Other Names:  Goa Bean

Description:

A beautiful variety that produces interesting long, winged bean pods; best to stagger plantings to ensure harvests all season long; all components are edible, leaves, beans and tubers can be cooked into various dishes while flowers are great in salads

Edible Qualities

Winged Bean is an annual vegetable plant that is typically grown for its edible qualities. The entire above-ground parts of the plant are edible, and can be harvested at any time in the season. The edible parts have a pleasant taste and a crisp texture.

The plant is most often used in the following ways:

• Fresh Eating
• Eating When Cooked/Prepared
• Cooking
• Freezing

Planting & Growing

Winged Bean will grow to be about 6 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 18 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 12 inches apart. Because of its vigorous growth habit, it may require staking or supplemental support. This fast-growing vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop.

This plant is typically grown in a designated vegetable garden. It should only be grown in full sunlight. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. This plant is capable of fixing its own nitrogen, which means that it is effectively self-fertilizing. As a result it should not require supplemental fertilizing, and if you do fertilize it, be sure to only use a low-nitrogen fertilizer to promote root growth. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America..

Winged Bean is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.