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Nancy Engel
Fabaceae
Phaseolus coccineus 'Hestia'
Dwarf Scarlet Runner Bean, Hestia Runner Bean
This entry has yet to be reviewed and approved by L2G editors.
Runner bean ‘Hestia’ is a dwarf or bush selection of the ancient crop, scarlet runner bean. The species is native to the higher elevations of Central America are cultivated now as both an ornamental and a vegetable. Hestia is a tender perennial compact vine with brilliant red-coral, pink and white tricolor flowers. All parts of the plant are edible; the flowers are beautiful as a garnish and in salads, the young shoot are tasty sautéed, young pods are eaten whole and when mature the large lima bean-type seeds are eaten fresh or shelled for storage when dry. Even the tuberous roots have been used as a starch.
Runner bean leaves are trifoliate (three-leaved), arranged in an alternate fashion on the stem and have broadly oval dark green leaflets. The showy large flowers are typical of peas or beans; larger, rounded petals subtend smaller petals that form a lip or keeled beak. They are produced in long many-flowered clusters on short stalks among the foliage. The flowers are self-fertile but require a visit from bees, bumblebees or hummingbirds to trigger pollination.
Their pods are long and filled with six to ten large beans. The beans that are highly variable in shape and color, depending on cultivar, many are dark and mottled with contrasting colors. Some cultivars do not produce flowers or fruit in the first year but ‘Hestia’ usually flowers and fruits the first year. It also produces early in the season. Beans planted from stored tubers with flower and fruit earlier.
Plant runner beans in full sun and fertile, evenly moist, well-drained garden soil after the soil has warmed and all danger of frost has passed. These frost-tender vegetables are grown as summer annual crops in cooler temperate climates; or where not hardy, the tuberous roots may be lifted and stored like dahlias. In warm, tropical zones they are planted as a perennial crop. Seeds should be sown directly in the soil, beans do not transplant well, at a depth of about three times their width. Runner beans require plenty of water for good fruit set, but do not tolerate standing water or soggy conditions. Runner bean ‘Hestia’ may be trained to short supports or left to trail. Tossing the seeds in a commercially available inoculant (Rhizobium inoculums) may be beneficial, but is not essential for success. Harvest beans every few days.
Plant scarlet runner beans for their beautiful hummingbird attracting flowers in a mixed border, trailing down the sides of a window box or container or as part of the family’s veggie garden for tasty unusual beans.
11 - 1
8 - 11
A1, A2, A3, H1, H2, 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24
Vegetable
Full Sun, Partial Sun
18"-30" / 45.7cm - 76.2cm
1'-2' / 0.3m - 0.6m
Indeterminate
Central America
Neutral
Average
Clay, Loam, Sand
Fast
Average Water
Oval/Rounded
Spring, Summer, Fall
Showy
White, Red, Light Pink, Coral
Multi-Color
Green
Dark Green
Green, Dark Green
No
Single
Yes
Medium
Matte
Bedding Plant, Edible, Feature Plant, Herb / Vegetable, Mixed Border, Tropical
Hummingbirds, Butterflies
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