Green beans in zone 6 go in once the soil warms in May

Plant green beans in zone 6 once the soil is warm, usually from early May. The sowing window runs right through to late July, so a short row every three weeks keeps beans coming from late June until the first frost.

The date matters less than the soil. Bean seed rots in cold, wet ground, and the most common reason for a gappy row is sowing too early.

When the soil is ready

Zone 6’s last frost is usually around April 21, but soil warms more slowly than air. Wait until it’s at least 60 °F a few inches down, which in most zone 6 gardens means early to mid-May. Without a thermometer, wait until the weeds are growing fast and the nights are mild.

Zones come from winter lows, not frost dates, so these are approximate. Cold, low-lying gardens can be a couple of weeks later; city gardens often earlier.

If you want an earlier crop, start beans indoors from late March to late April, one seed to a pot, and plant them out from early May after hardening off. Most growers find it simpler to sow outside.

Bush or pole

Bush beans grow to about 18 inches and need no support. They crop heavily for two to three weeks, then slow down, which is why repeat sowings help.

Pole beans climb a trellis or tepee to 6 feet or more. They take a little longer to start cropping but keep going for much longer, and they give more beans for the space.

Many gardeners grow both: bush beans for an early crop and successions, pole beans for a long summer harvest.

How to sow

1. Choose a sunny spot with loose soil and some compost dug in.
2. Sow seeds about 1.5 inches deep and 6 inches apart, in rows 18 inches apart. In square foot gardening, that’s nine to a square.
3. For pole beans, sow three or four seeds at the base of each pole.
4. Water once, then hold off until the seedlings appear unless the soil dries out.

Sweet corn, cucumbers, potatoes and eggplant all grow well nearby. Keep beans away from onions, garlic, shallots and leeks.

Sowing through the summer

Sowing	First beans
Early May	Late June to early July
Late May	Mid-July
Mid-June	August
Early July	Late August
Late July	September

Each sowing of bush beans crops for a few weeks and the plants keep going for about eight weeks with regular picking. In midsummer heat, water deeply once or twice a week, as dry plants drop their flowers.

Picking

Pick when the pods are about pencil-thick and snap cleanly, before the beans make bumps in the pod. Check every couple of days in summer. The more you pick, the more the plants flower.

Common problems

Seeds not coming up. Cold, wet soil. Wait for warmer weather and resow.

Mexican bean beetles and Japanese beetles. Holes in the leaves from midsummer. Hand-pick beetles and larvae from the undersides of leaves.

Flowers dropping. Hot, dry spells. Water deeply and mulch.

Pick zone 6 on the green bean page to see the full sowing window. The same timing suits zucchini in zone 6, which go in at the same time.