Broad Bean Failure

I've grown broadies for years and never had a problem. I thought they were fail safe.
This year germination was very poor, flowering poor and I've got hardly any beans
One of my neighbours says everybody has been having the same problem.

How did you folks get on with broadies this year ?

 

Rubbish here too.
I planted out some garden centre grown plants in the winter, which sat under snow and ice quite happily. They grew very well in the spring, but I too have had not enough pods to satisfy me, and lots of pods have grown deformed or started rotting before they are ready.
Please bear in mind this is my first time with broad beans though.

 

That's a shame Muddymahem. As I said they're usually failsafe.
Mine were planted in late spring and I just can't see why they're such a disaster.

 

Could have been the volcanic ash, lowering light levels just when they needed it ?

 

Well maybe Ziggy. Thanks for the suggestion - but the peas and mangetout planted in the same bed on the same day got on fine.

 

If the plants grew ok but there were not many beans it sounds a bit like poor pollination.

Perhaps it was a bit cold and windy when the flowers were at their best.

 

Not that then. Could the volcanic ash have lowered the ph ?

 

Microscope slide of the ash that fell on my garden....



Nasty pointy stuff.

 

mine are poor too alice, lots of pods but some of them empty or with just one or two beans in

loopy

 

Here are ok. Excellent harvest. It depends on variety, planting time too i guess. I never grow anything else only aquadulce sowing in october direct outside. The best results ever third year running

 

You might have a point Ziggy.
Everybody round here had disastrous Broadies so whatever the problem was it afflicted us all.
I just wondered if there was other areas which had the same problem.

 

I'm totally the opposite grown Broads for the 1st time ever this year mine were a bit slow to get going but once out oh my god there like triffids had the 1st lot of beans of mine the other day and now waiting for the juvenile pods to grow. I'm growing suttons but the seem to have gone rogue as i've got several that are 3ft high, also everybody telling me about black fly so i was worried but not seen a single solitary fly although did get an infestation of ants.

 

Thanks for your replies folks.
Glad some of you got broadies.
I harvested mine today and the crop was even worse than I expected. Not even enough to be worth dirtying a pot ! Usually I am freezing them for a years worth.
Oh well, there's always next year.

 

Mine aren't cropping yet. The flowers have been and gone and the baby beans look ready to show. Will have to wait and see. Peas and green beans not up to much either nor the spuds but the purple sprouting broccoli is going great guns!

 

To be honest I have grown them for the first time this year in pots and beds and they have done extremely well.

I would probably guess poor pollination too. My strawberry bed suffered with poor pollination this year. Got a lot of lbs of fruit but some of it was butt ugly