Edamame or soybeans are warm weather legumes that can grow at the same place for 3-4 years. As a resistant crop, soybean is planted in a range of areas and enjoyed almost throughout the year.
Soybeans are known in the botanical world as Glycine max and anyone can easily grow this plant. Below are some details about this plant and how you can grow it in your home garden:
Different Bean Types
Soybean is cultivated in so many regions of the world that it is hard to make an proper guess of the number of types it has. However, experts claim that there are currently 10,000 living cultivars of soybeans all around the world. Some of the well-known ones are as follows. Note that they do not have anything different in them as such other than their intricate, unnoticeable details and their colors:
Green Seed Beans: Very tender and richly flavorsome
Black Seed Beans:Used as dried form. Often hard and not very flavorful
Yellow Seed Beans:The variety you use for soy milk and flour preparation
Bean Harvest Time
Soybeans can be planted when the spring season is in its full bloom and turning warmer. It is best to start the plantation around 2-3 weeks after the last frost so you can get the highest yield. When planting, make sure that the soil is around 60 degrees Fahrenheit warm for consistent days and then begin with planting. This crop cannot tolerate frost at all so make sure you plant them in the warmer winter days even if you do not get proper summers in your region.
After plantation, beans are ready for shelling around 40-65 days later. You can harvest the crop for green shelled beans when the pods are plump and greenish in colors. At this time, the inside pod of the bean would be no longer than 3 inches and would not be fully mature or ready for use. Hence, if you want dried soybeans, you will have to wait around 3-4 weeks for the beans to dry and reach their mature age. You just have to pull out the entire plant and then hang it upside down in a dry and cool place where it can dry well. Once the beans are dry, shell them and start using them in any way you like.
Bean Water And Light Requirements
Beans require a consistent supply of moisture for their proper growth and taste. Hence, you should try shallow watering the beds everyday or on alternate days if you live in a region that is not extremely hot. Make sure not to forget about watering the plant when its flowers and pods are forming. Also, always water the plant on bed level and avoid watering directly on the flowers and pods because these can shed this way.
As for the light concerns, beans require full sunlight, directly shedding on their beds and germinating seeds, for their proper growth. You can expect soybeans to grow under partial shade too but there is a lot of difference in the amount and speed of yielding between the beans grown under direct light and those grown under shade. The latter’s yield is comparatively slow and often very limited.
How To Grow Bean
Anyone can grow soybeans in their garden provided they have the suitable conditions and some knowledge of the proper steps to grow edamame on their own. Simply follow the steps given below and you will surely make your own beans garden at home:
Choose a place that receives a lot of sun and prepare it as a bed for beans’ growth. Make sure that the soil at this place is rich in organic compost and loose enough to let air pass through. Also ensure pH of 6 to 6.8.
Now, mulch the soil right when the temperature goes up to 16 degrees Celsius. This keeps the moisture retained in the soil and keep it well prepared to welcome the new seeds.
Prepare the bed and add compost or any other nutrient that you want to before plant. You have to add the same compost mid-season too. Make sure that the fertilizer you use is not extra rich in nitrogen. The beans will themselves work with the bacteria to produce nitrogen later on and we do not want its excess as such.
Now, you are ready for planting the seeds. Sow each seed around 4 inches apart from others. As for the depth, make sure the seed goes down around 2 inches deep. The rows must be 30 inches apart. Once the seeding begins, thin out the seedling in a way that there is around 6 inches between the seeds later.
Do not soak the seeds before you plant them. Also, do not over water right after planting the seeds. Extra moisture at the beginning of their life might crack them, resulting in poor seed germination with less yield later.
Common Pests And Diseases
You would be surprised to know that beans as such are not sensitive. Hence, they are rarely exposed to pests or diseases as such. However, this does not mean that one should stop caring about them or stop using any protective mechanism. There are, nevertheless, some diseases that can happen to the crop and ruin it all within days.
You should make sure to keep the soil well-protected during the winter season so no pests can make it their home. All they need is a little care and these beans can grow in the same place for around 3-4 years.
Remedies And Caring Tips For Disease Prevention
Despite these beans developing no disease as such, it is essential that you take good care of them and do not let the area run void of care that is otherwise given to other yields. Here are some things that you can do to ensure your beans’ grow better and healthier:
Do not underestimate the importance of direct sunlight for your beans. Make sure it reaches them no matter what.
Use fertilizer with less nitrates and do not over do its layering in the bed.
When cleaning or cultivating around soybeans, make sure you use scissors or knife and do not disturb their seeds at all.
Always ensure proper cleaning and no weeds around bean growths
When harvested, give the plant its time to dry and do not touch it or cover it in a way that locks moisture in it. This can cause fungus and ruin the entire harvest in 2 days.
Always mulch the soil so the needed moisture is conserved in the warm soil.
