Growing Broad Beans, also Fava bean

Vicia faba : Fabaceae / the pea or legume family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
              P P      

(Best months for growing Broad Beans in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 6°C and 24°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 15 - 25 cm apart
  • Harvest in 12-22 weeks. Pick frequently to encourage more pods.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Dill, Potatoes

Your comments and tips

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01 Nov 09, gary (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Lindsay, it's both. Broad beans are legumes meaning they convert nitrogen in the atmosphere into nitrogen in the soil. The nitrogen is attached to their roots and becomes available in the soil once the beans die down. The best approach is to cut the plants off at soil level once they've finished for the season. You can then lay the tops on the soil or use it as mulch elsewhere in the garden. It, too adds nitrogen to the soil as it beaks down.
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25 Oct 09, Leslie W. (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I have planted Broad beans and they are flowering, but some of the leaves are reluctant to unfold. The next planting is worse. No insects are visible. Anyone got any clues leslie
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22 May 10, Henk van der Pols (Australia - temperate climate)
About half of my broad bean leaves are kind of 'curled up'. There does not seem to be a fungus of any kind. Any brilliant ideas, anyone?
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19 Oct 09, LIndsay (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I know broad beans are good for the soil. Is it the growing that puts the goodness in the soil or burying the empty pods and plants that puts the goodness in the soil or is it both?
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14 Sep 09, Emily (Australia - temperate climate)
My beans are growing very well!! Well not the actual fruit itself but the bush is plenty and many more flowers are budding daily. I guess i need to wait till the temperature heats up a bit, for the beans to form. However, do i need a terrace or something for the beans to climb up on.
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12 Sep 09, pigflyin (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
our beans are podding furiously for the last few weeks. about 6 inches long.... hardest part is to decide when to pick them. Got in 2 today, one is good size, one too small. FUN! pick off the growing tip does seems to encourage the pod to fatten faster... or it must be my wishful thinking.
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10 Sep 09, Brian (Australia - temperate climate)
Our beans are growing well, with lots of flowers that the bees are enjoying. But on the whole patch, there is only one pod forming. Should we be patient and expect the others to follow the lone example? Is there anything we can do to encourage podding?
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07 Sep 09, Trent (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I'm growing BB for the first time and have noticed on a few of the plants the leaves are curling up lengthwise, starting from the tips of the plants. It doesn't look like a pest but I suspect it's a deficiency.Can anyone shed some light on this?
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29 Aug 09, Cherry (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
This is the first time I have grown BB. How long after the plant flowers do you start to get the bean pods please.
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27 Aug 09, Zoidberg (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Yes Nat you are right, the broad beans won't be killed by frost but they won't set pods in cool weather. You just have to wait until it's warm enough in your area for the pods to form - for us about mid-Spring.
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This year I've had a fairly good crop of broad beans (Fava beans) in my small back yard. I left them to grow wild with grass and weeds growing around because it is impossible to eradicate them, especially if the beans are often watered during dry spells, and weedicide is not an option. Each stem had at least from 6 to eight pods of about 6 inches long or smaller. Maybe it is a smaller type of broad beans but quite delicious. I have had no problems with pests, mainly the white butterflies who roster on the plants in the evenings, but I did notice extensive brown powdery colour on their leaves. Not intending to spray the plants, I hosed most of it off the leaves but the damage had already been done to the leaves, however, the plants seemed to cope will with what looks like brown fungal residue. I planted my broad beans early October and they have grown well. I planted another patch near if and now are 5 inches (15cm) high. Looks like I will get another crop on late February provided they get water and or rain. There has been no snail damage whatsoever, as I keep these pests in check with snail pellets around the perimeter of the crop. I have also noticed a number of Ladybugs on the broad beans leaves. I let them stay as these beautiful insects monitor the plants for suspected pest activities such as Aphids, etc.

- Michael

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