Unfortunately there is a Bush bean/Dry, a pole bean /Dry and a pole bean /Snap called Qctober.

You would have to ask your neighbor about the habit; most likely it is a pole variety. If so, you would need a tall trellis or poles, preferably at least 6 feet tall.

October beans are very large-seeded, and typically red speckled. They are best used as shellies (green-shelled beans), harvested when the pods are ripe, but not yet dry. Cook & eat them like butterbean limas. For the best yield, they should be grown directly in the ground; if you intend to use containers, I would recommend a large one. There should be no need to transplant in your climate. Use 8-12" spacing between plants, or 2-3 plants in a large container.

Water is very important to beans during flowering, especially in hot weather. A thick layer of mulch around the plants will preserve moisture, and increase pod set. Avoid the use of high-nitrogen fertilizers, which will cause heavy leaf growth, but delay flowering. A light application of low-N fertilizer to the young plants shortly after germination can help them to get established, but nothing after that.

In the Midwest, these beans ripen fairly late, hence the name. I need to plant them in late May to get a good harvest in late September / early October. Don't know how they will perform for you planted this late, but given your climate, hopefully they will still have enough time to ripen before cold weather.

As zebrarman stated in todays world there are actual cultivars on the "heirloom" market sold as October beans. Yesteryear October beans were very popular in late fall in the mid-Atlantic states, especially southwest Virginia. Most of the the time the cultivar was the Taylor strain of the Dwarf Horticultural, but the pole versions of horticultural including Cranberry were also used. As October beans they were used exclusively as green shellies. They were planted in early to mid August for harvest late September, early October. Been a few years since I grew them, as I now prefer southern peas in that time slot.

Thanks so much for your quick responses! I asked my neighbor who called her sister, who got them in NC and she seems to think they are bush beans. She agreed they are good as shellies or dried. So, I guess this will be an experiment. My yard is all grass, so either I rent a tiller and try to till an area for a small garden or put a couple in a large pot, but how large? I'm not sure if I'm physically capable of tilling since I've never done it. Wow, I think I've gotten in over my head!

"I'm not sure if I'm physically capable of tilling since I've never done it."

Not all folks till. You can do raised beds (no tilling required) or you can use pots. You can also use existing landscape areas around the house, etc. For beans, some folks will just hang some string off the deck and let the vines climb the strings lol. You'd need a pole bean variety for that of course. 8^)

Don't overwhelm yourself. Start small and work your way into it. Gardening, especially growing beans, is fun and can be rewarding in many ways.

Rick

I planted two rows of French Horticulture beans in mid July. They are loading up with green beans now and will be ready for shellies before frost in late October. They are half runners but don't need staking. They are eddible as green but not the best flavor. Fantastic as shellies. The hulls get yellow background with red speckles when ripe. Green ones are still good if big enough but more difficult to shell.

October beans are also called French horiculture beans or shelly beans. They are bush beans. When ready to eat the pods are white with red stripes. You can shell them and put them in a sauce pan with some water, butter, salt and pepper. Cook about twenty minutes. They are my favorite. Or you can wait until the pods are dry and shell them for seed or use as shell beans in the winter. You can can them when they are still in the mature stage.