Broad Bean plants looking poor - with pics

[marchogaeth]

The flowers do turn black and drop off when the beans have set. It may be a while before you spot the beans though, they are tiny to start with.

Mine are in the tunnel and looked horrible when the flowers started dying. I actually thought they must not have set beans (see this thread) but all these super pods arrived and I expect to be harvesting some next week. The bean weevils are a pain. No one has suggested feeding to keep them moving on and growing away from the damage but I gave my pee water up to when they flowered and then comfrey. I know they are legumes but they will still respond to a bit of nitrogen.

[ukmastiff]

" Broad Beans dont need to be under any sort of cloche "

Er sorry but they do in my garden otherwise the rabbits strip them to the ground in hours

If I stood still for long enough I swear theyd eat me as they do everything else !

[cazp]

My cloches were more for the benefit of some of the other plants sharing the same bed - such as cabbages and carrots as they have helped a little with light frosts and pests (some of them anyway) - I think they were a lifesaver for the beans in the very high winds we had recently which I am sure would have toppled them.

[Two_Sheds]

^ that entirely depends on your local conditions

I harvest my first beans end of May, and they give up end of June (when the blackfly overwhelm them)

[wildside]

thanks rusty lady now the flowers have gone black i have indeed got broad beans coming next time though i think i will grow them up cains as they look terrible in the raised beds very wind swept

[Two_Sheds]

i will grow them up cains

They won't grow up canes, they aren't climbing vines like runner beans are. You just need to corral them inside a string fence (put a cane in each corner)

[chris]

FWIW, I don't think they look poor You should see some of mine that are extremely exposed!

[Dead Dogs]

Broad beans are completely hardy and don't need to be under any kind of cloche.

Not completely hardy, well not in my garden. I have some under a net cloche and a few sowings in the poly. Not because of the cold, broadies are ok with that. It's the windy that does them in. Been blowing F6 to F7, gusting upto F8 (Gale) for the last 2 days with tomorrow looking the same.

The wind has already destroyed my Rhubarb.

[Shadylane]

Not completely hardy on our plot either. Every year they get singed/set back by the cold/frosts/wind even though they've been totally hardened off. Mind you, even the brussell sprouts that the plot veteran gave me (he sows the entire packet) look pretty knarked. Nothing is hardy on our plot, even in June. Annoys me it does

ETA: Actually I take that back, coriander is out-hardying everything strangely enough. I have loads of it, infact it's popping up like weeds and some even survived the winter.

[AJzGardening]

Please help my broad beans..!

Hi folks, this is my first time here and also my first year getting some veg growing in the garden. It's about time, been here 15 years!

I've got my broad bean plants in nice long planters, 4 to each planter. As you can see from the photos, I have some serious problems!



They look like they have been burned or something. From what I've read in this thread, is it just the wet weather we've had this year that could be causing this blackness and causing the leaves to wilt.

Also, in this photo you can see something has eaten my beans! I know I have cabbage white caterpillars, but I can only find 1 or not even any when I go looking every day!!! Do you think it is the caterpillars or slugs or snails which are eating my precious beans?

Well, whatever it is - I can't find the little buggers!!



Any info or tips you have will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks a lot.

[rustylady]

Can't really see much from your pictures, maybe it's my eyes.

[BarleySugar]

It seems quite late for broad beans. When did you plant them, and have you picked any beans yet? My spring sown ones are over, just the pods left that I'm saving seeds from. The plants have died off and are just sticks. I can't see the damage in the pic, but I have a lot of trouble with bean weevils whihc lay their eggs in the bean seed and then eat their way out, leaving a rounded hole. I have found these beans germinate and produce good plants, but I wouldn't fancy eating them. On immature beans they just shows as small dark marks.

[AJzGardening]

If you click on the photo, you can see the black stems and wilted leaves. It's really disappointing.

[AJzGardening]

Yes I did plant them late, the weather has been so bad I decided to plant a few things later than packets say to. Had our first few broad beans this weekend, yey..!!

[Potstubsdustbins]

Hi and welcome to the madhouse.

You say your beans are in planters, How big are they depth wise, have they got good drainage. I ask because that looks like either foot or root rot.

Colin