Broad Beans - anyone growing them?

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frash

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I am but am unsure if I'm picking them too soon.

The pods are about 5 or 6 inches long but the peas inside them are tiny compared to some broad beans I'd bought in a green grocers lately.

Maybe I should have been giving them some kind of fertilizer?

Any help would be great.

Thanks!
 
Mine are the very same and I was beginning to wonder if it was "French beans" that were sown originally.
 
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Mine are definetly broad beans as I also have French beans but they don't look ready yet.
 
I harvested my Broad Beans early-mid June - the pods were anything up to 12" in length - I sowed late February.
 
Mahons said:
I harvested my Broad Beans early-mid June - the pods were anything up to 12" in length - I sowed late February.
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& the beans were a decent size?

I sowed in March.
The pods are big enough now but the beans inside are tiny.
 
Could they be sugar snaps? (Apologies if that's another name for French beans). I have sugar snaps and they are a good size (and delicious), and have been for months now, but the "peas" in the pods are always going to be tiny.
 
Broad beans are not really like any kind of pea pod, their pods are way bigger and kinda hairy. My parents have always grown broad beans and they are harvesting theirs at the moment, but I think it depends when you sow them. If you sowed them late they might need a bit longer, it sounds like you're picking them too soon.
 
dubgem said:
Could they be sugar snaps? (Apologies if that's another name for French beans). I have sugar snaps and they are a good size (and delicious), and have been for months now, but the "peas" in the pods are always going to be tiny.
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They're broad beans for sure.
Have sugar snap too & they're doing well.
 
knicknack said:
Broad beans are not really like any kind of pea pod, their pods are way bigger and kinda hairy. My parents have always grown broad beans and they are harvesting theirs at the moment, but I think it depends when you sow them. If you sowed them late they might need a bit longer, it sounds like you're picking them too soon.
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Yeah maybe I'll leave them for a while before picking again.
Thanks for the reply
 
You can pick your broad beans now (with really small beans inside) if you want to steam or boil the broad beans. They are at their most tender and flavoursome stage. This is how people have then in France and in Italy. If you want to use the beans inside, then leave them longer, but the pod is going to be less flavoursome and harder.
 
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