Bush beans belong to the common bean species, Phaseolus vulgaris. They are a popular garden vegetable, favored because they are easy to grow and offer a quick turnaround from planting to harvest. These plants are grown for their edible pods, often called snap beans or green beans, and provide a high yield without extensive vertical support.
Defining the Bush Bean Growth Habit
The growth pattern of a bush bean is defined by its “determinate” nature. This means the plant grows to a fixed size, typically reaching 1 to 2 feet in height, before flowering and focusing energy on bean production. This compact structure creates a self-supporting plant that does not require staking or trellising.
Bush bean plants are sturdy and dense, forming a small, rounded shrub that fits easily into garden plots or containers. This growth habit means the majority of the crop matures and is ready for harvest within a concentrated period, usually over a few weeks. Since they stop growing once they flower, they complete their life cycle quickly, which is beneficial for processing the harvest all at once.
How Bush Beans Differ from Pole Beans
The primary difference between bush beans and pole beans lies in their growth pattern and resulting yield. Bush beans have a determinate growth habit, while pole beans exhibit “indeterminate” growth, meaning they continue to produce new vines and flowers throughout the growing season. Pole beans are vigorous climbers that can reach heights of 6 to 10 feet, necessitating a trellis, teepee, or other vertical support structure.
This difference in growth leads to distinct harvesting patterns. Bush beans provide a single flush of beans ready for picking within a short window, typically 50 to 60 days after planting. Pole beans take longer to begin producing, usually 60 to 70 days, but offer a continuous harvest that lasts until the first frost. Bush beans are efficient for horizontal garden space, while pole beans utilize vertical space, yielding more beans per square foot of ground area over the entire season.
Planting and Harvesting
Bush beans thrive when the soil is warm, so direct sowing should occur after the last spring frost when the soil temperature has reached at least 60°F. The seeds should be planted about one inch deep and spaced roughly 2 to 3 inches apart, with rows separated by 18 to 24 inches to allow for proper air circulation. It is not recommended to start bean seeds indoors, as their fragile roots do not tolerate transplanting well.
The plants require full sun exposure and consistent moisture, needing about one to one and a half inches of water per week, especially once flowering begins. Excessive nitrogen fertilizer should be avoided, as beans are legumes that fix their own nitrogen; too much nitrogen results in leafy growth with few pods. Popular varieties include ‘Provider’ or ‘Contender’, known for their high yields and resistance to common diseases.
Bush beans are typically ready for harvest about 50 to 60 days after planting, when the pods are firm, plump, and about the thickness of a pencil. It is best to pick the pods before the seeds inside begin to bulge, as this indicates they are past their peak tenderness. Because the harvest is concentrated, frequent picking, ideally every one to two days, is necessary to gather the entire crop and encourage any potential second flush of production.