Can I Grow Yard Long Bean in Hawaii?

USDA Zones 8b-13a · Plant zone range 3-12

Generally — Most Areas

yard-long bean (zones 3-12) suits most of Hawaii (8b-13a) — zones 8-12 are in range, and the rest of the state is the exception.

Score your parcel · free

Your yard isn't the whole zone.

Yard Long Bean is grown as an annual, so your winter zone isn't the deciding factor — your frost-free window is. A typical Hawaii site runs ~365 frost-free days, but that is a state median, not your yard: slope, trees, and low spots move the last-frost date across a single parcel. Enter your address and we'll score yard long bean against your land's actual frost dates, sun, and soil.

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yard-long bean (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis), photograph
Photo: Yercaud-elango, , via Wikimedia Commons ( · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Zone Comparison

Yard Long Bean Needs

  • USDA Zones: 3-12
  • Frost-Free Days: 30+
  • Sun: Full Sun
  • Mature size: 8 ft tall
  • Picking window: ~21 days of harvest
  • Drought tolerance: Medium

Hawaii Has

  • USDA Zones: 8b-13a
  • Hard Freeze (28°F): None on record — year-round season
  • Annual Rainfall: 10-400 inches
  • Common Soils: Volcanic, Laterite, Coral sand

Plant Zone Range (zones 3-12)

3a
12b
3a (Cold)13b (Hot)

Preferred Soil pH

3.5 (Acidic)7.0 (Neutral)9.0 (Alkaline)
Highlighted range: pH 4.08.8

Plant data: USDA PLANTS Database / Growable Ground plant catalog. State data: USDA ARS PHZM 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, NRCS SSURGO.

When to Plant Yard Long Bean in Hawaii

The frost window

Hawaii has none — the 1991-2020 station record carries no 28°F killing freeze, so there is no last-frost date to plant after and no first-frost date to harvest before (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record). The growing season is year-round; what paces planting here is rainfall, heat and elevation, not the calendar.

Days to maturity vs. the window

At 60 days to maturity (USDA PLANTS Database) and no frost to close the season, yard long bean fits about 6 plantings a year — so the real limit is what you can keep watered and harvested, not how many days are left.

Frost tenderness

Yard Long Bean is listed frost-tender below 59°F (USDA PLANTS Database), which simply does not bind at low and mid elevation here. It does bind upslope: Hawaii's summit country genuinely freezes, and no station up there carries a long enough daily record for us to date it.

Frost window: NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020. Plant timing fields: USDA PLANTS Database. Your site's own frost dates can run earlier or later than the state range — a parcel report pins them down.

Growing Season Fit

The zone check says yard long bean survives winter in part of Hawaii, not across all of it. Whether the season is long enough — and warm enough — is a different question.

Frost-free days

Yard Long Bean wants 30+ frost-free days; a typical Hawaii site sees ~365 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020). That leaves comfortable headroom for succession planting.

GDD and chill-hour figures are computed from PRISM 1991-2020 monthly climate normals; frost-free days from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020. Each is the state median across its counties (P25/P75 span the within-state spread). Hardiness-zone range is USDA PHZM 2023.

Soil + Drainage Fit

Yard Long Bean tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4-8.8) — 4.8 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Hawaii. A soil test is still worth having, but for what else it tells you about this site, not to clear this plant. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 5.5 and 7.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Hawaii soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Hawaii site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.

Plant pH and drainage requirements from USDA PLANTS Database. Hawaii soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.

Yard Long Bean in Hawaii — Quick Answer

  • Verdict: Generally — Most Areas
  • Plant Zones: 3-12 (USDA PLANTS Database)
  • State Zones: 8b-13a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023)
  • Growing Season: year-round — no 28°F killing freeze in Hawaii’s 30-year station record (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020)
  • Days to Maturity: 60 days

What Else to Consider for Yard Long Bean in Hawaii

Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Hawaii growers also need to think about:

Extreme rainfall variation — desert on one side, rainforest on the other

Volcanic soil is nutrient-poor in young flows

Invasive species pressure is severe

What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Hawaii grower, not just yard long bean — is covered on the Hawaii growing guide.

Timing shifts within Hawaii

Yard Long Bean needs about 30 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. Even Hawaii County — Hawaii’s shortest season at 365 frost-free days — clears that by 335 days, so season length isn’t the constraint anywhere in Hawaii. What varies is your own parcel.

County last-freeze dates and frost-free day counts: NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS (1991-2020), county 28°F freeze (earlier than the folk 32°F "last frost"). Yard Long Bean's 30-day requirement: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database (minimum frost-free days). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.

Where in Hawaii Fits Best

Even within Hawaii's zones 8b-13a, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for yard long bean (USDA PHZM 2023):

Pollinator + Wildlife Value

Yard Long Bean draws honeybees and native bees (moderate value, Growable Ground Plant Database). Planting it near vegetable beds can lift fruit set on neighboring crops. Yard Long Bean's flowers are not fenced in by a freeze date here: the 1991-2020 record resolves no 28°F killing frost anywhere in Hawaii, so what limits bloom is the plant's own cycle rather than the calendar.

Hawaii Cooperative Extension

For Hawaii-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for yard long bean, the canonical source is UH Mānoa CTAHR Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.

Is Yard Long Bean native to Hawaii?

No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Yard Long Bean as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Hawaii's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Hawaii natives keeps local pollinators fed too.

Looking for plants that belong here? The Hawaii growing guide lists USDA-documented natives for the state.

Native-range data: USDA PLANTS Database state-distribution records, accessed 2026-07-01.

Common Questions About Growing Yard Long Bean in Hawaii

When can I plant Yard Long Bean in Hawaii?

Any month — Hawaii records no 28°F killing freeze in the 1991-2020 station record, so there is no last-frost date to wait for and the growing season is year-round (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record). Pace planting by rainfall, heat and elevation instead: the summit country does freeze, and no station up there carries a long enough record to date it.

What hardiness zone is Yard Long Bean grown in across Hawaii?

Hawaii spans USDA hardiness zones 8b-13a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Yard Long Bean carries a range of zones 3-12, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.

How many frost-free days does a typical Hawaii site have?

A typical Hawaii site sees ~365 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS station record, 1991-2020). Yard Long Bean needs 30+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.

Is Yard Long Bean native to Hawaii?

No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Yard Long Bean as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Hawaii's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Hawaii natives keeps local pollinators fed too.

How should I amend the soil for Yard Long Bean in Hawaii?

Yard Long Bean tolerates pH 4-8.8 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 4.8-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Hawaii site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.

Will Yard Long Bean actually grow on my specific land in Hawaii?

State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores yard long bean against your address's exact soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost-date data drawn from USDA SSURGO, NOAA, and PRISM — not state averages.

Free Report

Check your specific parcel in Hawaii

State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores yard long bean against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.

Three things about your lot that Hawaii yard long bean averages can't show:

Your soil pHYour frost-free days — Hawaii averages 365Your sun & shade

We read public map data around Hawaii — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

25+ data sources read at your address, not the Hawaii yard long bean average

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