Loads of aphids all over broad beans and their pods

[sleepyowl]

They don't like tea made from onions I sprayed this on my roses & they just vacated it

[RobHed]

I did read somewhere recently that spraying wee is good for keeping aphids off, but as my broad beans have now reached 6 feet tall I think I may have a problem..........

[Millymollymandy]

Well they are still a complete mess of live blackfly with huge black ants all over the place, although I did see a ladybird larva.

All I seem to have is about 4 pods per stem and there's about 2-3 main stems each plant, although there are some little baby stems still appearing - which are black with the ruddy aphids from top to bottom.

I give up - anyway as my husband says - at least it's keeping the blackfly off everything else!

[Peggy Sue]

I've been trying Rhubarb leaves soaked to make a spray this year- worked quite well for whitefly last year so giving it a go since I have loads of Rhubarb. Not sure if I'm making it right- no idea how long to soak for, some say boil them but I haven't.

Aqudulce Claudia are normally known to be relatively black fly resistant if planted in Autumn but the rabbits got most of my autumn ones this year so difficult to compare!

Strangely I've only had a few plants infested but the others seem clear. The ones that were infested were poorly looking plants, felt rather sorry for them

[JulieSherris]

Oh bu$$er!!
I'd forgotten all about pinching out the tips of the broad beans!!

OK, I have lots of bulging pods at the base of the plants, & they are around 3 to 4 foot tall now, so that's my job for this afternoon - Thanks Guys!!

[RobHed]

Lovely blog, Julie !

[JulieSherris]

OK, broad beans have now been tipped..... and our new chooks & guinea fowl are having quite a feast

RobHed - ooo.... the blog! Sorely neglected, huh?? And so much to catch up on too!
I'll get round to it... one day... not this afternoon, because the sun's out & Andy is decorating the new intended chook house... yes, decorating, I kid you not....

[Millymollymandy]

I've found a use for 4 year old cucumber and ginger jam and have put that down on two marge tub lids. Some of the ants have already drowned in it and they are very interested - but are HUGE black ants, bit worrying really. I noticed a load of ordinary little black ants making their way towards the jam though!

I've got an interesting caterpillar on the broad bean leaves, it's black, red, white and hairy - wonder if it is a red admiral. Also I wonder what it's doing there and will it eat blackfly?

Will let you know if the jam does work as it can't get much worse, but at least so far I've spotted 2 x ladybirds, 1 x lbird larva and 1 x pretty caterpillar on the plants.

I have 2 pods big enough to pick. Won't make much dinner.

[Millymollymandy]

I picked a big pod but the beans inside weren't very big, barely a cm so we ate them from the pod - not something I'd bother doing again! Anyway I needed to know at what size I need to pick my pods, as this is all new and an experiment. The ants are still interested in the jam but there are still some on the bean stalks and there are still blackfly, mostly on the young shoots and all over the underneath of the mature leaves.

[Millymollymandy]

STOP PRESS!

The blackfly has all gone - not actually gone but dead. Still looks a mess but the aphids that were there are now all dried out and crumbly and easy to brush off the leaves and stems.

The jam's gone completely too - first the runny stuff went but there were a number of lumps of cucumber (it was cuc and ginger jam) left which the ants were still running over, then all of a sudden it was completely gone - probably birds.

Can't see any ladybirds so I don't know what worked really but I will try the jam trick again that's for sure, and start earlier next time.

[Millymollymandy]

I seem to be talking to myself here but I ate my first broad beans last night. Hubby thought they were delicious (he doesn't remember ever having tried them before) and I thought they were OK, but certainly a lot better than the horrible bitter grey things I've been served in England in the past.

[Peggy Sue]

Horrible grey bitter things sounmds a bit like school dinners! Theya re so sweet when they ar young and straight from the plant. They freeze really well too (but none left this year for that)

Your beans are quite late...mine are just about over, I'm surprised France being generally warmer?

[Odsox]

Your beans are quite late...mine are just about over, I'm surprised France being generally warmer?

It all depends when you sow them as I sow mine in succession and have bean plants at all stages of growth (plus 2 rows finished and replanted)

If you have older beans that you missed picking then I what I do is simmer them for 10 minutes or so, skin them when cold and purée them with a little water.
Makes a wonderfully tasting spread and not really beany at all.

[Millymollymandy]

Horrible grey bitter things sounmds a bit like school dinners! Theya re so sweet when they ar young and straight from the plant. They freeze really well too (but none left this year for that)

Your beans are quite late...mine are just about over, I'm surprised France being generally warmer?

I sowed them on 24th March - I've no idea how long they should take to mature.

We never had broad beans at school. The last time I had a horrible grey one with nasty bitter white skin was last year in a posh fish restaurant near Bridport, Dorset. I tried one off my mum's plate and it was vile. That's always been my experience of them (they rank alongside brussel sprouts for bitter disgustingness ) which is why I am trying them to see if they can be better home grown and younger. I probably won't bother again with all the faff with the aphids and will stick to Borlotti which are much nicer tasting - in my opinion of course!

Oh and they still had an irritating skin on them though but I couldn't see that skin until they were cooked. And there was still an underlying bitterness to them, albeit a mild one.

[Peggy Sue]

See I sew 2 lots, one in autumn one in Spring (Feb/March) which normally means I can eat them May/June- before any of the climbing beans are ready. Then by now they are over, a short break to get over being beaned-out and start again with the runners in a few weeks (hopefully).

If I was you I'd have asked for my money back if a restaurant served me anything vile and bitter- but I have to say the current trend in posh restaurant (not that well surveyed by me I have to say!) is very little veg at all, and if you want more it cost about £2 a spoonful (a V small spoon at that!). I had a celebratory meal at one fairly recently and just like those Masterchef programmes when I ordered beans a teacup full arrived, they had been sauted in Chile which was strange and cost ££££.

What a terrible shame when veg can be so lovely.