Sun Aug 21, 2022 4:50 pm

Unlike most garden beans Runner Beans need a pollinator and they sulk in high heat or humidity. They have hated our summer this year :( but my garden beans are loaded with baby beans :) hoping winter holds off long enough for a good harvest.
Wyoming
Zone 5
Elevation : 6,063 ft
Climate : semi-arid
Avg annual rainfall = 16 inches

NarnianGarden
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Re: Runner Beans

#20

Post: # 76779Unread post NarnianGarden
Mon Aug 22, 2022 4:47 am

wykvlvr wrote: Sun Aug 21, 2022 4:50 pm Unlike most garden beans Runner Beans need a pollinator and they sulk in high heat or humidity. They have hated our summer this year :( but my garden beans are loaded with baby beans :) hoping winter holds off long enough for a good harvest.
Thanks for the info... plenty of pollinators around our yard (bumble bees and bees), but they have their own favourite flowers..

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