So, how to grow string beans (sitaw)? To grow string beans, make a plot. Then choose quality string beans seeds. After that go to garden's plot and plant the seeds an inch deep and cover with soil. Make a spacing of 12 inches apart. Apply some fertilizer, mulch, put fence and water it regularly. It can now be harvest after 2 to 3 months.
What is String Beans?
String beans is a vegerable vines. This have a long vines which crawl. The leaves of it is smooth. The flowers is color violet when appear and looks like a butterfly. The fruit of is about 8 to 14 inches long depends on variety. The seeds is color green when not ripe and color indigo to black when ripe for some variety. It is color brown when dry.
Few questions. Ma'am/Sir are you new to gardening? Or are you have some experience in gardening? Or you are a student who are conducting a research. Why we ask, theres nothing on that hope you will learn even as little information. So continue reading.
How to Plant String Beans
1. Make a Plot
Choose a location where you will grow string beans. This spot should be receiving enough sunlight so that the vegetable will grow well. Also if the place attain more soil moisture it will produce more high quality fruits. Better to have a loam soil.Get your gardening tools like grab hoe and rake. Using the grab hoe start cultivating the soil. After that remove the grasses. And start leveling it using the rake. Be careful on handling these tools to prevent accident.
You can mix some organic fertilizer like compost which is produce through organic matters. Put it on a soil and mix it using hands and make it pulvirize.
Have a meter wide, two meter length and 10 inches high. The roots will start to grow so need some adjustment on the plots height. Lets go to next step.
2. Choose Quality String Beans Seed
Getting string beans seeds is easy. Buy some string beans seeds at the agriculture store, online store or buy some string beans seeds for sale near your location. The selling price for high quality sitaw seeds may cost around $1 to $2+ or 50 to 100 pesos per pack.Those seeds are in package in which one pack may contain around 20 to 100+ seeds. The seeds appearance may have colors on it or a chemical in which it help the seeds to make longer its life.
Or if you have string beans in your garden, let it dry and when the pods are color brown you can now use it in planting.
The seeds of string beans are almost 100% will germinate as long as it has good size, the color and texture. They are bigger enough and color indigo to black. Those brown seeds and smaller size probably they will not germianate or in such case they will germinate but the it will grow poorly.
3. Planting String Beans from Seeds
After making the gardens plot and having string bean seeds, we are now going to plant. On the plot make an inch deep hole and put one seeds inside. Make spacing about six inches apart.If you have a bigger and longer size plot with a wide space put one seeds only so that it can grow its roots. But if your gardens space is limited, you can put two seeds per hole.
After putting the seeds, water it. The water will help it to start to germinate. How long does string beans will germinate? Usually it takes 3 to 5 days before you see some tiny leaves.
4. Applying Fertilizer
How to apply fertilizer on String Beans? We recommended to apply organic fertilizer. The organic fertilizer is come from decaying organic materials like grass, leaves, leftover foods and animal manure.Organic fertilizer is best as we are not using chemical fertilizer from the market. But you can also use that if you want.
To apply organic fertilizer, get the fertilizer and cultivate the soil few inches and be careful not to cut string beans roots. Put the fertilizer and mix it on the soil.
When to apply fertilizer on String Beans? Apply when it is 18 inches long as it will help to longer its vines.
5. Add Support for Climbing
String beans is a vegetable vines in which it crawls. It is advise to make support for its climbing. When you put some wires or string, the vines will goes to it and continue to grow.You can put support by putting some pole on both ends of the plot and tie a string and continue building it as the plants can grow. Tie a string or wires on its vine going upward.
Make a string like a rectangle shape look as long as the leaves and stem of the vines will goes to it and it can use as support.
6. Water it Everyday
This vegetable needs more water so that it will grow faster and easier.When is the time to water string beans? The best time to water it is 6 to 7 am in the morning and 4 to 5 pm in the afternoon.
Also don't let a day to pass not to water it. It is best if this vegetables will gets enough water.
7. Put Some Mulch
The mulch will surely help to maintain the moisture on the soil. To add mulch simply get some dry grasses, leaves or small wood chips and put it on the base of the plant.The mulch will help to prevent the evaporation of the water on the soil. This will act as a shade and will help the vegetables to grow well.
The more mulch you add the better. And also when the mulch start to decay it will serve as your new fertilizer.
String Beans Care
You need to apply some care for this vegetables. In fact if you do that more healthier leaves, flowers and fruits/pods will produce.
How to care for String Beans? You can care for that by removing pest and insect on the leaves. When you see pest try to remove it as much as possible. Those pest will surely eat the leaves and also its flower.
There are worms and bugs in which will roam around. Inspect it as often as possible so that it will grow healthy.
Also the ants are one of the insect destroying this vegetable. When you see a formation of group of ants on the stem or leaves remove them. They are eating or affecting the growth.
Late before we don't mind it as it is just ants. But no remove them as fast as possible. To remove them you will not use your bare hands. Instead get a dipper and put some water inside, then mix a laundry soap. After that water the leaves or stem parts where there are formation of ants.
Also water it everyday. It needs your care by applying enough water.
Also try to grow it where the sunlight is abundant. We know that through the sun, the plants make its food. The more sunlight the better.
It needs minimum of 4 hours time to under the sun and the more time the better outcome.
When to harvest String Beans?
Start harvesting string beans within 2 to 3 months. Do this early in the morning so that you can maximize your time in whole day.
How to Harvest String Beans?
Harvest string beans by twisting the base of the pods to the stem. Avoid cutting the stem because this is where the flowers bear and its pods.
Start picking the young green pods which have enough length, depends on its variety. You can also harvest the older and the dry pods after 3 months.
Can You Grow String Beans in Container?
Yes, you can grow string beans in container. Make sure to use bigger size pots. The roots of it will spread so better to use pots like pale or container with 18 cm in diameter.
But take note. Usually this vegetable is planted directly on the soil which grows better. So if you have some space to plant try to plant it directly.
Growing String Beans at Home
If you will grow this at home for family needs like food you can do it. It is very enjoyable to plant this and wait for 3 months and start harvesting your crops. Just follow the steps above.
What is the String Beans Price in the Market?
One small bunch of string beans cost around 10 to 20 pesos. It still depends on the stock and the freshness. People buy it for foods to eat.
There's a quick story in planting at school. When we are in grade six, we experience how to grow string beans at school. That time we didn't create the plot but some students and teachers make the plot. They also plant the seeds and after few days it start to germinate.
That time everybody of us in four section has its own plot. We see how it grows. What we did that time is water it every morning and afternoon. But one major ploblem that time is water supply.
There are times that there's no water so we just wait for one day or two before to water it again. After 3 months we harvest some pods. But we just get few. For me the reason why is, it is planted on mud soil.
For me the vegetable will grow but not as healthy and better compare to loam soil. So we advise to plant it on loam soil.
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