This tall sturdy flowering annual in the bean family produces a multitude of long pods with 8 large beans (the thick walled pods are unpalatable raw) and edible leaves perfect for salads. The plant has sturdy stems and will grow to almost 6 foot but it is not a climber.
Taste/Aroma:
I love the buttery texture of this bean. You can do lots with it but I like to simply sauté them in some butter. I am the only person in the family that likes them though :).
I am yet to make soup with them but this is also a popular use of this bean.
Heike Motzek pointed me at this recipe as a use for the thick walled pods. Now I don’t have to put them all in my worm farms 🙂
Blanching and Storing:
One minute in boiling water and three minutes in freezing water and then into the freezer.
Flower:
Fruit:
Plant:
Leaves:
Grow It Perth:
Green squares = harvest and plant seedlings
Blue squares = plant seedlings, sets or crowns only
Orange squares = harvest only
Black squares = no planting and nothing to harvest
White squares = I don’t know and need your help
| M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | J | F | |
| bean broad |
Growing Fava beans is relatively easy but you need to give the mature plants some support as they can grow to 6 foot. I use coils of chicken wire but stakes and twine do just as well.
Use a vegetable tailored NPK fertiliser and you should get multiple crops from each plant.
Related Links:
- see more bean posts here
- see more fava bean posts here
- go to all meal ingredients
- go the Grow It Perth calendar
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