How to Plant Red Kidney Beans
Beans are part of the Native American "Three Sisters" crops of corn, beans and squash. Red kidney beans have been grown for centuries and are a diet staple in many parts of the world. Red kidney beans, also called chili beans, are an herbaceous annual and are usually eaten dried. Beans are one of the easiest vegetables to grow as they only need water and weeding. Red kidney beans will benefit from a dusting of bacterial inoculant to assist in nitrogen fixing. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Compost
- Rake or hoe
- Red kidney beans, any variety
- The bacterial inoculant Rhizobium phaseoli
Instructions
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Choose a spot in your garden that receives full sun, a soil pH of 6 to 7 and is well drained. If you don't have a full sun spot, red kidney beans can tolerate some shade as long as they receive at least six hours of full sun a day.
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As soon as the soil can be worked, add compost to the soil where you will be planting the kidney beans. Add compost until the soil is fluffy and loose. Use a rake or a hoe to break up dirt clods. Rake the soil smooth.
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Dust your red kidney bean seeds with the bacterial inoculant Rhizobium phaseoli. This bacteria increases your beans ability to convert atmospheric nitrogen into a usable form of nitrogen in the soil.
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You cannot plant red kidney beans until after the last frost date for your region. Plant red kidney beans 1 to 2 inches deep and space 4 inches apart. Or you can use a hoe to create a furrow 1 to 2 inches deep and drop the beans into the furrow. Cover with soil. Thin the beans until you have plants spaced 4 inches apart.
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Water your beans well after planting. Make sure that the beans do not dry out completely, but avoid leaving standing water.
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Tips & Warnings
Use black plastic to warm up the soil where you will be planting your beans. Floating row covers will discourage pests.
Do not work with your red kidney bean plants when they are wet as you might spread disease from one plant to the next. Red kidney bean plants are shallow rooted and care is needed to weed around them.
