French Climbing Bean Cobra germination

[rustylady]

You can soak large seeds like peas and beans overnight in lukewarm water to help them swell before sowing them into damp compost. If they're very dry when sown they can absorb all the water from the compost without absorbing enough to enable them to germinate and if you don't keep the compost moist (NOT WET) you'll get no beans (hope this makes sense - I know what I mean)

[peanut]

Thanks all..........I shall keep you posted!

[lottielady]

My cobra and dwarf beans have been slow to germinate I thought it was me just being impatient but they do seem to take a long time

[Two_Sheds]

I have trouble with Blue Lake, but today I planted out my first plants (8 inches high and going for it).
Soak bean overnight in cold water; drain off in morning and leave on damp kitchen towel. Pot on the ones that sprout (some won't - compost them)

[borage]

I planted some Cobra for the first time this year. Put them into a tray on a heated seed tray and within a week they had germinated, they were then moved to a windowsill and are now 6 inches tall. I planted them on the 24 April.

[Mike and Louise]

We have had 100% germination wth the same variety of french bean.
We sowed ours in 3" pots of normal compost then put them in our unheated greenhouse (although a few days before that they were in a small heated room indoors because we hadn't got the greenhouse then).

The main problem is that some seeds can go mouldy then they die.

What we do (with broad and runner beans too) is to cut a very small notch into the outer tough seed casing, one just below where the root comes out and one somewhere on the other side of the bean.
You have to make sure you don't cut too deep. Just deep enough to see the whitish/yellow colour of the seed itself.

The reason we do this is to allow water to get to the seed directly. Water soaks into the seed quicker without having to wait for the outer tough casing to soften up first.
We have found that this aids and quickens germination.

Just checked our site: we sowed the seeds on April 15 and they formed roots by April 18. They started to germinate by April 24 (9 days from sowing to germination).

[peanut]

Thanks for that Mike and Louise!!!

I'm now having a major hissy fit, stamping my feet and jumping up and down screaming I hate BL****Y BEANS!!!!!!

I am going to follow your every word, if I don't get Beans there'll be trouble!

[gojiberry]

I have trouble every year germinating beans. I think my reason for failure is to much watering and the beans just rot before they get a chance to germinate. What I do now is sow the beans and providing the compost is moist I do not water for at least a week. Before watering I scrape a little bit of the top soil away and if it is still moist I hold off watering. Have had a lot more success this year than normal and should have all my bean frames planted up this weekend.

Ian

[Alison]

I sowed some 16 of each blauhilde, blue lake and trail of tears last Monday in root trainers in the greenhouse and as of this afternoon, all but about 6 of them have germinated. Seem to remember having problems with cobra in the past though but just had them down to being some poor quality seeds.

[Pootle]

I've just noticed that my Cobra beans (sown individually in modules by youngest daughter's finger) are pushing up to the top of the post - I'm assuming that she didn't put them in deep enough (yes - I'm blaming a 4 year old) and that as the root develops they're being pushed to the surface.

The question is - does this matter?

If it does, should I push the beans back down (and risk damaging their growth) or would it be best to add some extra compost to the top of the module?

[Flummery]

Leave them, but when you plant, plant them a bit deeper.

[Pootle]

Thanks, I'll do that!

They seem to be coming on ok despite being close to the top

[smallblueplanet]

You got any sign of life yet peanut? Our blue lake and goldfield are first up - planted in rootrainers 4/5 days ago.

[peanut]

You got any sign of life yet peanut? Our blue lake and goldfield are first up - planted in rootrainers 4/5 days ago.

No!!!!!! But to be fair I only re-sowed one lot 1 week ago and then another lot yesterday....so hoping for some success!

I also sowed Blauhilde a week ago and they all came up yesterday, except on one the bean has split open but no leaves have appeared.....is that one a gonna?

[smallblueplanet]

So blauhilde has come up but still no Cobra? Have you thought it may be duff beans?