Locking Bar Eglu Classic

[Leicester_H]

Hi

 

I germinated some broad beans and potted up into 5" pots.

Since its too cold to plant them out, I put them in the utility room a couple of weeks ago.

All seemed OK, grew from 3" to 6".

 

BUT now, one by one, they are dying off. They seem to get one floppy leaf and then the whole plant goes floppy and dies.

 

Any ideas how I can save the remaining (apparently healthy) ones ?

 

H

[Daphne]

Might it be damping off? I think this happens when you bring on a seedling inside or under glass but there is not enough air/they get too warm and humid? I'm not sure what you can do, if anything, once the signs are visible. If SJP sees this he may be able to comment.

 

The good news is that you can still sow a new batch, presumably inside, but certainly outside. I put my BBs in quite late because I know they sulk outside in the cold and wet soil. In fact I have sown in May before now and had very nice beans in the summer - much later than normal, but all the nicer for it as I love them and its a rare treat

[Eggasperated]

I live in Scotland and always start my broad beans off around about now in my unheated polytunnel in individual pots. They usually germinate in 10 days and i grow them on for a couple of weeks under those conditions, then harden them off for planting out in mid April. Damping off is possible especially if they have grown in the warm and have soft growth. Have you dug up the dead plants and examined the stem and also see what the root system is like?

 

As daphne says there's plenty of time to grow some more .

[sjp]

at 6" I don't think it's damping off it could be that the compost is to wet but they would go soil level if they were outside or in a greenhouse/cold frame I'd say slugs. Personally I don't grow broad bean any more but when I did I didn't start them off much before the end of March in a cold greenhouse in a 3inch pot then plant them out mid to late April. runners and French beans I start late April again in a 3"pot or a 6 cell tray the plant them out late May or early June.

most of the beans I loose after germination are down to slugs or heavy handed handling( I don't do delicate ) or they come up blind

[Leicester_H]

at 6" I don't think it's damping off it could be that the compost is to wet but they would go soil level if they were outside or in a greenhouse/cold frame I'd say slugs.

They're still indoors - unheated utility room

 

Anyway, bought some more seeds and planted (some decorative red barlotti bean seeds fell into my basket at the same time!)

 

Looking at my 'gardening diary' I planted my beans out on 16th March last year - I can't even see the raised beds today because of the snow ! - so delay not a problem as there is no where from them to go yet anyway!

 

H

[LolaLayla]

I would wait and plant them outside when the weather improves. I have found in the past I have been a bit impatient about starting things early inside but usually find that I would have been better to plant outside. As once everything warms up the plants grow well and catch up with those 'brought on'.

[sjp]

I don't start barlotti/French beans of much before late April as I don't like them to tall when I plant them out late May early June. I find beans do better started of in doors also less chance of mice eating the seed.

I was going to start My onion seeds off today but that's gone by the board now