The part of the runner bean plant we usually eat is the bean pod containing immature beans. The trick to having tasty runner beans is to harvest them regularly whilst they are young, biggest is not best in a runner bean unless you want to enter into the local show.

• If you leave your beans to grow to the size you buy in the supermarket they will be old, stringy and unpleasant.
• The beans will grow in bunches, pick off the bigger pods and leave the smaller for another day.
• You will need to hunt amongst the leaves as they like to play hide and seek, by picking regularly any you miss should be spotted next time round.
• Once they get going you may need to pick daily or every other day. Try not to miss a picking as once the pods ripen the flowering mechanism switches off and you’ll get no new beans.

Harvesting hints and tips

• The ideal bean pod size for my dinner plate is approx 1.5 cm wide, length is unimportant.
• Curly beans taste just as good as straight ones.
• You may get uneven pods, narrow at the top and wide from a third of the way down, don’t worry they taste great too.
• As you get to the end of harvesting time leave a few pods to mature for next years seeds.
• If you miss your picking and end up with a sizable crop of inedible mature bean pods don’t panic. The mature beans inside the pods can be used in cooking like Haricot beans.

Storing them

• Fresh - runner beans keep well in the salad drawer of the refrigerator for 4 or 5 days. If they go soft they will crisp up if you put them in cold water but either way they are fine once cooked. Always use your oldest beans first, if you start to drown in fresh beasn consider freezing the newer ones.
• Frozen - runner beans freeze well. Always use the freshest beans for freezing, slice them, blanch them in boiling water for 2-3 mins and then dunk them in ice cold water. Bag the prepared bean pods in portions and put them in the freezer labelled and dated. They will be fine for 3 – 6 months.
• Dried - The beans within the pod can be used like Haricot beans in soups and stews or as a vegetable.  Allow the pods to dry in an airy warm place, remove the beans and store them in an airtight container. When ready to use treat in the same way as other dried beans Pickled or chutneyed - runner beans make a good chutney and are delicious in piccalili

Remember all parts of the plant can be composted as well as the pod trimmings from the kitchen. The roots of runner beans store nitrogen and will help your soil grow more healthy food next season. When your plants have finished producing beans and are dying off either cut the stems approx 10 cm above ground level, put the plant in your compost and dig the roots in or lift the whole plant and put it all in your compost bin, you may need to cut it into smaller bits first.

Happy harvesting!