The bright blossoms of the runner beans have been delighting us for a few weeks. It is now the beginning of July and the first pods are ready to be harvested. They can be harvested as young green beans or as mature dry beans. Fire beans are also poisonous when raw. Delicious and wholesome vegetable dishes and salads are cooked from it.

harvest time

Runner beans sown in May bear the first ripe fruits from the beginning of July. Regular picking stimulates the formation of new fruit. You can harvest late-sown fire beans until the frost.

Harvest runner beans as tender, green beans

The small, young beans from a size of 5 cm are particularly tender. They are harvested as whole pods and processed as string beans.

Harvest mature dry beans

If you want to harvest dry beans, you have to let the pods and seeds fully ripen. If the weather stays dry, you let the pods dry out on the plant. Then spread them out side by side in a dry place and let them dry for at least two weeks.

Also eat fire beans cooked!

As with all types of beans, the pods and seeds of the runner bean are poisonous when raw. That's why you should always cook the beans before you eat them as a vegetable, soup or bean salad.

Preserve Fire Beans

You can preserve fire beans by boiling them down and freezing them. Freezing is recommended. This method preserves vitamins and flavor best.

High-yielding varieties

  • Lady Di: 2 cm thick and up to 30 cm long, threadless pods
  • Moonlight: new variety with fleshy pods, suitable for preserving and freezing

tips and tricks

Runner beans are the best when sown in May through June. They cope well with cooler weather in spring. On the other hand, the heat and drought in summer make it difficult for the flowers and pods to form.

Category:

Vegetable garden