Broad bean flowers (or not...)

Need to know the best time to plant?

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Pawty
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Morning,

I planted three different varieties of broad bean this year. There are pods on them on the lower parts of the stem (although not in massive numbers), so they must have flowered at some point (although I think I missed it). However, there are no more flowers continuing to develope ...... I'm sure there normally are at this time of year, and others on the lotty have lots? Does this sound right? Should I put it down to the weather?

The beans are still quite small. Again, I'm sure I've normally harvested by now.

Note to self .... Keep a diary next year!

I do however finally have one flower on my sweet peas!

Pawty
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Tony Hague
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Mine have grown very tall, but seem to have fewer flowers/pods developing than I would normally expect, and like everything that isn't inside a slug by now, they are late this year.
Westi
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Just a bizarre year Pawty. The only thing I can say is best bear with it, whatever the weather I would think they would have a desire to flower & there are pollinators around. Mine were stuck in limbo for a while doing nothing much then had a wee spot of sun & I harvested 1/2 a plastic bag full on the weekend - which were lush in Jamie O's crushed peas & broad beans on garlic crostini. :D

Westi
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Monika
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Same here, Pawty and Tony. We have some lovely broad beans on the lower parts but just leaves at the top on the plants which I sowed very early. The later ones seem to be more balanced but with the damper weather recently, I just hope there are enough insects about to pollinate them!

Our peas have really benefited from the rain and the crop is enormous.
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Pawty
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Nothing I love more than young crushed broad beans on toast, and to be honest, it wasn't until I grew them myself that I realised this.

It's a completely underrated veg. Soo many people say 'yuck, I hate broad beans' . Years of eating tough old frozen things. All I can say is grow a few in the back garden and you'll never look back! Assuming they grow and the slugs don't eat them that is!

I will keep my fingers crossed - but good to know that I'm not alone and not doing something daft.
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Geoff
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All I can say is grow a few in the back garden and you'll never look back!


Especially if they are green ones - bacon, beans and new potatoes.
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Pa Snip
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Pawty wrote:Nothing I love more than young crushed broad beans on toast, and to be honest, it wasn't until I grew them myself that I realised this.
It's a completely underrated veg. Soo many people say 'yuck, I hate broad beans' . Years of eating tough old frozen things. All I can say is grow a few in the back garden and you'll never look back!


OMG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You'll be suggesting having them with Marmite next !!!!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

The danger when people start to believe their own publicity is that they often fall off their own ego.

At least travelling under the guise of the Pa Snip Enterprise gives me an excuse for appearing to be on another planet
Westi
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They've always got to be popped out of the white/grey skin though. I couldn't even put them in my mouth as they looked so gross, so used to grow & give them to my fiend for years, then the clever chefs started talking about podding them & I thought they looked so glossy & green I couldn't not try them.

I throw them in soups, salads, crush them, make fritters, and still just love the look at the cute green beans. Not to mention I love the shells having that little fluffy lining. Fingers crossed for you all with your beans, I have my 2nd sowing about a foot tall and my 3rd just popping through, so they might achieve a bit of real summer weather at some point - maybe!


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I'm growing the little Stereo variety and harvested the first few pods yesterday. They have pods all the way up the stems and are still flowering at the top, so no problems here. If you aren't sure about broad beans I can recommend these. They are really sweet and tender and don't have the leathery skins. They are small pods and beans though - probably why they are so tender.

I don't have any prob lems with pollination as we have a huge number of bumble bees this year. At least six different types. It is nice to see them doing so well as the butterflies and other insects don't seem to be doing very well at all.

Anothe broad bean question, has anyone cooked and eaten the pods? If so are they worth eating and how did you cook them? I suppose I should just give it a try with them being so nice and tender it's a shame to throw them away.
Monika
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I had a good look at our broad beans on the allotment today: the variety de Monica only has pods at the bottom and no flowers or pods on the top half whereas Masterpiece Green Longpod has flowers from bottom to top with the bottom row just starting to pod. So, certainly in our case, it seems to be the variety that makes the difference.

The de Monica grown in the garden (and planted out much earlier than those on the allotment) also only have pods at the bottom half but they are long, full and tasty.
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Pawty
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Had an evening at the allotment ... Feeling slightly frustrated this year. The broad beans which have pods now appear to have been eaten... But I'm not sure by what? I should have taken a photo but was feeling too broken. Something is eating through the pod and taking the bean... The pod it turning black around the eaten bit (bruise). Not had this before. Slugs? Mice? Other?

I did have some black fly but I removed the tops and sprayed. I can't think that black fly would be the cause?

I don't think I'll be able to rescue many.

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Monika
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Oh, poor Pawty, I am sorry to hear about your broad beans. We had terrible problems with jackdaws eating our peas and broad beans some years ago but they ripped them open to get to the seeds so the whole plant was sort of tatty. But if the damage to yours are just the pods, I would think it's mice which climb up the stems.
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Patty - get sowing! Still time, but mice will take the seeds as well if they are the culprits so protect them well!

Westi
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