Once the pods have dried on the plant, this is when to harvest bean seeds. Remove the pods from the plants and lay them out to dry inside for at least two weeks. After the two weeks have passed following the harvesting of bean pods, shell the beans or you can leave the seeds within the pods until the planting season.

From its origins as a wild vine in Central and South America to the thousands of varieties grown around the world today, beans have evolved to be one of the world’s most important and versatile crops.

Many legumes, like peanuts, grow their pods underground like most forage legumes. Other legumes, like green beans and peas grow their pods above ground on vines.

Seeds from Fresh Beans Allowing fresh beans to mature on the vine is the first step in gathering seeds for replanting. This means letting the bean pod fill out completely before picking it. As the tiny beans inside the pod continue to grow, they will reach their mature size in one to two weeks.

If you have room, start runner beans off indoors on a windowsill or in a propagator, in late April or May. Sow one bean per small pot, 5cm (2in) deep. Harden off young plants, to acclimatise them to outdoor conditions, but wait to plant them out until all risk of frost has passed, usually in late May/early June.

Bean Varieties that are Best Bets and Easy to Grow include snap-bush green beans, snap-pole green beans, bush yellow beans, lima beans, and dried and shell beans.

Beans contain raffinose, a type of carbohydrate that’s poorly digested by the body. Bacteria in the large intestine break down raffinose, resulting in gas and bloating.

Yes, you should soak your bean seeds for 10 – 24 hours in water before planting. Soaking in water will help the seeds to sprout and reduce the germination time, which means your plants will grow healthier and faster. However, avoid soaking bean seeds for more than 24 hours as this might cause seed rot.

The answer is, yes, seeds will eventually go bad and no longer germinate, but it can take quite a long time. There is a good chance that those old seed packets will have a high percentage of seeds that will germinate just fine. And even a group of very old seeds may have 10 or 20 percent that still sprouts.

An easy solution is to cut off the container lid and put it under the bottom of the carton. Poke holes in the bottom of each egg cup and any moisture will drain out and into the lid underneath. Fill each egg cup with potting soil and place seeds in to the appropriate depth.

You can use any plastic egg carton to make this planter. The best would be one with a clear top and individual egg holding spaces on the bottom. After finding your carton, gather a sterile, light weight, fine particle soil mix to improve your chances of success. I use a pre-mixed seed starting mix to make things easy.

Another reason to pot up seedlings is that as their roots grow larger, they drink more water, and thus dry out more quickly. You’ll notice that a small 6-pack full of soil and yet-to-sprout seeds will retain moisture much longer than a small 6-pack full of maturing, thirsty seedlings.

My Personal Frugal Tips to Start Seeds:

1. Use leftover plastic garden containers you previously bought flowers in.
2. Egg cartons are a great way to start seeds indoors.
3. Label your containers.
4. Use Yoplait Kids Plastic Cups/ or any other item in your kitchen to start your seeds indoors.

During the first phase, your seeds will need warmth more than light. After leaves begin to sprout from the seed and they grow to about half an inch tall, they will need more light. Without it, they should grow, but they will be thin and gangly.

Mix pasteurized soil or compost with peat moss. Add sand, vermiculite or perlite. All ingredients are available at most nurseries and garden stores. Another task to complete before the start of seed-sowing is to clean your pots, trays and flats.

In general, two to three seeds should be planted per hole. Seeds do not have 100% germination rates, so not every seed planted will sprout. Overseeding holes, cells, or pots will help ensure that the number of plants you desire will grow (or more!).

You should perform a germination test to what percent of the seeds sprout. If half of the ones you sow sprout. Then you plant multiple seeds into a hole. Generally if you plant multiple seeds into a hole, if both plants grow out you will have to cut, kill or transplant the secondary (usually weaker) plant.

Lettuce. Germination rates are around 80%, so anywhere from 1 to 3 seeds are often planted per hole. Plant at least two to guarantee a high per-hole germination rate of 96%.

One bean plant will generally return 120:1. That is, 120 beans per 1 planted. Green beans generally average 6 beans per pod so you’d get 20 pods per plant. Since the overall size and thickness of the pods vary, I’d say that each plant should produce about a half pint of snap beans.

Generally speaking, 200 square feet of garden space per person will allow for a harvest that feeds everyone year-round. For an average family of four, plan for an 800 square-foot garden—a plot that’s 20 feet by 40 feet in size should do the trick. If your family is larger (or smaller), scale up or down as needed.

They estimate that to feed a family of four strictly on a home-grown diet of vegetables, you’d need 1.76 acres of land (which would yield 2,300 calories per person per day).

Top 10 easy to grow vegetables, fruit & salad seeds and plants for beginners

1. Salad Leaves. Crunchy fresh leaves with a fantastic range of textures and flavours.
2. Radishes. Spice up your salads with crunchy, peppery radishes.
3. Potatoes.
4. Peas.
5. Spring onions.
6. Broad Beans.
7. Runner Beans.
8. Onions and Garlic.

per person to grow enough vegetables and soft fruits for the growing season at intermediate yields. To grow all the food for one person’s needs for the whole year requires, for most people, at least 4,000 square feet—though some diet designs are possible that can use a smaller area.

According to a book released this week, gardeners may wind up saving more money by purchasing commonly grown produce from the grocery store instead of planting them at home.