Select your climate zone Australia - cool/mountain Australia - sub-tropical Australia - temperate Australia - tropical New Zealand - cool/mountain New Zealand - sub-tropical New Zealand - temperate United Kingdom - cool/temperate United Kingdom - warm/temperate What is my climate zone?

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
P									P	P	P

(Best months for planting Dwarf beans in Australia - cool/mountain regions)

P = Sow direct in garden where they are to grow.

• Easy to grow.
• Harvest in 7-10 weeks. Pick often to encourage more flower production.
• Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed.
• Best planted at soil temperatures between 16°C and 30°C.
• Space plants: 5-15cm

Frost tender, die off in winter. Traditionally sown in rows, dwarf beans also grow well 'broadcast' or scattered over an area. Just scatter the seed (don't worry about the odd ones which are close up). Cover with soil, potting mix, or compost and firm down with the back of a spade or rake. Grown this way the beans will mostly shade out competing weeds and 'self-mulch'.

Keep watered and watch for shield bugs and green caterpillars Pick the beans regularly to encourage new flowers. Flowering will slow right down if you let the beans get too large (hard and stringy) on the plants. For a continuous crop, plant more seed as soon as the previous planting starts to flower. Protect against snails and slugs - they will completely destroy newly sprouted beans, and will eat the leaves off grown plants.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Dwarf beans

Can be used in salads when young, blanched and cooled.
Will freeze well.

Your comments and tips

18 Apr 10 Heck (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

I have planted dwarf beans for the third time and once again as they reach a height of about 20 cm the stalks go brown and become very soft and the leaves turn yellow and the plant falls over and karks it. I don't think I'm over watering them but we have had a lot of rain of late. I need help please

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

28 Apr 10 (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Maybe bean fly (see comment below from brian)

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

27 Apr 10 (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

It sounds like too much water. Are you growing them in a raised bed to improve drainage?

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

17 Apr 10 brian palfreyman (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Soon after the bean sprouts comes out of the ground they need to be sprayed against the bean fly which stings the newly exposed stalk and lays eggs in the stalk and a grub developes which eats the inside of the stalk and the plant dies I spray mine as soon as the bean emerges from the ground and get a good crop,if I forget to spray them I loose them

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

22 May 10 dan (Australia - tropical climate)

can you tell me the name of the spray to use as we have the same problem.

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

21 Mar 10 Diane (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

My bean plants were also growing very well, they flowered and produced a few beans but now the leaf ends are going brown and look burned (just like Hellbelle 11 Feb post). I would appreciate some feedback about possilbe causes.

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

21 Mar 10 george (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

Can anyone help I have tried twice to get my dwarf beans going but by the time they rreach 6 leaf stage they are being eaten by something. or may be sucked by something.

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

20 Mar 10 monique (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

my beans are really hard what is wrong with them and they are a bit brown

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

16 Feb 10 Liz (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)

Rikkyurk, Water the ground well before sowing the beans, then you can leave them for a few days to germinate. But if the weather is very hot and dry, it might help to water after a day. Have you tried a different variety? Some seem easier than others.

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment

13 Feb 10 Rikkyurk (Australia - sub-tropical climate)

I have tried growing from seed twice and only one from 40 seemed to germinate. I am sowing in rows 1.5 - 2cm deep. As directed on the packet I didn't water for 3 days after sowing. They were a fresh packet of seed too. Any tips?

Reply to this comment | Post a new comment