Description
Grow your own delicious and colourful dwarf French beans! This colour mix of 'Compass', 'Adoration' and 'Mistik' will provide you with tasty green, yellow and purple extra fine bean pods. These bush bean plants produce high yields over a long cropping period, growing to approximately 45cm tall – ideal for patio pots and equally happy in the garden or in raised beds. Pick the dwarf beans regularly to encourage more flowers to set, prolonging the season. Plus, if you have more beans than you need, they freeze well for later use. Height: 45cm (18"). Spread: 30cm (12"). Companion planting: Try growing French beans with Nasturtiums to draw aphids away from your crop.
Sowing
Sow dwarf bean seeds indoors from mid April for transplanting later on, or direct sow outdoors from late May to July.
Indoors, sow bean seeds at a depth of 5cm (2") in 7.5cm (3") pots or trays of free-draining, seed sowing compost. Place in a propagator or seal container inside a plastic bag at a temperature of 12-25C (54-77F) until germination, which takes 7-10 days. Do not exclude light as this helps germination. Once germinated, grow on in cooler conditions until all risk of frost has passed and the dwarf French bean plants are large enough to be transplanted. Gradually acclimatise them to outdoor conditions over 7 - 10 days before planting French beans outdoors in rich fertile, well drained soil in full sun with protection from strong winds.
Alternatively direct sow dwarf green beans outdoors when the soil as warmed. Sow 2 bean seeds per station at a depth of 5cm (2") and a distance of 23cm (9") apart. Plant dwarf beans in rows that are 45cm (18") apart.
More Info
When growing beans, hoe between plants often and water regularly. Provide a compost mulch around the base of bean plants to combat dry periods. For the best crops harvest beans regularly while the pods are still young.
Culinary note: Suitable for freezing. Caution: Cook dwarf beans before eating to avoid discomfort.
