All right vl, kicking off with dwarf borlotti

Growing

1. Sow outdoors after the last frost for your area
2. Soak borlotti beans overnight, spread out between two damp flannels. Wait until you can see a tiny shoot sprout to show which seeds are viable (you can omit this step if you're in a hurry, but it can make a huge difference if the soil is dry)
3. Mark out planting holes 1 ft x 1 ft
4. Make planting holes, a good 2" deep (I use a dibber)
5. Drop four seeds into each planting hole
6. If soil is dry, water into each planting hole to give the beans a drink to start them off
7. Rake soil level to cover
8. When beans have come up about 4" above the soil, lay on straw mulch. This will keep the soil moist and cool so the beans won't be splashed with mud when it rains
9. Top up mulch during the season, up to 8" - the only weeding you'll need to do is the odd perennial making its way through the mulch, easily pulled out. The beans need no support.
10. You can eat whole pods when young or, when mature, for beans alone and discard pods.
11. Companions: Summer savory will repel bean beetle (and taste good in the pot). Borage, limananthes etc. will attract bees to assist with pollination.

Harvesting

1. For mature beans, wait until all the leaves have turned yellow, then harvest.
2. Snip off stems level with the ground to leave roots, with their nitrogen nodules, in the soil for the next crop
3. You can eat the beans 'fresh' now, like haricots, boiled very briefly, on their own or in soups/stuffings
4. To dry the beans for longer-term storage, hang whole plants upside down to dry, like over a washing line, somewhere dry and warm
5. When bean pods are completely crisp and dry, shell the beans out of the pods. Pick a sunny winter afternoon on the plot, so the shuckings go straight into the compost heap. Or take them home and shuck in front of Murder She Wrote. Or rope chums in over Xmas to help!

Storing

1. Store somewhere cool, dark and dry; I use paper sacks hung on hooks indoors, some people use glass or plastic jars.
2. During the period of storage, check for bean beetle. Remove any affected beans straight away.

I find home grown Borlotti take less cooking time than 'bought' beans.

__________________
SSx
not every situation requires a big onion