How to Grow Bean Seeds

Would you like to know how to grow bean seeds without covering them up, so that children can see the germination process? You can watch beans sprout without even putting them in dirt. All the bean needs is water and sunlight. Growing beans makes an excellent science activity even for the youngest children; I did the bean science project with my preschool class and I did it years later with my third graders. So if you'd like to learn how to grow bean seeds without soil, read on.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bean seeds
• Paper towel
• "Zippable" plastic bag
• Water
• Sunny window

1. Prepare a habitat for the bean plant. Take the paper towel and fold it into fourths, and then dampen it. Place the damp paper towel into the "zippable" freezer bag. Then place up to 5 bean seeds right on the paper towel. Push most of the air bubbles out of the bag and then seal it.

2. Tape the bag with the bean seeds to a window that gets lots of sun. Because you pressed the air out of the bag before you sealed it, the beans should stay in place, against the paper towel. The beans should be facing the sun. You and your child will be able to see your science project when you are outside.

3. Monitor the moisture throughout the course of this science experiment. When your paper towel looks like it's drying out you can open the bag to drizzle water over them. Just handle the bag with care because the casings on the bean seed will become delicate and soft once they are moistened.

4. Watch for growth over the next few days! You should see the bean plant start to germinate. Once you see that the bean seeds have showed growth you can transfer them to soil. Have fun teaching your child how to grow bean seeds!

Resources

• eHow Spring Guide
• Photo courtesy of me'nthedogs

[sunshine11219]

on 4/20/2009 great gardening tips on growing bean seeds