Bean

Snap beans, also called green beans, are one of those must-have vegetables in the garden. They're easy to grow, are bothered by few pests, and if you choose a pole type, they take up hardly any square footage in the landscape. Or get creative and grow pole beans on fences or any other upright support

Beans come many colors, shapes, and sizes. Pods may be green, yellow, purple, or speckled. The plants range in size from 2 feet tall for bush types to pole types that may climb to 12 feet tall. A bean harvested when young, before the seeds fully develop, is called a snap bean. Once the seeds have reached full size, but pods have not turned brown, it's called a shelling bean. After the pod dries and seeds mature, it's called a dried bean.

Light:

Sun

Plant Type:

Vegetable

Plant Height:

24-30 inches tall (bush types); 8-12 feet tall (pole types)

Plant Width:

18-30 inches wide

Top Varieties

---

'Blue Lake 274' bean

is a bush type that produces 6-inch long green pods on bushy plants.
view >

'Derby' bean

produces tender, 7-inch-long pods that are easy to harvest. Plants resist disease well.
view >

'Jade' bean

offers slender, deep green pods that remain tender and productive in the heat of summer.
view >

'Roc d'Or' snap bean

is a yellow-podded type that's also called wax bean. 'Roc d'Or' bears 6-inch-long yellow pods 52 days after planting.
view >

'Royal Burgundy' bean

bears nutritious purple pods that turn green when cooked.
view >

'Romano' pole bean

forms a vigorous vine, which features pods that remain stringless even when large.
view >

'Scarlet Runner' bean

is named for its attractive orangy-red flowers produced on vining plants. It is a different species (Phaseolus coccineus) than snap beans. It is most often grown for its ornamental value, but it also produces tasty shelling beans.
view >