Runner Bean Hestia

We offer a dwarf version of the runner bean with the variety Hestia. Usually, they tower over us at 3 or 4 metres (10 or 13 feet). Hestia is ideal for decorating patios or small balconies in planters. At 45cm (18in) tall, it has retained all the ambivalence of the runner bean: always hesitating between being an ornamental plant with its flamboyant flowering and a vegetable with its pods of excellent taste. This small variety with a bushy habit offers urban dwellers (but not only) bicolour coral red and white flowers and produces beans that are smaller than the typical variety, but just as tasty. All other characteristics are identical. Sow this flowering bean from April to June for a harvest from July to September.

Be careful with the saying "the bean must see the gardener's foot move away". This is not true for runner beans. On the contrary, its seeds need to be buried at least 5cm (2in) deep in the soil to germinate. Even the cotyledon germinates underground before the first true leaves appear.

Whether consumed for its pod or its seed, the bean is a highly appreciated vegetable in gardens because it is very easy to grow. It is so punctual that the gardener knows the exact date when it will be ready for the first harvest, 60 days after sowing.

Discovered in the New World and acclimatised in Europe from the 16th century onwards, the bean has now become an essential legume in diets around the world. Native Americans cultivated it for its dried seeds, but it was the Italians who, in the 18th century, initiated the consumption of the whole immature pod.

The bean is a vine with indeterminate growth. Primitive varieties are all climbing and require support. Later, for practical reasons, dwarf varieties were selected, but they all have tendrils that can wrap around a support. The pods are usually green, sometimes yellow, striped with red or even amethyst. Among the varieties that are eaten when fine or extra fine, there are string beans that have strings when fully ripe. Then the pod becomes parchment-like and loses its taste. The mangetout bean is generally more fleshy and can be consumed entirely, both the seeds and the pods, even when fully ripe. The newer filet- mangetout beans can be eaten when young and extra fine, or when more fleshy like a mangetout, as they do not form strings.

Among the shell beans (i.e., only the seeds are consumed), we can distinguish between harvesting fresh beans and dry beans, which is done 90 days after sowing.

Immature green pods are rich in vitamins A, B9, and C, as well as trace elements and minerals. Dry beans are also very rich in vitamin C, trace elements, and especially vegetable proteins.

Harvesting: harvesting fresh beans or young pods begins 60 days after sowing. For fresh beans, it must be done before the pods start to dehydrate and become wrinkled. The beans should barely have taken on their colour. For pod consumption, harvest should take place every 2 or 3 days, both at the fine and extra fine stages for filet beans. Dry beans should be harvested by cutting the entire plant and hanging it in a dry and airy place. They can be shelled as needed.

Storage: freezing the pods is now the most common method of preservation. To do this, remove the ends, wash them, blanch them for 5 to 6 minutes in boiling water, then plunge them into cold water and dry them with a clean cloth. Once packaged, the beans can be placed in the freezer at -18°C (-0.4°F). However, canning is regaining popularity among an increasing number of consumers due to the inherent taste qualities of this preservation method. As with freezing, remove the ends, wash them, blanch them, then immerse the beans in cold water. Then put them in jars and fill them with salted boiling water. Close the jars and sterilise them in a pressure cooker or with a steriliser for 1 hour and 30 minutes over medium heat, completely covering the jars with water after securing them well.

Dry beans: when completely dry, bean seeds can be stored for up to a year if stored under good conditions, such as in airtight jars.

Gardener's tip: beans, like all members of the Fabaceae family, have the ability to fix nitrogen from the air in the soil through a plant-bacteria symbiosis. They therefore have the ability to regenerate soils. Beans can be included in crop rotation after burying green manure. In Central and South America, beans are traditionally associated with the cultivation of squash and maize, forming a beneficial triad. This association is locally called Milpa. Beans also associate well with eggplants, carrots, cabbage, potatoes, and radishes, as they protect each other. Avoid the presence of alliums or fennel, as their growth is inhibited.

A spray of nettle extract allows for effective control of aphid attacks and strengthens the plants.