I haven't grown them in years but still have some Rattlesnake seeds and some other old heirlooms that I can't remember now. I usually just grow them up a pole or obelisk tower thing. I bought a few of them years ago at a store called the Cowgirls' Attic in Lexington. They sell old garden ornaments, old brick, doors, etc....neat place to explore.

I have green beans growing in pots on my porch. I stuck some curly wood branches beside the pots for the runners to grab onto but they are grabbing on to the porch railing instead, I wish I had planted more

That is beautiful, Susan. Do you have to get a ladder to reach the beans on top? :) What is a cattle panel? Do you have to water them or do you have enough rain? I usually plant lots of bush beans but planted only a few this year--water is scarce. I probably shouldn't have planted even those, but couldn't resist. At least the tomatoes don't take as much water.

Thanks, Susan! I remember those canning/freezing days, and the large quantities. All while raising three kids and making many of their clothes. I'm glad I had energy at some point in my life. :-)

Cherryfizz, I don't know where you're located, but where I am (northeast) you can plant beans this late. Bush varieties will bear earlier and might be better for pots.

Sjerin, not a ladder, exactly, but I use a little Rubbermaid step stool to reach the beans on top, especially ones on the outside. When I put up the first arch I envisioned the beans neatly hanging down on the inside, but most of them don't end up quite that way. :-)

A cattle panel is a section of fencing used for farm animals. Mine are 16 ft. by 5 ft. They usually sell for $20 or under at Agway or Tractor Supply. I don't water regularly; only during dry spells. Our soil is very well drained, but I mulch with cardboard (visible in the picture). The rest of that particular garden has squash (mostly winter) growing in it.

That's a really pretty arbor/arch! I might have to try that just to get "The Look" .... and I eat a LOT of green beans ! :0)

Hobby Lobby carries wedding arbors....I can add chicken wire or mesh over the arch, which I already have. They have a 40% off coupon.....would make it $18.....hhhhmmmmmmm.......

http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/white-decorative-wedding-arch-227561/

It's pretty--even prettier with beans! LOL--but I wonder how the "rust resistant" metal would hold up when left outside for years. Also, you'd be sacrificing some planting space as the arch is only 3.5' wide.

Uh-oh . . . I just read the reviews. The cattle panel is looking better all the time. :-)

Many years ago down on the farm, mother grew "pole beans". The locals called any bean variety a pole bean if it had a vine habit and would climb supports. We used simple poles. These were small diameter tree sprouts 6 to 8 ft long and no larger than 1/2 inch diameter. Those were used in sets of 4; 2 in one roe and 2 more in the adjacent row. The tops were pulled together tipi- wise and tied with strips torn from rags. Each pole was pushed into the ground mear a plant. The 4 poles formed a pyramid shape that withstood all but the most fierce of storms. The beans happily wrapped around these poles to form a dense growth with good leaf exposure to the sun and produced the family's yearly stock of beans. There was forethought at planting. The beans were planted in a pattern to accommodate the future pole supports. However, there was some uncertainty and occasionally, a 3 pole pyramid was found among the 4 pole style.

After the harvest, the ties were cut and the poles were pulled and stored under a roof overhang for use next year. Naturally, at the beginning of the garden season each year, a number of thee poles were judged too rotted and discarded. It was my job to take the hatchet and roam a patch of woods in the cow pasture and fence rows to cut new replacement poles.

At the end of summer after the beans had matured, there would be a bean canning day in the kitchen. Mother would organize the work among my sister and me as she became jar-washer, inspector, Chef and canner. Canning was done on a wood fired kitchen stove. One of my jobs was to maintain a supply of properly sized firewood nearby. Two screened doors ventilated the kitchen. There were no electric fans as electricity had not yet arrived to rural farms. By day's end, we knew the meaning of sweatshop.

I used to grow climbing beans planting the bean seeds in the same hole as a corn seed. As they both grew, the beans helped to fix nitrogen in the soil for the corn, and the corn acted as a natural pole :-)

We expanded our garden about 5 years ago and left the original fence between the "old" part and the "new" part intact. That's the snap pea, bean and winter squash area. Luckily, the way the garden is situated, it doesn't shade anything else.

We discovered "Fortex" pole beans (wish they weren't a hybrid, but nothing is perfect :-) We never bothered planting any other kind of bean after that first trial year. Carefree, fabulous taste, incredibly prolific and they can grow to about a foot long and still be tender and string-free. I love green beans.

Many of the folks at GardenWeb's Peas & Beans forum love Fortex, so I tried them one year. Yes, lots of nice qualities, but I missed the flavor of Kentucky Wonders. And since I have no complaints about KW, that was that. Probably the same thing will happen with this year's Rattlesnake experiment. Rattlesnake has lots of fans at GW too. :-)