Harvesting & Storing Beans

Days to harvest

French Beans

• ready within 2-3 months of sowing

Runner Beans

• take at least 100 days to harvest

Cues to harvest

French Beans

• Green Beans
  • harvested young, slender, and tender
  • as soon as the pods start appearing, start picking; the youngest & smallest beans taste best
  • keep picking regularly, at least 2-3 times per week, the more you pick, the more they will put out (as long as they are still flowering)
  • harvest before the seeds start bulging, when the beans snap off the plant and snap in half cleanly
  • continual harvest is essential for prolonged bean production
  • Bush, or dwarf, varieties should be picked when they are 1/4" - 3/8" diameter
  • Filet varieties should be picked daily, and pick them before they get over 1/8" in diameter, for peak flavor
• Fresh Shell Beans (aka Flageolet, Cannellini)
  • half-ripe French beans that are shelled before eating
  • can be left to grow larger before picking
• Haricot, Beans for Drying
  • should be left to dry on the plant
  • in wet weather, they should be picked and dried on drying racks

Runner Beans

• very important to pick young, before they are stringy and tough
• pick at least 2-3 times per week
• picking increases productivity

Broad Beans

• sweeter and more succulent, the fresher and younger they are
• harvesting encourages new growth, so the more you pick, the more you get
• they can be picked as early as the pod shows - when they are about the size of your pinky finger
• pick the pods before the beans inside get too large, when they are still young
• the beans are at their best when the spot where the bean attaches to the pod is still green or white, not brown

Black-eyed Peas

• harvest young for eating whole, mature for shelling; dried for storage

Yardlong Beans

• harvest before they get 1.5 feet long, which is about when they get tough and stringy

Methods of harvest

Broad Beans

• Harvest the lower beans first, those closest to the central stem; this makes the remaining pods continue to grow

Storage of harvest

French Beans

Fresh

Green Beans (aka String Beans, Snap Beans, Young French Beans)

• Store beans in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for no more than a couple of days, since they shrivel quickly
• they will keep 7-10 days at ideal temperature for storing fresh snap beans is 40-45 degrees F, 95% humidity

Fresh Shelled Beans

• keep shell beans at room temperature for a few days
• in the refrigerator, store them in a paper bag for up to a week

Canned

Green Beans (aka String Beans, Snap Beans, Young French Beans)

• canned green beans taste fair, and last 12+ months

Frozen

• all beans freeze well
• Wash, trim, and blanch them in boiling water for a few minutes, then bag them up and freeze right away
• Snap beans preserved this way taste excellent, and will keep for 12 months

Pickled

Green Beans (aka String Beans, Snap Beans, Young French Beans)

• perfect for pickling, since they hold their texture well

Dried

• leave the beans on the plant to ripen & dry fully, unless it's wet out or if it's going to freeze
• when the beans rattle inside the pod, they are ready to be shelled and stored in jars or bags
• if it's wet out, or there's a frost coming, harvest the pods and dry them whole on screens or racks
• excellent way of preserving the taste; will keep for up to 24 months
• Storage Requirements:
  • remove all bad beans
  • place on shallow trays and heat at 170-180 degrees F for 10-15 minutes
  • cool
  • store in a cool, dry area in tight jars
  • the heating kills any potential weevil eggs, as well as mold

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