How to grow fava bean (broad bean)

Vicia faba · Fabaceae · Vegetable

Fava Bean (Broad Bean) is a cool-season vegetable in the Fabaceae family, almost always sown straight into the ground where it will grow. It wants full sun (six or more hours of direct light) and steady, even moisture. From sowing to first pick is about 75–90 days. It handles frost well and a light freeze often improves the flavour.

Grower’s note: A cool-season bean - sow in very early spring, or in fall to overwinter where winters are mild. Pinch out the growing tips once the lowest pods set to slow blackfly. Peel the waxy skin from larger shelled beans.

Sowing

Sow about 2″ deep, into soil between 40–75°F — germination is quickest near 65°F. Germination takes a week or two (7–14 days). It does not transplant well, so sow it in its final position rather than starting it in pots.

Spacing & layout

Give each plant about 6″ along the row with roughly 24″ between rows. On a square-foot grid that is 4 per square foot. Allow at least 18″ of loose, workable soil for the roots. It grows well in containers at least 12″ deep.

Fitting it to your season

As a cool-season crop, fava bean (broad bean) does its best growing in the mild weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. A second sowing in late summer, timed to mature as the weather cools, is usually the better crop of the year — and light frost only sweetens it.

Quick facts

When to plant fava bean (broad bean)

Companions

Common problems

Pests: black bean aphid, pea weevil.

Diseases & disorders: chocolate spot, bean rust, foot rot.

Same family (Fabaceae)

Rotate these so they don’t follow each other in the same bed year to year.

Figures are typical home-garden ranges from Cooperative Extension planting guides, cross-checked against multiple state sources. Your variety and conditions will vary.