Heirloom Green Beans

Green beans are one of the easiest heirloom vegetables a gardener can grow.  They require little effort to maintain, since the beans crowd out weeds and do not suffer from pest destruction that many other vegetables are susceptible to.  If you have alot of Japanese beetles the beans will be a favorite for them, but usually they don't cause irreparable harm and actually draw them away from other weaker plants.

Two of my favorite varieties are Kentucky Wonder (since I'm a Kentucky native, go figure) and Bush Blue Lake 274.  Depending on the size of your garden and your desire for summer long eating, versus canning and preserving, you might want to consider one...or even better...both.

Kentucky Wonder beans can be grown in just about all parts of country since they are a very short maturing bean...around 63 days from planting.  They are also resistant to most diseases that affect beans, like rust disease, and can withstand extremes in temperatures and moisture.  As a "pole" bean, they need to be staked or grown on a trellis.  One of my favorite ways to stake them is to visit a nearby creek that has cane poles (you know, the kind you used as a kid for fishing) and cut at least 4 poles per hill 6'-8' tall.  If those aren't available to you, most home improvement and garden stores carry them as well.  Push them in the ground to form a tee-pee, tie off the top sturdily, then plant a ring of 4-5 seeds at the base of each pole.  This makes great use of vertical space in small gardens and can yield enough for a family of four to eat all summer with just 3-4 tee-pees.  And because they are pole beans, as long as you pick them regularly starting when the beans are about 6" long, you'll have fresh green snap beans for weeks on end. If you just can't wait, pick them at about 4" long and steam whole for a really tender treat.

Bush Blue Lake are just what their name implies, a "bush" bean.  These are a common favorite among gardeners using more traditional size and methods of gardening and can also be grown virtually anywhere.  Each bean bush will grow about 1 1/2 to 2' tall, do not require staking or trellising, and produce an abundance of beans within about 58 days of planting.  This makes bush beans ideal for those wanting a large quantity of beans at one time to can or freeze.  Two 10' rows of beans planted 6" apart (see picture above) and fertilized heavily have provided enough for me to freeze 8 pints, plus cook at least that many pints fresh, thus far this summer.  Based on the blooms still intact when I last picked a few days ago, I would expect to get at least one more good picking in the next week before the heat of August takes it's toll.  And, because our average frost date in middle Tennessee is October 15th, I'll still have time to plant them again for a second harvest in late September! When picked at about 6" long, these beans are also stringless, which makes snapping a snap!