Ohio Pole Bean

Beautiful, purple-frosted dry bean grows on 7-8 foot vines, in 7-8” long pods. Young, small pods are great as tender green beans, and when mature and dry they have large, long pods with fat, meaty beans for cooking.

In his book “Heirloom Vegetable Gardening”, William Woys Weaver shares: [Ohio Pole Bean] “was grown during the 1790s by the Delaware, Potawatomi, Shawnee, and Miami encamped near Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 1811, the bean was brought from Starke County, Ohio, to Baltimore by Quaker abolitionist Elisha Tyson.” Weaver also shares that this bean was known among early American farmers as Golden Wax Bean.

This bean plant is quite large and sprawling and can take down smaller corn stalks or sunflowers. If you plan to grow it intercropped with these species, choose tall sturdy support plants such as Puhwem Corn or giant sunflowers. Alternatively, give these beans a strong trellis.

Days to maturity: 100

Seeds per pack: 20

Germination rate: 95% on 12/02/2023

Planting / harvesting notes

Plant in warm soil at least a couple weeks after the last danger of frost has passed. Sow directly in the ground at a depth of one inch, spaced every few inches in rows 12 inches apart. Thin to one plant every six inches. Provide a strong trellis.

Seed keeping notes

Beans are self-pollinating, though it is best to isolate different varieties of P. vulgaris by at least 25 feet (we do 75 feet to be sure) to avoid unwanted cross-pollination from flying insects. For seed saving, harvest the beans when their shells have become dried and crispy on the plants. Lay out the pods in a dry, sunny place to dry down further. Shell the beans and lay out the seeds in a well ventilated place away from direct sunlight for at least another few days to a week before storing for next year.

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