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Bad batch of runner bean seeds?
TriciaB
Posts: 37
I planted my runner bean seeds in pots as usual, but used garden soil rather than commercial compost. I put them outside as no danger of frosts now and several weeks later only half have come up and some of them are deformed. They have been watered regularly and I've put them under a net because a couple of them just had a stalk and I thought birds might be eating them. I'm wondering if the seed is faulty or if something in the soil is causing the problem. I have also had to plant carrots 3 times as they did not come up and still have no carrots showing. I am puzzled because I have never had problems with either beans or carrots before. Can anyone help?
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Thank you for your reply pansyface. This is a bit scary! My plants are not as tall as yours yet but some are looking as you describe. I will check tomorrow to see if my seeds were from a supermarket or from a well known seed company. I think the latter. A friend of ours who worked in agriculture is always very interested and knowledgeable about seeds so I will ask him when he comes back from holiday. My Dad used to save runner bean seeds from year to year by leaving some beans on his plants to mature and dry out. Maybe this is the way forward. i had a packet of cucumber seeds and only half of them germinated - they were F1 hybrids. On the other hand every seed from a packet of courgettes germinated and I now have a potential glut!
I had a packet of runner beans, new this year, not one germinated. The seed company replaced them, after I had resown with another packet. I used commercial compost, sown at the same time as my sweetcorn, same conditions. All the sweetcorn came up.
Last edited: 28 June 2016 07:54:48
I had the same problem as Fidget - with climbing French beans, Didn't ask for a replacement though! Have planted runner beans - Scarlet Emperor - in the same place and they're starting to grow now. Odd.
So glad to hear your problems - no! not that you have problems rather that your problems are the same as mine! I planted some runner beans for the first time this year following all the advice from fellow allotment members. Same problems, not growing well, leaves with brown marks and shrivelled - no flowers! Thankfully, my carrots seem to be doing well.
I wonder if it is something they have coated the beans with?
They'd only have to shove them in a microwave for a couple of minutes!
I think it's something to do with the weather conditions. I had seed left from last year and sowed two lots in pots about 3 weeks apart. The first lot have distorted leaves etc much as pansyface describes but the 2nd lot look fine. Even the leaves are greener. Same compost used in the pots and they were planted out into similar soil with a similar aspect, so only the timing varied.
The first ones I planted (in pots) didn't germinate. Second lot approx. 75% success, and those which have germinated are fine.
Thanks for all these comments. We have now sown seed directly into the soil and have fingers crossed for the seeds to grow.
Have always had success at growing scarlet runners but have moved to the Wairarapa and tried growing some in large pots as the garden area was not ready.planted about 23dec and they are all distorted and most are only about a foot high.Thought it might be the cold or some residual weed killer the landscapers had used but did the same with some fardenlosa and they are ready to start flowering it's interesting that others seem to be having similar problems.Is their an answer to this problem?