Chinese long beans.

Worth1 · May 5, 2012

Chinese long beans.

I have always liked these beans and from what I have read they are a cow pea.
I am growing them for the first time this year and would like to know some things.

Do any of you grow them?
Can you save seeds, I assume you can.
And how do you like them.

They are also called snake beans and yard long beans.

Worth

Lcottomsvcs · May 5, 2012

Hi Worth,

I have grown these successfully in 5 gallon barrels with a trellis. They do develop long vines, so you will need to support them. Also, pick them young, at about a foot long, this is when they taste best and are less stringy. Other than that, I had no trouble with them. they produced well during the heat of summer, right up until frost. Happy Gardening!

Lora

John3 · May 5, 2012

I grew them back a couple years ago (Asparagus Beans - yard long) - they where very very prolific here. Did not save any seeds so I don't know about that. The ones I grew where tender and sweet when you pick them about 12 inches long to 16 inches long - after that they are like snap beans. I let one plant grow the beans left alone and they got 3 to 4 feet long (I didn't eat any of them so don't know how they taste that long - some of them curled up and made a nice yo-yo for awhile. I showed that off to some gardeners and we got some laughs using the the 4 ft bean pods as yo-yo's

I will grow them again

when I can find the beans as they are not sold around here anymore as the Asian seeds from Ferry Morris aren't sold around here anymore.

Worth1 · May 5, 2012

Thanks Lora I have a nice place for them to climb on.

One year I had cucumbers growing all in a mesquite tree, people thought it was a cucumber tree.

Worth

Worth1 · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by John3

I grew them back a couple years ago (Asparagus Beans - yard long) - they where very very prolific here. Did not save any seeds so I don't know about that. The ones I grew where tender and sweet when you pick them about 12 inches long to 16 inches long - after that they are like snap beans. I let one plant grow the beans left alone and they got 3 to 4 feet long (I didn't eat any of them so don't know how they taste that long - some of them curled up and made a nice yo-yo for awhile. I showed that off to some gardeners and we got some laughs using the the 4 ft bean pods as yo-yo's

I will grow them again

when I can find the beans as they are not sold around here anymore as the Asian seeds from Ferry Morris aren't sold around here anymore.

John do youj want some for this year?
I'll be happy to send you some if I can find them the ones I planted were from last year.

No charge or sse just send me a pm if you do

Worth.

livinonfaith · May 5, 2012

The ones I grew a couple of years ago were the red kind. (Red noodle, I think?) They didn't do much for me at first and, honestly, I forgot about them. Then, in the fall, I was out working in the garden and noticed a whole bunch or 3'-4' things hanging from the fence.

Sure enough, they had finally taken off. The long ones were too old to use as green beans, but I did shell those out and snapped the younger ones to use with them for a mix of beans and green beans. They were certainly tasty with a little bacon!

Just for information, if you think these would be good to grow out for dried beans or shelly beans, don't waste your time. The ones I grew only had about 10 beans per 3' of shell. I walked in the house with an entire armload of 3'-4' beans, (literally, with the beans falling over on both sides) shelled for an hour or so, and didn't even end up with a cup of shelled beans!

But they are good when you pick and snap them young.

desertlzbn · May 5, 2012

You can get seeds from native seed search. I'm going to go by their store on tuesday to get to seeds. I'm going to try to plant them here to see how they do for us I also wanna get a bunch of desert and drought adapted seeds.

John3 · May 5, 2012

Worth1 I forgot to mention I picked some at about 6 to 8 inches long and chopped them up and used in a stir fry. I made a garden note to think about planting these for stir fry instead of the snow peas as they seemed just as sweet to me as the young snow peas used in stir fry and a lot more prolific growers for me here. The ones I grew here the green ones.

Edit: As livinonfaith mentions about the red ones. I planted the green ones and they seemed to be slow until about mid July and they started really producing. Then they slowed around the end of August and came back very very vigorous starting in Sept. for me here.

John3 · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by desertlzbn

You can get seeds from native seed search.

Do you know if they are the red or green type?

desertlzbn · May 5, 2012

You would have to look, http://www.nativeseeds.org/, they have a bunch of beans.

Mudman · May 5, 2012

I grew them for the first time last year. They are recommended for stir fry and you are suppose to pick them when they are about as big as a pencil around. I wasn't that impressed with them because they didn't hold up to much cooking and I liked the taste of my other beans better. As far as saving seeds, I think that beans are not very likely to cross and I have always saved mine with good results.

Tracydr · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by desertlzbn

You can get seeds from native seed search. I'm going to go by their store on tuesday to get to seeds. I'm going to try to plant them here to see how they do for us I also wanna get a bunch of desert and drought adapted seeds.

They do well, had some aphids last summer but spraying with water helped production and got rid of most of the aphids.
Most of my production was in the heat of summer, which was nice.

Tracydr · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mudman

I grew them for the first time last year. They are recommended for stir fry and you are suppose to pick them when they are about as big as a pencil around. I wasn't that impressed with them because they didn't hold up to much cooking and I liked the taste of my other beans better. As far as saving seeds, I think that beans are not very likely to cross and I have always saved mine with good results.

I like them better steamed like regular green beans.
If left too long and not picked when tender, they get spongy.

Tracydr · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mudman

I grew them for the first time last year. They are recommended for stir fry and you are suppose to pick them when they are about as big as a pencil around. I wasn't that impressed with them because they didn't hold up to much cooking and I liked the taste of my other beans better. As far as saving seeds, I think that beans are not very likely to cross and I have always saved mine with good results.

When it's 115 and no other bean will grow, these are great.

Worth1 · May 5, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tracydr

When it's 115 and no other bean will grow, these are great.

That's right down my alley here in central Texas.

Worth

May 5, 2012	#1
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Chinese long beans. Chinese long beans. I have always liked these beans and from what I have read they are a cow pea. I am growing them for the first time this year and would like to know some things. Do any of you grow them? Can you save seeds, I assume you can. And how do you like them. They are also called snake beans and yard long beans. Worth

May 5, 2012	#2
Lcottomsvcs Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Southern Indiana Posts: 123	Hi Worth, I have grown these successfully in 5 gallon barrels with a trellis. They do develop long vines, so you will need to support them. Also, pick them young, at about a foot long, this is when they taste best and are less stringy. Other than that, I had no trouble with them. they produced well during the heat of summer, right up until frost. Happy Gardening! Lora __________________ Gardening is not a rational act. Margaret Atwood

May 5, 2012	#8
John3 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Alabama 7.5 or 8 depends on who you ask Posts: 727	Worth1 I forgot to mention I picked some at about 6 to 8 inches long and chopped them up and used in a stir fry. I made a garden note to think about planting these for stir fry instead of the snow peas as they seemed just as sweet to me as the young snow peas used in stir fry and a lot more prolific growers for me here. The ones I grew here the green ones. Edit: As livinonfaith mentions about the red ones. I planted the green ones and they seemed to be slow until about mid July and they started really producing. Then they slowed around the end of August and came back very very vigorous starting in Sept. for me here. Last edited by John3; May 5, 2012 at 07:02 PM.

May 5, 2012	#10
desertlzbn Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Tucson Posts: 659	You would have to look, http://www.nativeseeds.org/, they have a bunch of beans. Last edited by desertlzbn; May 5, 2012 at 09:38 PM.

May 5, 2012	#11
Mudman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: NW Wisconsin Posts: 910	I grew them for the first time last year. They are recommended for stir fry and you are suppose to pick them when they are about as big as a pencil around. I wasn't that impressed with them because they didn't hold up to much cooking and I liked the taste of my other beans better. As far as saving seeds, I think that beans are not very likely to cross and I have always saved mine with good results. __________________ Mike

May 5, 2012	#6
livinonfaith Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina Posts: 1,332	The ones I grew a couple of years ago were the red kind. (Red noodle, I think?) They didn't do much for me at first and, honestly, I forgot about them. Then, in the fall, I was out working in the garden and noticed a whole bunch or 3'-4' things hanging from the fence. Sure enough, they had finally taken off. The long ones were too old to use as green beans, but I did shell those out and snapped the younger ones to use with them for a mix of beans and green beans. They were certainly tasty with a little bacon! Just for information, if you think these would be good to grow out for dried beans or shelly beans, don't waste your time. The ones I grew only had about 10 beans per 3' of shell. I walked in the house with an entire armload of 3'-4' beans, (literally, with the beans falling over on both sides) shelled for an hour or so, and didn't even end up with a cup of shelled beans! But they are good when you pick and snap them young.