Yard Long Bean is an annual grown for its fruit, ready to harvest about 60 days after planting. It's hardy across USDA zones 3 through 12. Its summer flowers are a moderate draw for honeybees and native bees, even though the fruit is the prize. A nitrogen-fixer, it draws nitrogen from the air and feeds it back to the soil — turn it under or leave the roots in place, and the next planting inherits a richer bed.
Zones
3-12
pH Range
4-8.8
Sun
Full Sun
Days to Maturity
60
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What Yard Long Bean is
Yard Long Bean grows as an annual and reaches around eight feet at maturity. It blooms purple in summer.
How to grow Yard Long Bean
Yard Long Bean grows in USDA zones 3 through 12 and is ready to harvest about 60 days after planting. Yard Long Bean does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 4 to 8.8, on well-drained ground. It needs around 2,000 growing degree days to mature and a growing season of at least 30 frost-free days, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
3-12
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
4 - 8.8
USDA PLANTS Database
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Tolerance
59°F
The lowest temperature it shrugs off — below this, expect damage without cover.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Days to Maturity
60 days
Growable Ground plant catalog
GDD Required
2000+
Growing degree-days of accumulated warmth it needs to mature — humid summers reach this faster than cool coastal ones.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Mature Height
8 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
30+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Start the season right
Plant yard long bean in full sun with at least 6 hours of direct sun, once the soil has warmed and frost risk has passed.
Match the soil
Yard Long Bean prefers pH 4 to 8.8 (FAO ECOCROP). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band. It fixes its own nitrogen, so skip the high-nitrogen feed and instead dust the seed with a matching rhizobium inoculant at sowing.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Harvest at maturity
Yard Long Bean is ready about 60 days after planting (University Extension production guides). Pick when the fruit is full-colored and parts easily from the stem.
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — yard long bean isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Yard Long Bean offers moderate value to bees and other pollinators.
Before you harvest yard long bean, know your soil
Anything you grow to eat takes up what's in the ground it grows in, so it's worth knowing what's documented near you before you plant yard long bean for food. Our free screen reads 9 federal source types across roughly 1.8M indexed sites and shows which sit near your address and which way they drain. It's a screening estimate from public records and proximity — not a soil test — so a nearby record means a soil test is worth it, not that your soil is unsafe.
Where Yard Long Bean thrives
On hardiness alone, yard long bean grows across most of the country — its range (USDA zones 3 through 12) is unusually wide. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
Zones 3–12·Where Yard Long Bean growsOpen map →
On USDA hardiness-zone overlap, Yard Long Bean can grow in these states:
See if Yard Long Bean will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether yard long bean actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I grow Yard Long Bean in my zone?
Yard Long Bean grows in USDA hardiness zones 3 through 12 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
How long does Yard Long Bean take to grow?
Yard Long Bean is ready to harvest about 60 days after planting (University Extension production guides). Your local frost dates and soil temperature move that window earlier or later.
When should you plant Yard Long Bean?
Most growers plant yard long bean after the last spring frost, once the soil has warmed, leaving enough of the season for its 30-day frost-free need. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Yard Long Bean need?
Yard Long Bean needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Yard Long Bean need?
Yard Long Bean prefers soil pH 4 to 8.8, on well-drained ground (FAO ECOCROP). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Yard Long Bean attract pollinators?
Yes — yard long bean's flowers are a solid nectar source for honeybees and native bees.
Is Yard Long Bean safe for pets?
Yard Long Bean is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data. Always supervise pets around new plantings. (Source: ASPCA.)