Growing Long Beans at Home
Long beans, snake beans, asparagus beans, yard long beans – however you call it is a vegetable (of the legumes family) cultivated for its edible green pods containing tender immature seeds. Very similar to green beans in terms of flavour and look, long beans however do have a distinctly beany taste, and are not sweet like the green beans. They too differ in terms of texture – while green beans can taste palatable either boiled or steamed, long beans tend to become waterlogged and bland when treated with water. Hence, long beans are more commonly cooked in variations such as sambal fried long beans, garlic oil fried long beans, long beans stir-friend with tau kua (firm pressed tofu), Sichuan style stir-fried Chinese long beans (coated in fragrant Sichuan peppercorn oil….mmm.. oh so lovely!), etc.
Long beans are climbers typically found growing on vines 2 – 3 metres tall. The beans themselves commonly grow to about 30 to 40cm long. Heat is a key driver to their germination, so with Singapore’s thriving hot temperatures, chances of successful development of long beans are high.
They typically take 2-3 months to start flowering from the time their seeds are sowed; then, you can expect the bearing of beans to follow in about 2 weeks.
How to grow from seed?
Unlike most seeds where soaking prior to sowing would help to speed up germination, long bean seeds do not need to be soaked. If soaked, it can drown the seeds and get them mushy very quickly.
As always, it is recommended to have the seeds germinated in a seedling tray before having successful germinations transplanted into larger pots or directly into a planting plot.
Unlike most seeds where soaking prior to sowing would help to speed up germination, long bean seeds do not need to be soaked. If soaked, it can drown the seeds and get them mushy very quickly.
As always, it is recommended to have the seeds germinated in a seedling tray before having successful germinations transplanted into larger pots or directly into a planting plot.
Using a seedling tray (a ready made one, or even using a recycled egg tray), fill the seedling tray with fresh soil mix. Do remember to create holes at the base of each cell for proper water drainage. You can do so by using a pair of kitchen scissors to snip off a small corner of the base of the egg tray – do so for each cell in the tray.
Afterwhich, fill each cell with fresh soil mix, and moisten the soil with a generous amount of water. Then, make a hole (about 1 cm deep) in the soil of each cell to place 1 to 2 seeds into it. Thereafter, you can either sprinkle a thin layer of soil mix over to cover the inserted seeds, or simply “bury” inserted seeds into the soil by lightly patting soil over exposed seeds. Continue to water the mix until it is substantially moist. What you are looking for is a light to medium wetness. Remember not
After sowing the seeds, expose the tray to at least 4 hrs of direct sunlight daily and remember to protect them from rain. As fresh seeds are light in weight, raindrops falling on these freshly sowed seeds can easily misplace the seed out of its soil cell. Another culprit who could remove your seeds from its slots are the birds – they love long bean seeds, and would ever so often come and peck some seeds as a snack! Hence, find a strategic position within your home where this tray can sit safely. Feel free to overlay your germination tray with a gardeners’ net/ mesh to prevent the harsh rain or eyeing birds.
Throughout germination, do keep the soil mix moist at all times. Germination should take approximately 3 to 5 days.
As the saying goes, “survival of the fittest” – after 3 to 5 days of germination, remove the weaker seedlings and you may use the remnant soil from the weaker seedlings to top up soil for the stronger seedlings which may now require a little more structural support as they sprout their first stem and few leaves. When these stronger seedlings produce 2 or 3 pairs of leaves, gently transplant each one into a 30 cm pot or directly into a planter or ground by the fence. Remember, long beans are creepers, therefore they would need trellises or some form of structural support for the plant to cling on to as it grows and extends.
Long bean seedlings grow relatively fast amongst the spectrum of vegetables. As a result, they would require good amounts of nutrients to support this quick growth. It typically takes 3-4 weeks for the long beans to grow to a good substantial size.
How to grow from cuttings?
(Not available)
Soil types for optimal growth:
Long beans are best grown in soil without excessive organic matter. High volumes of organic matter can contribute to high levels of nitrogen (N) which may potentially result in the growth of more leaves than beans. Not the best outcome if you’re hungry for a good harvest of long beans for the family. Attempt to add some sand into your soil mixture to create good soil drainage and reduce the clinginess of the soil against the roots of the plants. These plants will do well in dry, sandy soil conditions.
Optimal PH:
6.0 – 7.5
Sunlight exposure:
Long beans once germinated, are sun lovers. They thrive in our local heat and moisture, so make sure your long beans shoots get at least 6 hours of unobstructed sun per day—the more sun the better!
Watering:
While germinating, keep soil moist – not over soaking in water such that seeds over soak, soften and rot (die).
After seeds have germinated, do note that long beans (just like brinjal) plants do not like standing water, so they should be watered deeply and infrequently. This means that the water should drain well through the soil, reaching the soil in the base of the pot, not hovering at the surface of the soil nor soaking the roots; watering 3 to 4 times a week should be sufficient, unless the weather is unusually hot.
Positioning:
By the window where plenty of sunlight is available would be a good spot to position your plant.
If not, any other positions that receive good amounts of sunlight (especially morning sunlight) can work too – HDB corridors, balcony, verandas, etc.
