CropStraightforward
Common bean
Phaseolus vulgaris L.
Temperature
16°C to 25°C
Rainfall
257mm to 1241mm per season
Conditions
What it needs
Soil
Well-drained loam. Beans rot quickly in wet ground and do badly on acid soil.
Water
A short crop that wants steady moisture through flowering and pod fill. Heat at flowering drops the flowers outright.
What you will need
Tick what you already have; Grow carries the rest into the cost working.
Grow holds no supplier listings and no local prices, so it cannot tell you where to buy these or what they cost near you. Ask at your nearest agrodealer or extension office, then put those figures into the planner.
Through the season
Stages
- 01
Land preparation
10 days- Plough
- Work in manure
- 02
Planting
2 days- Sow into moist soil
- Apply phosphate
- 03
Vegetative growth
25 days- First weeding
- Earth up the stems
- 04
Flowering
15 days- Second weeding
- Avoid disturbing the plants
- 05
Pod fill
25 days- Watch for leaf spot
- Keep moisture even
- 06
Harvest and drying
10 days- Pull when pods rattle
- Dry and thresh
Watch for
Common problems
Angular leaf spot
- What you will see
- Grey angular patches between the veins, leaves dropping early.
- What to do
- Use clean seed, rotate away from beans, and remove residue after harvest.
Bean stem maggot
- What you will see
- Young plants wilting, with tunnels and swelling just above the roots.
- What to do
- Plant early into moist soil, earth up around the stems, and mulch. Damage is worst on late, stressed plantings.
Bruchid weevils in storage
- What you will see
- Round exit holes in stored beans and powder in the bag.
- What to do
- Dry thoroughly, store in sealed airtight containers, and keep new grain away from last season’s.
Follow the label for doses, and ask an extension officer or vet before using a chemical you have not used before.