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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 8, 2015 18:32:35 GMT -5
I never had something like this. I always thought that green beans are dead easy, but this year they do everything but set beans!!! What could that be? Any idea? They flowered since weeks but I still do not eat beans. Thanks for an input. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by steev on Feb 8, 2015 20:18:40 GMT -5
To me, you're way early; if this is normal for you, you're very lucky; I can't even think of planting beans for months. Is it still too early/cold for your bees/pollinators; no pollination might mean no developed beans.
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 8, 2015 21:34:59 GMT -5
I am in Australia and we are entering autumn, actually it is so cool that you could think it is autumn. Last year I gave buckets of beans away at that time. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by flowerweaver on Feb 8, 2015 22:00:21 GMT -5
I've heard that if you continue growing beans in the same spot that nitrogen can build up and that subsequent bean crops will be mostly leaf and vine and not produce. Though, one year I grew Lima beans in a new field that never bloomed and I have no idea what went wrong. And I've never been able to get runner beans to set after flowering.
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Post by ferdzy on Feb 9, 2015 11:46:37 GMT -5
It's not pollinators; beans will set by themselves. I think it is probably too cold - I know mine will not set if it is too hot or too cold. They like it "room temperature".
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Post by reed on Feb 9, 2015 21:19:06 GMT -5
I think too much nitrogen can be a problem, one time I planted beans in an old chicken yard. They looked wonderful and grew great big vines and leaves, I thought I hit the bean jackpot but no, mostly just giant bean vines. I haven't noticed them minding cool weather but hot weather shuts them down, especially bush kinds.
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 10, 2015 6:07:08 GMT -5
I now suspect too much mushroom compost (nitrogen and salt). The weather this year is extremely changeable. These seven year beans do set but only lightly. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by ferdzy on Feb 10, 2015 7:55:29 GMT -5
Oh, salt? When I watered my peas and beans with water from my deep well (which, it turns out, is kind of salty) they didn't just not produce; they died. Certainly, beans really don't do salt. Not until they're cooked, anyway.
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Post by 12540dumont on Feb 11, 2015 3:12:13 GMT -5
First year I was a farmer I brought in a truckload of mushroom compost. After all they were only farms away from me, and they were practically giving the stuff away. Mushroom farmer could put 3 yards in his bucket and drive over to my place and dump it where I wanted.
And then I found out about the salinity of mushroom compost and I have never used it again.
Most sensitive crops to soil salinity:
Beans
Carrots
Strawberries
Onions
For several years the only things I could grow in the mushroom compost plots were: Beets & Squash.
Beans are the most sensitive crop to salinity.
I feel your pain.
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 13, 2015 0:47:35 GMT -5
And: I found out that it kills citrus. Citrus does not like salt. Mushroom compost is so tempting it looks dark and fertile and you are very fast put a wheelbarrow or two on. I am picking up horse manure now, however I used it straight, that is something else I won't do again, the weeds are just too much. I still have some mushroom laying around I think I will put it bit by bit in the compost pile. The problem with the salt is that you won't realize it until it's too late. Is there a home made salt test? A beanless summer! backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 14, 2015 1:37:41 GMT -5
Actually my cucumbers grow well flower and flower but I still have no cucumber I think it is the mushroom compost as well! Fortunately it rains a lot recently. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 17, 2015 17:54:22 GMT -5
I found that the green onions are growing well, too well. But the beans I am ripping out. What I will do is top up with horse manure at leaast one bag(old chicken food bag) full per square meter. I know this will cause a lot of weeds. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by steev on Feb 17, 2015 20:45:04 GMT -5
I'm not at all clear on the "horse-poo/weeds" thing; I've used many tons of horse-poo through the years, which has entailed spending a lot of time around piles thereof; I have never noticed much weeds growing thereon, nor in areas I've mulched heavily with horse-poo. Granted, all that lovely fertilizer is pleasing to weeds on the perimeter, as well as any not smothered by a thick mulch, but I've seen little grow on a poo-pile except some species of mushrooms. Birds and wind can bring seeds, as can raking up scattered horse-poo, but I just don't buy the "seeds pass through a horse's gut and sprout like crazy" idea. I think that's the rural counterpart to an "urban legend", sounds reasonable, but it just isn't true.
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Post by mountaindweller on Feb 18, 2015 18:09:36 GMT -5
I had a lot of grass growing on the horse poo, as I have no other choice I do it anyway. The paddock is a bit short on grass and I know she buys hay as well. Otherwise it's a good fertilizer and will definitively lessen the salt problem. But I do not use stable manure, I pick it up straight from the paddock, horses do not have stables here. backyardnursery.freeforums.net/ |
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Post by robertb on Feb 19, 2015 16:32:18 GMT -5
If weed seeds are a problem, mulch the horse poo with something organic and the grass wont get through it.
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