How to Grow Lima Beans. The lima bean is a tender annual. Are Fava Beans Lima Beans' title='Are Fava Beans Lima Beans' />How to freeze lima beans, broad beans, butter beans or pinto beans and other beans from your garden or the shop in 10 easy steps fully illustrated, with complete. Fava beans, like edamame, are greencolored legumes that come in their own pod. You can purchase them canned, fresh or dried. A nutrientrich. Green beans nutrition facts. Green beans, also known as French beans or snap beans, are tender, elongated, firm yet flexible edible pods of the bean plant. Sow lima beans in the garden 3 to 4 weeks after the average date of the last frost in spring when the soil temperature has warmed to 6. Start lima beans indoors as early as 2 to 3 weeks before the average last frost date in spring for transplanting into the garden. Lima beans require 6. Description. Lima beans are tender annuals grown for their flat, crescent oval shaped seeds. There are two types of lima beans bush and pole or vine varieties. Bush types grow to about 2 feet tall and tend to have smaller seeds they bear more quickly than pole lima bean varieties. Bob Campbell is one of the main growers in the Lompoc Valley. Lompoc Beans specializes in dry beans, fresh vegetables and seed crops. Pole lima beans have large seeds and can grow 1. Small seeded limas, usually bush types, are also called butter beans, sieva beans, Burma beans, Madagascar beans, Carolina beans, and baby limas. Large seeded lima beans are sometimes called potato limas. Large seeded limas are often sold as dry beans. Lima beans have pale green pods that vary from 3 to 4 inches long to 5 to 8 inches long depending upon variety. Lima bean seeds are eaten, not the pods. Leaves are commonly composed of three leaflets and the flowers are white. Bush lima bean varieties are ready for harvest from 6. Yield. Grow 4 to 8 lima bean plants per each household member. Site. Grow lima beans in full sun they will grow in partial shade but the harvest will not be full. Lima beans prefer loose, well drained soil rich in organic matter. Beans prefer a soil p. H of 6. 0 to 6. 8. Prepare planting beds in advance by working in plenty of aged compost. Avoid planting beans where soil nitrogen is high or where green manure crops have just grown these beans will produce green foliage but few beans. Planting time. Lima beans are a tender annual that grow best in air temperatures between 6. F. Sow lima beans in the garden 3 to 4 weeks after the average date of the last frost in spring when the soil temperature has warmed to 6. Start beans indoors as early as 2 or 3 weeks before the average last frost date in spring for transplanting into the garden 3 or 4 weeks after the last frost. Start beans indoors in a biodegradable peat or paper pot that can be set whole into the garden so as not to disturb plant roots. For continuous harvest through the growing season, sow succession crop bush lima beans every two weeks or follow bush lima beans with long maturing pole lima beans. Beans can continue in the garden until the first frost in fall. Pole lima beans require a long growing period and are not a good choice where the season is short. Lima beans will not set pods in temperatures above 8. F or in cold or wet weather. Time your plantings to avoid hot weather. In mild winter regions, lima beans can be sown in autumn for winter harvest. Planting and spacing. Sow lima beans 1 to 2 inches deep. Plant bush lima beans 3 to 6 inches apart set rows 2. Plant pole lima beans 6 to 1. Set poles, stakes, or supports in place at planting time. Pole beans also can be planted in inverted hills5 or 6 seeds to a hill space hills 4. Thin strong seedlings from 4 to 6 inches apart. Remove weaker seedlings by cutting them off at soil level with a scissors being careful not to disturb the roots of other seedlings. Bean can be crowded they will use each other for support. Water and feeding. Grow lima beans in soil that is evenly moist and well drained. Bean seeds may crack and germinate poorly if the soil moisture is too high at sowing. Do not soak seeds in advance of planting or they may crack do not over water after sowing. Keep the soil evenly moist during flowering and pod formation. Rain or overhead irrigation during flowering can cause flowers and small pods to fall off. Healthy Baked Pork Chop Recipes here. Once the soil temperature averages greater than 6. F, mulch to conserve moisture. Beans are best fertilized with aged garden compost they do not require extra nitrogen. Beans set up a mutual exchange with soil microorganisms called nitrogen fixing bacteria which produce the soil nitrogen beans require. Avoid using green manures or nitrogen rich fertilizers. Companion plants. Bush beans cucumbers, corn, cucumbers, celery, potatoes, summer savory. Pole beans corn, scarlet runner beans, summer savory, sunflowers. Do not plant beans with onions, beets, or kohlrabi. Care. Large lima bean seed may have trouble pushing through soil that has not been well worked at sowing, cover the seeds with sand, vermiculite, or a peat moss vermiculite mix instead. Cultivate around beans carefully to avoid disturbing the shallow root system. Do not handle beans when they are wet this may spread fungus spores. Set poles, stakes, or trellises in place before planting pole beans. Select supports that are tall enough for the variety being grown. Rotate beans to plots where lettuce, squash, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, or collards have grown in the past year or two. Container growing. Bush lima beans can be grown in containers, but you may need several containers for a practical harvest. Beans will grow in 8 inch containers. Pests. Beans can be attacked by aphids, bean beetles, flea beetles, leafhoppers and mites. Aphids, leafhoppers, and mites can be sprayed away with a blast of water from the hose or controlled with insecticidal soap. Look for eggs and infestations and crush them between your fingers and thumb. Pinch out and remove large infestations. Aphids can spread bean mosaic virus. Keep the garden clean and free of debris so that pests can not harbor or over winter in the garden. Diseases. Beans are susceptible to blight, mosaic, and anthracnose. Plant disease resistant varieties. Keep the garden clean and free of debris. Avoid handling plants when they are wet so as not to spread fungal spores. Removed diseased plants put them in a paper bag and throw them away. Beans are susceptible to many soil borne diseases rotating beans so that they do not grow in the same location more than every three years will reduce soil borne diseases. Harvest. Bush lima beans will be ready for harvest 6. Pick lima beans when pods are plump and firm. Continue to pick pods as soon as they become plump to extend flowering and the production of new pods. When seeds mature, the plant will die. Pods left too long will result in seeds that are tough and mealy. Bush lima beans should produce 2 or 3 pickings in a season. Lima Bean Varieties Pole lima beans Aubrey Deane 8. Carolina 7. 9 days Christmas 8. Florida Butter 8. Illinois Giant 8. King of the Garden 9. Prizetaker 9. 0 days. Bush lima beans plump seeded Excel Northern Fresh 7. Fordhook Improved 7. Potato Lima 7. 5 days. Bush lima beans small seeded Baby Bush 6. Henderson Bush 6. Jackson Wonder 6. Willow Leaf White 8. Storing and preserving. Unshelled lima beans will keep in the refrigerator for one week. Shelled lima beans can be blanched and frozen for up to 3 months. Dried shelled limas can be stored in a cool, dry place for 1. Common name. Bean, lima bean, butter bean, sieva bean. Botanical name. Phaseolus lunatus. Origin. South Mexico, Central America. 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