Growing Beans

Just ordered some more Blue Lake French beans on Ebay . To try the "Just barely moist " compost method . Is it best to presoak your beans before sowing ? Is 5 to 10 days germination time about average indoors at 20°c ?
It would be interesting if Jiffy , Loli , Jenny and Clueless can try another batch as well
PS : I'll also try some using the damp paper in a plastic bag method

 

I will put Dwarf beans on my shopping list for tommorow. I will observe Guru advice this evening and obey instructions!!

 

Always obey the GC force Jenny . Germinate you will bean seed

 

Is that a germinating seed smiley?

 

Its supposed to be Yoda with a light sabre , now you come to mention it , it does look a tad vulgar

 

You'll have an on duty Mod. after you if you are not careful Harry

 

Might it be Mice rather than rotting?

I chit mine on damp kitchen paper (cover with cling film otherwise the kitchen paper dries out, and that spoils things). But don't have too much water on the kitchen paper (drain all excess water out by turning upside down, that is then about right).

Once chitted "plant". Benefit is that you are only putting a germinated seed into a module cell / pot, thus not wasting any compost etc.

If the seeds are duff then this method will bring that to light.

 

Seed stealing 'mice' (mouses, voles and yes even shrews will take small seeds) normally leave snouty shaped holes in the soil. They also have a nasty habit of burying some of the stolen seeds in surrounding seeds trays, chucking out soil/seeds and ruining another sowing in the process. Mice/voles will continue to eat the below ground cotyledons of runner beans even after planting out, killing the plants, but on french beans they develop into above ground leaves and you wont get this problem so they can be planted out/placed into mouse territory much earlier.

 

Huston we have lift off, thats an affirmative on the Bridgewater Beans

 

Great! - mine are just coming through in pots on the kitchen windowsill - I planted my Blue Lake in a wigwam earlier today and made a wrap-around sort of cloche from bubblewrap, just in case we get a frost. I hope to get the Bridgwaters in by the end of the month.

a-a

 

Nice one a-a,

Do I need to wrap Celophane round the Bridgewater Beans?

 

I've read all of this with great interest. Once again the GC posse has given lots of useful tips.

I was going to post here to say I was going to give it another go based on the tips put forward here, but I've just been and checked, and out of the latest sowing, I have just discovered 3 of them have germinated.

Almost certainly, I will be doing another batch in a couple of weeks or so, so I will probably try some of the different techniques suggested by you good folks.

 

We all get caught out by different conditions Dave. Next sowing I do, i'm going back to the experiment we did at school when I was 8. We got a glass jar, packed it full of old paper (Help the war effort, re use this envelope) & put the beans around the outside so we could see em germinate. Only damped the paper down, didn't soak them.

It was to demonstrate Geotropism & Heliotropism, don't remember any of them rotting or indeed the outcome of the experiment as a girl called Angela had just joined the class & my attention was diverted.

 

Just finished my "just moist compost " sowing , 9 beans 100% success in 7 to 9 days I lightly watered the compost in my potting tray then gave it a good mixing before putting it into the pots , you only need a very small amount of water . So no more bottom watering for me for any seeds , this may go some way to explaining some more poor germination rates this year.
Thanks to all the bean gurus on this thread for the advice - lesson learnt
Oh - and thanks Alek-Adam for the beans you kindly gave me
Now the inevitable question - is it OK to plant my French beans out now - night temp is between 6° and 9°c in my area, I am planting in a container sheltered behind my shed