Growing Broad Beans, also Fava bean

Vicia faba : Fabaceae / the pea or legume family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
              P P      

(Best months for growing Broad Beans in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 43°F and 75°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 6 - 10 inches apart
  • Harvest in 12-22 weeks. Pick frequently to encourage more pods.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Dill, Potatoes

Your comments and tips

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18 Jul 18, Donna (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi, I am just starting out and was wanting peoples opinion on grow bags. Are they any good, worth purchasing etc.
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05 Sep 18, Simon Milsted (Australia - temperate climate)
I have just purchased some fabric type grow bags for my garden for a number of different uses. Some have been set up in wicking beds with dwarf fruit trees and some are for vegetables & flowers for attracting bees & insects. We rent so this means we can take them with us if we have to move.The fabric also allows for air pruning. I never liked pots as they dry out too quickly and the roots get into a mess but these seem to help that and the wicking beds allow for watering when you can't. Will see how they go!
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19 Jul 18, Mike L (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
As far as I'm concerned a patch of soil in the back yard is the best to grow veges in. You can then use bags pots whatever. These need a lot more attention I believe - dry out quicker. You have to weigh up the costs involved with buying and then the soil etc. It then becomes whether you are doing it for the enjoyment of it or doing it cost effectively. I love growing veges but I also try and do it cost effectively. I want value for the money I spend.
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04 Aug 18, Donna (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
thanks - we have no yard so grow bags are a good alternative to having the luxury of a patch of dirt I guess.
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09 Sep 18, Angela (Australia - temperate climate)
I haven’t had a lot of luck with the grow bags. My most successful containers have been the Greensmart pots. More expensive than grow bags but I have harvested lots of cherry tomatoes, eggplant, silverbeet, basil from them. They need watering less often than conventional pots.
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17 Jul 18, John. Spencer (Australia - temperate climate)
I have a good crop of broad beans growing in big pots. They are approx 10--15 weeks old & flowering , however on beans are forming. I have noticed no bees are around. I am in perth. John
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19 Jul 18, Liz (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Broad beans are usually slow to start setting fruit. If you check every few days, you will probably find some beans appearing. Broad beans have two methods of pollination,. Their primary method is self-pollination, in other words they do not need insects to produce a crop. However, they can also be pollinated by insect activity and will produce the best crop when pollinated using both methods. More here : www.gardenfocused.co.uk/vegetable/broad-beans.php
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18 Jul 18, Mike (Australia - temperate climate)
i have never grown them. Normal beans when they flower have a little bean under the flower - this grows into the bean. Go on the internet and google growing BB in Perth.
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09 May 18, KB (Australia - temperate climate)
I have a smallish corner raised garden behind the woodshed where I have grown Pumpkins for the past two seasons and although my pumpkin crops have been magnificent (Queensland Blues) in my main Vegetable garden areas with several weighing in at over 5kg but this particular corner garden has only ever provided one average sized pumpkin and that was this past season. I have cleaned much of the worm droppings from my kitchen waste worm farm made two rows of troughs about 10 cm from the west facing fence and have added a line of the worm castings into the troughs and yesterday planted a packet of Broad Bean seeds into the troughs. cover and then watered these now raised mounds containing the seed. Having already provided climbing type stakes at the rear of the raised beds and will string tie the bean s to these supports when it is time to do so. The Season before last I had a bountiful supply of Broad Beans cropping for several weeks and was able to provide my non-gardening neighbours with bags full almost every week....the only problem I encountered were the mites which I think were the Rose garden pests that had swarmed all over the Broad Bean tops....so now asking if these little mites come and attack this latest crop what is the best remedy bearing in mind that I do not use chemical sprays as most of my garden veggies are edible types such as herbs, silverbeet and other similar foods, Cheers KB
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11 May 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Check to see if the small raised bed behind the woodshed is receive much sun. Most time limited sun - not much of a crop. Look on the internet for an organic spray for your broad beans.
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Let's start with the germination temperature: 7c to 18c is the ideal germination temperature for FB, further the temperature needs to be sustained (over 5 or more days). So it needs to be warmish for the seeds to germinate. They will however happily reside in the soil until those temperatures are met (within reason- excess moisture causing rot etc.). The growing temperature for fava beans is between 4c and 24c. The kill temperature is -4c to -10c depending on the variety. What happens between the kill temperature and the grow temperature is a "waiting/holding" time (the plant is alive, but is sort of in limbo until the temperature is good enough again to grow). Above 24c the plant is starting to experience heat related symptoms and again is just holding on (unless the temps get to hot and kill the plant). You need to think about temperatures - what temps do you expect over the next month ? Based on the temperatures, do you think you seeds will germinate ? Then think about the grow temperatures -- if the seeds sprout will they be able to grow ? Generally if you want to grow fava beans in winter you plant them in late summer - so they germinate and grow enough BEFORE the cold weather -- during the cold weather (provided your are does not get too cold) the beans will be able to stay alive and grow a slight bit -- so you can harvest greens during winter and some beans -- then spring comes and the fava plants put forth LOTS of beans and then die. That is to say, the fava bean plant does not grow very much in cold weather and I find that typical of most plants that I want to over winter. They need to have a head start in decent weather and then they kind of SLOWLY inch their way to the finish line. Over wintering is a means of keeping the produce fresh - think of it this way - if you had produce in the fridge it is no longer growing, in fact it is in the process of dying, losing valuable nutrients daily. If you have a plant in the winter ground (that can handle overwintering), it is alive, GROWING REALLY REALLY slow, but it is alive and NOT losing nutrients. I guess what I'm trying to say is, super performance is generally not required, or expected, we are just looking to hold nutrients when we over winter. Clearly some plants are better for overwinter than others - in my area FAVA BEANS are a good choice.

- Celeste Archer

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