Fundamental Facts
HARDINESS: Tender
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Neutral to slightly alkaline
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Average, well-drained
PREFERRED LIGHT: Sun
FUNDAMENTAL: FACTS
ATTRIBUTES: Fast grower with scarlet blooms, edible beans; for fences, trellises, pots
SEASON OF INTEREST: Summer
TYPE OF VINE: Tender perennial; climbs by twining
FAVORITES: 'Scarlet Emperor', 'Painted Lady', 'Albus', 'Dwarf Bees'
QUIRKS: May temporarily stop blooming in very hot weather
GOOD NEIGHBORS: Blue-flowered ageralum, while begonia, while sweet alyssum
WHERE IT GROWS BEST: In sun and moderately fertile sail
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Seeds will rot if planted in cold, wet soil
RENEWING PLANTS: Grown as an annual; sow seed in spring
CRITTER RESISTANCE: Poor; plants vulnerable to rabbits, deer, and woodchucks
SOURCE: Seeds
DIMENSIONS: 2-12 ft (0.6-3.7 m); pods to 12 in (30.5 cm)
Scarlet Runner Bean in the Landscape
With scarlet runner bean, you can have your ornamental vine and eat it, too. This vine produces colorful flowers followed by edible green snap beans, and the more beans you pick, the more flowers the vine will produce. Grow scarlet runner beans on a fence to bring a decorative touch to the vegetable garden, or give them a string trellis and let them become temporary summer sunscreens for porches or decks. Or create a tepee of bamboo poles and train scarlet runner beans into a summer playhouse for young children. You can even push a tripod of thin stakes into a large container for a portable plant show. And as a bonus, you can expect to attract the interest of hummingbirds when scarlet runners begin to bloom.
Variations in Red
Loose clusters of deep orange-red flowers give this vine its common name, but several cultivars offer slightly different variations on the scarlet theme. 'Scarlet Emperor' is prized for both the flavor of its beans and the rich color of its blossoms, which appear along 6 ft (1.8 m) vines. Grown since Colonial times, 'Painted Lady' bears bicolored red-and-white blossoms on 8 ft (2.4 m) vines. A pure white-flowered version, 'Albus', is also available from some mail-order nurseries that carry heirloom varieties. A newer variety, the 22 in (5S.9 cm) tall 'Dwarf Bees', is a scarlet runner in compact bush form that's ideal for pots or baskets.
Growing Scarlet Runner Bean
Like other beans, scarlet runner bean vines grow best in warm, well-drained soil. Wait until after the last spring frost before planting. Sow the large seeds in pairs in the garden, spacing each pair 6-8 in (15.2-20.3 cm) away from the next pair. Plant the seeds 1 in (2.5 cm) deep and about 3 in (7.6 cm) away from their support, whether poles, a wire fence, or strings attached to a porch roof. After they grow upward for 18 in (45.7 cm) or so, the vines may be trained horizontally, if desired, onto a lower fence, a stump, or other support.
In cold climates you may want to start seed indoors in spring to give young plants a head start. Don't rush, because the seedlings will grow very quickly and be ready to transplant within 3 weeks of sowing. Plant 2 seeds to a 4 in (10.2 cm) pot, and snip off the weaker one when the seedlings sprout. When transplanting, disturb the roots as little as possible.
Soils that are high in nitrogen can result in very leafy vines and few flowers, so be somewhat stingy when it comes to using fertilizer. Allow some of the broad, flat pods to mature to a mahogany color, then dry. shell, and save the seeds for planting next year.
Four-footed pests like rabbits, woodchucks, and deer relish these vines. The best defense is growing them inside a fence, patrolling the garden with a dog, or applying a commercial repellent per label.
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