Looking to kick off your harvest early? ‘Monica’ is one of the first broad beans to crop from a spring sowing—often ready as early as May. These sturdy, upright plants grow with 2–3 strong stems and produce chunky pods packed with succulent, tasty beans. Big on flavour, quick to crop, and easy to grow—perfect for getting ahead in the veg patch.
SOW: in spring. We start all our beans in modules or pots (seed depth 50mm) and then plant out, you can sow them in situ and protect with cloches while they get going. Late sowings are fine in the open. For an earlier crop sow Jan/Feb in modules or pots in a coldframe or greenhouse.
GROW: if pot sown grow on and plant out when about 15cm tall. Jan/Feb sowings will need planting out under cloches in early spring. We grow our beans in triple rows; this does seem to help keep even the taller varieties such as Monica upright. If your garden catches the wind use some canes at the edges of your broad bean patch and criss-cross string between these to help support your plants.
ENJOY: when in full flower the tops can be pinched out for use as greens. This will restrict the height. Pick when the beans begin to show before the pods are too large. Fresh broad beans from the garden are a taste not to be missed. To Freeze – shell, blanch for 3 minutes, plunge into cold water, drain and pack into portions.
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