Runner Beans

[Daij]

It is late in the season and all my runner beans left on the stalks have 'gone over'
I picked them and took out the beans and put them in a brown paper bag to plant next year. I have about 2lbs in all.
This was a week ago and today I looked in the bag and most of them have started sprouting in the bag!
Any suggestions? Do I leave them as they are. Will they grow if I keep them and plant them next year?

Thanks in advance

[carolegif]

You have to leave them to dry out before putting them in a bag. Was it a plastic bag? You need to use paper or they will ‘sweat’ and sprout. We keep ours in envelopes.

[woofgang]

sorry to say if they are sprouting they won't keep. you could try planting them now and frowing them in a cool bright place indoors to see if you can get an out of season crop. In future they must be bone dry and rock hard before being stored, either leave them on the plant and let the whole thing wither or pick them at the wisening stage and dry in an airy spot before storing. https://www.realseeds.co.uk/seedsavinginfo.html

[woofgang]

not frowing, growing

[Daij]

Thanks for your help. I'll plant them in the shed and see what happens

[gingejbee]

I don't grow beans, but instead of ordinary runner beans I buy "helda" beans from Waitrose. They are stringless and always tender....perhaps you could try them?


https://www.chilternseeds.co.uk/item_1817H_bean_climbing_french_helda

[alavahalf]

Best left on the plant until the pod turns brown and crispy. We are still picking beans, both runners and French dwarf. When the first frost arrives that will be the end of them. What is left will be removed and put in a string sack and hung in a dry shed. We leave them in the pod to dry. These will be added to soup and a few saved for next years planting. Don't waste your time planting them now. It's all over for this season I'm afraid.

[Daij]

Another query - is it safe to eat them? I've heard they're poisonous if eaten in bulk

[alavahalf]

It sounds as though you have taken them off the plant too soon. Personally I would just compost them and take it as a lesson learnt. What you should do with runners is keep picking them as long as you can and then when they start to grow slightly deformed on the plant, that is the time to stop picking them. The ones you leave will then develop large beans in the pod. Don't touch them until they dry a little and become brittle. Remove them from the plant at that point and then hang them in a onion sack, somewhere dry. Leave them there to dry and they will be ready to use when they look like shiney shells. As a rule they will be purple and black. We then soak them in water overnight before removing the skin from the bean and then adding them to vegetable soup. They are without doubt, the highlight of the soup. Well worth all the effort !
Keep some of the dried beans back and these can be used to sow next years crop. One more thing you should consider.. When your beans have been producing a crop for 6 weeks.. Plant some more, these will carry you right through until the first frost.