Psophocarpus tetragonolobus
The first time I encountered winged noggin , I was on a category trip to Hawaii and we ’d walk past a market stall full of vegetables and fruits .
As I pursued the baskets full of rambutan , starfruit , litchi nut , and dragon fruit , I encountered some of the strangest bean plant I ’d ever seen .
At first I did n’t even realize they were beans , with their singular ruffled edges making them almost look like some character of elephantine cat .
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Winged beans ( Psyphocarpus tetragonolobus ) are tropic , perennial legumes . All parts of the industrial plant are edible , from the tuberous roots to the flower .
The winged beans are notable for their distinctive shape – four longitudinal ridges or “ wings ” bleed along the pods , with rippled edges .
If you live in USDA Growing zone 10 to 12 , you could uprise fly beans as perennials . Otherwise , plan to grow them as annuals .
Whether you ’re new to fly beans or you ’re favourable enough to have rise up with these leguminous wonders , this template will cover how to cultivate them in your own garden .
Here ’s what ’s ahead :
What You’ll Learn
Quick Look
How to Sow
How to get
cultivar to take
Pests and Disease
Harvesting
Preserving
Cooking melodic theme
P. tetragonolobusis native to Papua New Guinea and widely naturalize in tropic area of Southeast Asia .
They are also lie with as goa beans , four - angled bean plant , firedrake bean plant , orshikaku mamein Japan .
P. tetragonolobusis sometimes confused with the asparagus pea plant aka winged pea , Tetragonolobus purpureus – but this species has cherry-red instead of downcast flowers , and only the cooked pods can be consumed .
These vining plants bring on a lot of food in a small footprint , growing up to 15 feet long and about two to three feet wide .
Those grown as annuals are unlikely to achieve these dimensions during one growing season .
The winged bean flora as a whole take quite the nutritional punch .
The hugger-mugger genus Tuber resemble potatoes and contain 20 per centum protein by weight . The semen have 35 percent protein and are packed with carbohydrates , vitamins B1 , B2 , B3 , B6 , B9 , C , A , and E.
Prior to the pod forming , pale gloomy bloom develop in the saltation . Theseedible flowersmake a tasty increase to salads .
mutual name(s):Winged beans ; dragon , goa , four - angled beans ; shikaku mame
Plant type : Perennial vine
Hardiness ( USDA Zone):10 - 12 ( perennial )
Native to : Asia
Bloom clock time / time of year : springiness , summertime
Exposure : Full sun
land character : Loose , humus - rich , well draining
dirt pH:6.0 - 7.5 , slightly acid to achromatic
Time to matureness : Up to 180 Day
Spacing : 3 feet
Planting depth:1 inch ( ejaculate )
Mature size:2 - 3 feet wide x up to 15 metrical foot high
body of water Needs : Moderate
Taxonomy
Order : Fabales
Family : Fabaceae
Genus : Psophocarpus
metal money : Tetragonolobus
After the flower undetermined , they ’re pollinated by bees , butterfly , and flies , and the pods start to take form .
It only takes about three hebdomad for the fly bean cod to hit their ultimate length of up to a foot and then a few more weeks to be quick for harvest home .
The species is day - duration sensitive and must have retentive day than nights for at least a week or two before they will flower .
I live near the forty-fifth parallel and that means the days are long enough around mid - March , but it ’s too cold at that time for the plant to be outside .
you’re able to find fly bean plant cultivars that are mean solar day - length neutral or short - twenty-four hours if Clarence Day distance is an way out for you .
The curious - looking seedcase start out light-green but as they mature they can be unripe , cream , pink , or purple with emollient , green , white , tan , or brown dome within .
The leave are typically gullible , but they can also have some over-embellished shading , and these can be prepared a chip likespinach .
We do n’t know where wild winged beans originate . The primogenitor has been fall behind to time and may be extinct . It ’s possible that this metal money is a result of crossbreeding different wild legume .
Because these plants need such a long growing season – up to 180 twenty-four hours for fledged seeds – many gardener opt to start seeds indoors and then move them out as shortly as the weather warms up .
you may also bribe nursery start , though they ’re surd to find oneself in cool region .
Immature , green pods are typically ready between 75 and 110 Day from planting .
For many gardeners , myself include , we will only have enough meter for the pods to mature and not the seeds , but that ’s fine ! You will still have mountain of pods , leaves , efflorescence , and stem to eat .
From Seed
you may start your seeds 12 weeks ahead of transplanting . You ’ll need to visualize out when dirt temperature will be consistently above 60 ° fluorine , as you ca n’t transplant before that .
Plan to transfer when soil temperatures are dependably over 60 ° F and be sure to indurate them off first .
Transplanting
To put seedlings into the ground , the first footmark is to sour the soil a piddling to loosen it up . Amend with some well - moulder compost to about six inches bass .
Then dig a hole the size of the container the transplantation is currently growing in .
hit the works from its pot , set it in the golf hole and backfill with soil .
Firm the territory up around the base of the works and water the stain well . If the grunge settles , add a bit more .
Space the plants about three feet aside but within six inches of a support structure .
Part of what makes these plants so wondrous is that they ’re super adaptable .
Light
Like many legumes , these tropical vines opt a full Dominicus location , with six or more hour of direct temperateness per sidereal day .
If you live in a very hot region , you could give young plants a bit of shade from strong good afternoon sun , but once established they will be fine .
Soil
Winged beans are quite happy in modal dirt , provided it is well - draining .
They ca n’t palm waterlogged , heavy stiff , with stand water system so if your garden is preponderantly clay , consider growing in araised bed .
Otherwise , you could run in some compost to the ground before embed to increase water retentiveness and ameliorate drain .
Temperature
These tropical plants like it hot ! The ideal growing temperature is around 75 ° F and above , so you do n’t want to plant too early .
If temperature degenerate below about 58 ° F , growth stops completely .
If you need to make indisputable the temperatures are tender enough , you’re able to grow them against a south - facing brick paries because the brick will help to put up additional heating .
Water
Keep the soil systematically moist while the vine are becoming established and when they flower , allow the top one or two inches to dry out between waterings .
When they are established , fly noodle are drought - tolerant .
Weeding
The vine can be slow to begin , so you need to be on weed patrol . It ’s easy for weeds to overtake the young seedlings .
As the temperature heat up , the vines grow more quickly and can outcompete weeds .
I wish to put an inch or two ofstraw mulchor leaf litter all around the plant life to help retain water and keep weed away .
Support
The plant must have something to go up up .
You could tie a chain to horizontal pole , use cattle fencing , buy attic treillage , or anything else that can support the vine as they produce .
Fertilizing
Feed your plants with a balanced food with an NPK around 10 - 10 - 10 or 12 - 12 - 12 .
Better yet , quiz your soilbefore eating and then feed in your land according to the results of the grunge test .
I wish to utilise Southern Ag ’s all purpose granular fertilizer , which has an NPK ratio of 10 - 10 - 10 . Feed when the plant life protrude to bloom and again one calendar month after .
Southern Ag All Purpose Granular Fertilizer
you may chance Southern Ag All Purpose Granular Fertilizeravailable via Amazon .
Pruning
The vines grab onto thing by twining , so they ’ll birl their fashion up anything they can reach .
You ’ll discover them twirling their path up fencing poles , or twisting up nearby trees or shrubs . They ’ll even interlace their way up other plants in your garden liketomatoesorcornstalks .
Prune any vine raise where you do n’t need them .
If the plant becomes too bushy on top , it can shade the privileged and lower vine and they wo n’t produce flowers and pods .
Prune out some of the vines if the plant should be blossom but is n’t . Or remove vines if the whole affair is becoming unruly .
you could take off a lot of the foliage and the plant life will be o.k. . Do n’t be delicate about this , just get in there with some pruners and go to town .
Mostly you ’ll just recover generic fly noggin seeds for sale , though there are a act of cultivars useable .
If you would wish to grow the species plant , find out seeds available in a motley of mailboat sizesat True Leaf Market .
fly Beans
If daylight hours are a limiting divisor for you , you ’ll want to assay out one of the cultivars that are n’t daylight dependent .
All of the fall out are worthwhile options :
Local Green
‘ Local Green ’ is a forgetful - day cultivar , which has made it pop as a winter time of year crop in office like Guam .
It will flower and produce when the days are shorter than 12 hours . The resulting plants are robust and high - yielding .
Singha
‘ Singha ’ is an early florescence cultivar that is day - electroneutral . That means an other harvest home no matter of what the daylight hr are doing in your region .
Urizan Japanese
This is my favorite cultivar because it ’s dependable and matures early , though it might just be because it ’s the only cultivar uncommitted in my region .
I got my seeds from a supporter , but you may regain this heirloom Clarence Day - achromatic cultivar at several rare seed or plant life retailers .
Since the entire industrial plant is eatable , it ’s invoke to herbivores likedeerandrabbits . dirt ball infestation common in the veggie garden will also attack winged beans .
Here are the chief pests and diseases to affect these plants :
Pests
As with most vegetables , aphids can be an issue . In particular , the black bean aphid ( Aphis craccivora ) ca n’t get enough of winged bean .
unremarkably , an plague is n’t a full-grown passel unless the works is extremely young .
Learn with aphids here .
In tropical realm , the fly bonce blotch miner ( Leucoptera sophocarpella ) , edible bean pod borer , ( Maruca vitrata ) , and cotton fiber bollworm ( Helicoverpa armigera Mylabris afzelii , andM. pustulat ) can damage the foliage and flowers .
If you ’re uprise in North America , it ’s only the second two you need to vex about .
tooth root - knot nematode can also infect the plants , specificallyMeloidogyne arenaria , M. incognita , and M. javanica . Learn more about these microscopical plague here .
Disease
wing beans are more often than not vigorous plants and it ’s not often you ’ll have to deal with a disease .
peculiarly if you keep them well spaced and cut if they start to become overgrown .
Collar Rot
Collar rot is a disease get by numerous fungus , include species in theFusarium , Rhizoctonia , andMacrophominagenera . Infection causes rot at the understructure of the plant life , eventually killing all the vines .
If this decomposition offer through the base of operations , turning it mushy and black , it will kill all of the vine .
When the disease is present , it is hard to control , but you might be able to stop it by applying a herculean biofungicide that contains atomic number 1 peroxide orBacillus subtilis .
CEASE Biofungicide
Arbico Organics carriesan in force product called Cease , which contains the beneficial bacteriumB. subtilis .
It ’s best as a preventative but it can slow or arrest the progression of the disease .
False Rust
False rusting or orange gall is vulgar in crops grown in tropic region , but it has only been identified as moving into subtropical areas as of 2024 .
If you ’re growing outside of a tropical region , you likely do n’t require to even call back about this problem .
This disease is cause by the fungusSynchytrium psophocarpiand shows up as orange pustules on leave , stems , pods , and blossom .
It can also have leaf distortion and a reduction in pod size and quality .
The 2nd you see any pustules forming , which start out green before becoming orange , start treating with a broad - spectrum fungicide like mancozeb .
Bonide Mancozeb Flowable with Zinc
catch a 16 - troy ounce bottle of Bonide Mancozeb Flowable with Zincat Amazonand apply according to the maker ’s guidance .
If you live in a semitropic region , report the infection to your local telephone extension office so they can document its presence .
Powdery Mildew
Powdery mould ( cause by the fungusErysiphe cichoracearum ) is very vulgar in the veg garden .
It make white powdery coat on the leave . Ourguide to powdery mildewhas more details .
As the vine develop , finger free to hook off leaves here and there to use as you would spinach .
If you want to deplete the pods rather than the beans , wait until they reach their full length , which should hap a few weeks after flowering , and snip them off the vine .
If you have a farsighted enough growing time of year , you could get the seedpod ripen on the vine . They will turn brown and finally split .
At that point , you could remove the seed and dry or cook them fresh .
The tubers need several long time to become large enough to reap , so only those develop these plant as perennials will get to relish them !
The leaves , unripened pod , and flowers should be eaten within a few days of harvesting .
Freshly reap pods will keep for up to a calendar week wrapped in a cotton or newspaper towel in a plastic bag in the fridge .
The seeded player or bonce can also be dried by place them in a single layer on a baking tray or screen and allowing them to sit until they become ironical and brickle .
splay or stir the bean every day to ensure even dry out . you’re able to also dry them in a dehydrator on a low-pitched setting .
Once they ’re dry , you could put them in a material bag and hive away them in a cool , dry position .
habituate the flowers overbold to top salad and as garnishes . The leaves are also perfect in salads , or try them on sandwiches or on alimentary paste .
The stem can be eat raw , but chop them up and saute them with some butter , garlic , and common salt for a substantial treat .
you’re able to eat up the Tuber either raw or cook . If you eat them bare-assed , slit lightly for salads , or use them like potatoes if you adjudicate to fake them .
The pods can be used just like any edible pod bean . They ’re a definitive option in stir Roger Fry , of course . you could saute them in garlic , butter , and red pepper flakes .
Yum tua pu is a tasty Thai salad made with roasted peanuts , coconut chip , shallots , mint , and boil testicle with a spicy Thai fecundation . It ’s phenomenal .
you’re able to eat the pods when they ’re immature or allow them mature a bit , though not to the point where the beans within are embonpoint and start to harden .
The seeds or bean must be cooked before eat . you could laugh at them , ironical and moil them up into flour , turn them into Milk River , or extract the oil .
Speaking of , the crude extracted from winged beans is even better than soybean oil because it ’s more thermally stable and is high in antioxidant .
This Bean Has Wings
Winged beans are an excellent choice for gardener in tropic or subtropical climate . They ’re a moment more of a challenge to cultivate in more northerly regions , but it can be done .
It ’s rare that you find a plant that can provide comestible flowers , leafy greens , pods , beans , and tubers . P. tetragonolobushas it all .
And for more entropy aboutgrowing edible bean in your garden , say these guides next :
© Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Product picture via Arbico Organics , Bonide , Southern Ag , and unfeigned Leaf Market . Uncredited photograph : Shutterstock .
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Kristine Lofgren
