Beans for drying

Beans grown for drying are left on the plant until their pods and seeds reach full maturity. Once the shelled beans have dried completely, they can be stored for winter meals such as soups, casseroles and salads. Borlotti beans are the familiar choice, but suitable runner and French bean varieties can be treated in the same way.

The plants are raised much like ordinary climbing or dwarf beans, but they need longer to finish their crop. An early indoor sowing is therefore the safest option in much of the UK. Plant them into a warm, sheltered position after frost, keep them watered and give climbing forms sturdy supports. Rather than picking young green pods, leave the pods in place until they dry.

Climbing beans are generally the better choice for drying because they produce a larger crop and hold their pods clear of damp soil. Dwarf varieties take less space, but their lower pods can touch the ground and rot before they dry. If dwarf pods remain damp, pick them and finish drying them indoors.

Borlotti beans are widely grown for their decorative mottled seeds, although many runner and French beans can also mature successfully for storage. Varieties differ in growth habit, cropping time and bean colour, with white, brown, purple and striking black-and-white seeds available.

Recommended varieties

‘Borlotto Lingua di Fuoco’

An Italian borlotti bean offered in climbing and dwarf forms. Its pods are marbled red and the mature beans have distinctive red mottling.

Cultivar sourceAllotment Pro variety guide

‘Czar’

A climbing bean with two possible uses: harvest the pods young as runner beans or leave them on the plant to mature into beans for drying and storage.

Cultivar sourceAllotment Pro variety guide

‘Yin Yang’

A compact dwarf variety producing highly distinctive beans patterned half black and half white inside green pods.

Cultivar sourceAllotment Pro variety guide

Choose an open, sunny and sheltered site with free-draining soil. Remove perennial weeds before planting, then improve the ground with at least two bucketfuls of homemade compost or well-rotted manure per square metre. Preparing the bed several weeks ahead allows disturbed soil to settle. In a no-dig bed, spread the organic matter over the surface and sow or plant through it.

Drying beans need enough time for both pods and seeds to mature, so sowing early is important. Indoor sowing is most reliable in cool areas. Direct sowing is suitable only once frost risk has passed and the soil is genuinely warm.

Plant indoor-raised or purchased beans outside only after the last frost, normally in late May or early June. Harden the plants off and prepare the bed and supports before moving them. Suitable seedlings will usually be 10–15cm (4–6in) tall.

Place one climbing bean at the base of each cane and loosely tie its stem to the support until it begins to twine by itself. Space dwarf plants 30cm (1ft) apart so air can move through the crop and the pods have room to develop.

Guide loose stems back onto their supports, especially after windy weather. When climbing plants reach the top, remove further extension growth. Stopping the leaders encourages productive side-shoots lower down, keeps pods within reach and prevents the support structure becoming excessively top-heavy.

Early sowings can begin to mature from July. A pod is ready when it has become dry, shrivelled and brittle rather than green and fleshy. Pick in dry weather, shell the beans and spread them on a tray somewhere warm until they are completely hard. Store only fully dried beans, using airtight jars kept in a cool, dry place.

Continue gathering mature pods through late summer and early autumn, but finish before the first frost. Pods that have not fully ripened by then can be shelled and the nearly mature beans frozen for cooking rather than dry-stored.

Once harvest is complete, cut the spent stems at soil level and compost them. Leave the roots in the ground: as legumes, the plants have nitrogen-fixing root nodules, and the remaining roots can return some of that material to the soil as they break down.

Cold is the main early risk. Keep young plants inside until frost danger has passed and cover established outdoor plants with cloches or plastic-free fleece if a late cold night is forecast. Check seedlings for slug and snail damage, and inspect shoot tips and leaf undersides for clusters of black aphids.

Wet pods are a particular problem for a crop intended for storage. Keep dwarf pods off damp soil where possible, avoid harvesting immediately after rain and dry all shelled beans thoroughly before sealing them in containers.

Common problems