Better yet is that both Glenn and I got a crop this year. I am growing them in North Alabama!

These beans are a population composed of some beans that are pure black, some that are pure white, and some that are 'painted' with purple and black like the painted lady beans. All are in the very large range except the white beans which are somewhat flattened which reduces their weight. A "population" means that this is not a single pure strain, rather, it is a group of strains saved as a seed line.

These beans make gorgeous scarlet flowers which persist over the summer. Several plants are still blooming in my garden. The pure white seed produce plants that mostly make white flowers. These make a good contrast with the red flowers.

These beans are much more tolerant of hot weather than most runner beans. Still, they will not make a crop here in the deep south unless special precautions are taken. Plant them just as early as possible, a week before last frost is just about right. Water if they get dry, these beans do NOT like hot and dry conditions. These beans benefit from having a shade producing crop on the south side. My rows are roughly east/west so I planted corn on the south side of the beans. The corn is tall enough to give just a bit of shade late in the evening.

They make vigorous runners and need a strong trellis at least 6 feet tall. I use a trellis made from 8 ft T-posts with a wire at top and bottom and zigzagging hay twine for the plants to grow up. Use well anchored supports to hold things up, a wind storm can lay them down because of the huge mass of foliage.

Beans are produced from the ground up. I picked the earliest pods right at ground level and have had successive pickings going up the plants. Once beans are picked at ground level, they do not tend to re-bloom down low, rather new blooms are formed higher in the plant. If the trellis is high enough, they will keep climbing and blooming.

Flower pollination is best at cooler temps in the range of 70 degrees. Once summer temps hit 90+, expect almost all of the flowers to bloom and then drop un-pollinated. Bumblebees and/or mason bees seem to work the blooms to some extent early in the season, but when the heat is on, they are ignored.

Overall, I am very pleased with the growth and performance of these beans. These are the ONLY runner beans I have ever had success growing.

I actually got seed, here in Oklahoma, with our hot temps, in 2009. This was partly because we had a significant part of the summer which was wet and cool. But, as fusion mentioned, also probably due to having them planted with a southern exposure protective crop of another vigorous pole bean. We almost always go through a 9 week period, during which temps go above 100 F every day (& little if any rain). Insuk's REALLY doesn't like this. But it has survived and gone on to produce in the fall.

I believe Fusion's point about early planting, in the South, is well taken. I need to get it in as early as possible.

George
Tahlequah, OK