Botanical Name: Vicia faba
Days to Maturity: 75 days
Family: Fabaceae
Native: Unknown
Hardiness: Frost-tolerant annual
Plant Dimensions: Rigid, erect plant up to 4' tall, and 24" wide
Variety Information: 5"–6" glossy green pods grow both solitary and in pairs. Each pod contains 3–8 large, oblong-shaped, flat, light green beans.
Type: Snap bean
When to Sow Outside: RECOMMENDED. 6 to 8 weeks before your average last frost date. Cold Climates: Very early spring, when soil temperatures are as low as 35°F. Mild Climates: Sow early to mid-winter for spring harvest.
When to Start Inside: Not recommended; bean seedlings are sensitive to root disturbance.
Days to Emerge: 10–15 days
Seed Depth: 1"–3"
Seed Spacing: 1 seed every 4"–6"
Row Spacing: 18"–36"
Thinning: Not required.
Harvesting: Favas beans are at the peak of freshness just before the saddle-shaped scar at the end of the seed ("hilum") turns brown. To eat whole like a snap bean, harvest when young and pods are 2"–3" long; for fresh shelling beans, harvest when the pod shell turns green and the bean is a light green color; and for dry beans to store, harvest when shell turns hard and brown and seeds inside are dry.
