'If' my beans are too thin.

[Grass And Grain]

Well actually @Jon, my post above was maybe a bit misleading. They are not all so bad.

Certainly enough plants to make a reasonable crop. Had we had a wetter april then they would have just covered the ground a bit better. A few sandy patches in the field where herbicide hasn't worked so well, so I fear those areas will have weed competition and would have benefited from being a bit thicker.

Got more seed on the headlands and the difference is quite marked. Taller, darker green and healthier looking. Can't really explain why. Competing for light?

 

[Jon]

I've seen the same on the headlands, especially where the crow attack is worse, (the plants didn't get pulled up) my agronomist suggests it's because the land is firmer !

 

[TelesnaAg]

Picture of my winter beans taken today. Broadcast on ploughed in power harrowed View attachment 509892iView attachment 509894 flowers on

Look good..watch the flower to pod ratio as they grow especially lower.ones blocked from light...i always say tillered beans give best yield..for winter sown...

Ant....

 

[Jon]

Here we go, update for my thinned beans, courtesy of the much blessed on this holiest of days (Sunday) crow.

 

[Mr Charisma]

Hmmmm , an old thread brought back to life ,,,,, well I have to say my beans do look well ,,, probably a bit to well , they are certainly flowering well , but those flowers have yet to pod and those pods have yet to fill ,,,,,, long time till the combine trundle through them .
They have had good money spent on them , possibly to much , but the ground underneath is lovely and weed free ,,,,, not like my last memories of trying to force knot grass through a trio or a rigid time vaddy rapid .
They have had first dose of Alto Elite and in theory due another pass in 10 days time but time will tell, if still clean the gap might get stretched ,,,,,, don't want to trundle through them to many times with the sprayer

 

[sticky]

Here we go, update for my thinned beans, courtesy of the much blessed on this holiest of days (Sunday) crow.
View attachment 521982View attachment 521984

My beans are the opposite, way too thick and far too tall, they just won't stop growing. I expect there will be a thick black mat at harvest.

 

[TelesnaAg]

View attachment 523528 View attachment 523526
My beans are the opposite, way too thick and far too tall, they just won't stop growing. I expect there will be a thick black mat at harvest.

Thick or thin you need flowers to convert to pods...if you can get a fair % of lower flowers to convert it may yield very well...it looks healthy...and can see flowers...good amount of sunlight critical and some bees may help..

good luck!!

Ant...

 

[Grass And Grain]

Well I was the one who started the thread, so here's how mine look now.

Came on well after the other week's rain. A few weeds in sandy patches which didn't have enough crop competition in spring to smother them out.

 

[Feldspar]

Hmmmm , an old thread brought back to life ,,,,, well I have to say my beans do look well ,,, probably a bit to well , they are certainly flowering well , but those flowers have yet to pod and those pods have yet to fill ,,,,,, long time till the combine trundle through them .
They have had good money spent on them , possibly to much , but the ground underneath is lovely and weed free ,,,,, not like my last memories of trying to force knot grass through a trio or a rigid time vaddy rapid .
They have had first dose of Alto Elite and in theory due another pass in 10 days time but time will tell, if still clean the gap might get stretched ,,,,,, don't want to trundle through them to many times with the sprayer

10 days between Alto Elite passes sounds quite short?

 

[Mr Charisma]

10 days between Alto Elite passes sounds quite short?

Sorry ,,,,, they had there first dose on the 2nd May so in theory due at the beginning of the week but with the warm weather we have delayed till the end of this week to consider if we are going to start chasing the bruchid beetle about

 

[Mr Charisma]

Well I was the one who started the thread, so here's how mine look now.

Came on well after the other week's rain. A few weeds in sandy patches which didn't have enough crop competition in spring to smother them out.

View attachment 523748
View attachment 523752

I still stand by my original comment that they will out yield my to thick beans ,,,,,, time will tell no doubt ,,,,, will certainly be interesting to watch pod set

 

[Grass And Grain]

I only put 12 stone per acre of seed on. Then some didn't make it on the sandy areas, so I was concerned.

Now they look quite well, so I'm happy how they've grown. Still slightly on the thin side I think, but as you say too thick is not great.

 

[Flat 10]

Mine are a lot shorter and thinner than normal, early flowers got frosted be interesting to see how high yield actually is. Hoping for better lower pod set than usual but prefer thick crop to shade out spring germinating weeds. Sprayed alto elite last week. Seemed a distinct lack of bees. Few bruchid beetles stuck to spraying tractor. Probably should spray for bruchid as risk will high as temps up but very reluctant.

 

[TelesnaAg]

If all those flowers convert..your in with a show...

I harvested the sh*ttest looking faba crop this year...late sown...100kg ha..on crap dirt next to the ocean....you could easily walk between plants nothing over knee high...a train wreck...

Went 1.2 tonne acre...plants were full of pods and were tillered plants...thats the key in my book..getting them to tiller...

Often flower to pod is heavily weather affected...

Ant...

 

[twizz]

Just walked them knee high lots of flowers and plenty of bees

 

[Warp Land Farmer]

What variety winter beans would be recommended for light land? Probably grow for feed as HC premium hasnt been greatbthe last 2 years.

 

[Mr Charisma]

Been and had a snoop around my beans this morning , they need to stop growing at the rate they are , way to thick in my opinion but combine will tell us eventually tho

 

[Feldspar]

Been and had a snoop around my beans this morning , they need to stop growing at the rate they are , way to thick in my opinion but combine will tell us eventually tho

Crikey! Ours are about half that height and much thinner. I think I'd prefer to be you.

 

[Mr Charisma]

Crikey! Ours are about half that height and much thinner. I think I'd prefer to be you.

That random plant that I pulled out I was pleased to find 14 pods and still flowering well ,,,,,, as a new comer to the art of growing winter beans what is a nice amount of pods per plant ?,,,, can a formed pod be aborted ? What would the optimum number of pods be / plant ?

 

[TelesnaAg]

That random plant that I pulled out I was pleased to find 14 pods and still flowering well ,,,,,, as a new comer to the art of growing winter beans what is a nice amount of pods per plant ?,,,, can a formed pod be aborted ? What would the optimum number of pods be / plant ?

Yes small formed pods can abort or fail to fill, very prone to moisture stress at this point and heat...check to make sure roots nodulated as well...important advantage with beans.

Its not so much pods per plant but pods per sqm - you can half the plants with tillers and more pods, and alot depends on seed size...i like 30 seeds plant minimum with 30-35 plants but i am trying to get back to 30 or under and get 40 seeds...as a tillered bean always seems to have more pods because they will start from lower on the plant. i have had up to 80 pods on a plant son 200 seeds...was beside a spray track where it tillered...just covered in pods.

The example you have against the car is single stem and as you can see only flowers at the top...so all those flowers will have to convert 100% to pods...i also wonder that in times of moisture stress do the tillered plants with pods lower hang on better? wander through the crop especially along edge of crop and see if you have some tillered plants and count pods.

Looking at the crop it's probably on the thick side...but there's also the weed issue at play so needs consideration - sacrafice some yield for cleaner crop following year.

if the weather stays on your side it should yield...

Ant...