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Old June 20, 2016   #28
Zone9b
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Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Central Florida
Posts: 620
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My spring bean crop is finished. Overall the results were OK. I picked enough beans to consume and freeze 52 quarts. Most of my beans were produced in a single raised bed 4 1/2' x 13’10 ˝” x 10” high. I planted 2 snap bean bush varieties both which appeared to be highly disease resistant. Espada: F1, 56 days, 6” pod, medium green, sieve size 75% 4 25% 3, white seeds
Crockett : OP, 58-60 days, very dark green, sieve size 2-3, pod 4 1/2-5 1/2”, white seeds
I picked Espada 6 times and Crockett 5 times. I considered both productive but Espada a bit more productive than Crockett. For me I didn't notice a great deal of difference in the taste, both
being good but not in the league with Jade II or Fortex-Cross. When I pulled the plants I noticed that both had adequate roots but both also showed some nematode activity but apparently not significant enough to seriously reduce bean production.
I plan to grow both varieties again in the fall, which could be a serious test of their disease resistance. This being that disease pressure on beans, tomatoes and peppers seems much greater in the fall than in the spring, here in Central Florida.
This spring I also grew the following pole bean varieties. Grandma Roberts TriColor, Grandma Roberts Purple pole, Blue Marbut, Tobacco Worm, and Rattlesnake.
Of these Rattlesnake and Grandma Roberts Purple Pole did fairly well and I will grow again. Blue Marbut also did ok but I am looking for a bit more productive pole bean.
I hope to give Alabama #1 a try in the fall and possibly a couple of other varieties.
Sometimes I wonder whether I should grow significantly less pole beans and concentrate more on bush beans because of what appears to be greater availability of disease resistant bush varieties than pole varieties. Also, I am faced with a fair amount of pole maintenance. A few weeks back I had 2 days of significant winds when the poles were loaded with bean plants. To say the least it didn't do my pole structures much good.
Larry

Last edited by Zone9b; June 20, 2016 at 06:01 PM.
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