Sowing the Seed
In early to mid May I will sow a single seed in a pot of compost indoors. I will make a hole about 2cm below the surface with a pencil and drop the seeds in. I will also plant them direct into the soil but protect them with a plastic bottle cloche. I will do this to protect them from the chill weather, especially at night, and also from the slugs & snails which can decimate them the plants when they are young

Planting Out
Once the last frosts are over they may be hardened off and planted out. Climbing varieties like to ascend a framework, and the obvious one to erect is a tripod or whatever a multipronged version is called. This gives the plants the air and space they need to grow and makes the pods easy to pick.



What’s in a Name?
Although they sound European they are actually a South American native which were brought back from their colonial territories by the Spanish Conquistadors. Why they are French rather than Spanish I await to be educated.


Companions
French Beans were one of the Three Sisters which make up one of the most well known companion planting combinations. The contribution made by the Beans was to naturally fix nitrogen in the soil to aid the Corn and Squash in growing. Because of this fixation it is a good idea to leave the roots in the soil when the plant dies back, cutting off the stem for the compost heap. Because aliums like garlic and onions dislike nitrogen they should be kept away from French Beans, and any other legumes.

Pests
They do not have many problems once they are established, in my experience, but, like peas the young plants are vulnerable to attack. Once peas have survived rodent and weevil attack tends they tend to be prey to slugs and snails. With French Beans these are the likely culprits for the vanishing or decimated plant. Once established, however, even the seemingly stripped young plant makes a comeback, providing it is not dead. The damage can be so extensive that this happens, so having spares as “back up” is advisable. Also it pays to use plastic bottle cloches in the early stages and to be vigilant and set traps for the slugs and snails.

Seeds
At the end of the season, as with all legumes, it is relatively straight forward to let the last few pods go completely to seed and dry out. Then it is a simple job to collect the seeds after a dry period. The seeds are very resilient and last for years. Sadly Neville passed away recently, but I remember him telling me about finding some runner bean seeds in an old gardening jacket that he had forgotten he had. The beans grew beautifully.