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, they're certainly easier to peel than grapes).But don't despair if your beans have matured more than you would have wanted. Just cook, peel and mash the beans into a tasty puree.Broad beans are a simple crop to grow, but you do need quite a long row

A few months back I mentioned that I was sowing some dwarf French beans, for an early crop in spring. I adore these juicy, tender beans and would much rather tuck in to a home-grown crop than imported varieties, shipped all the way from Egypt

garden is tiny and my soil shallow, so I'm growing dwarf French beans and spinach in pots.As well as being small, with shallow soil, my garden is shady, but it gets two hours of strong sun in the afternoon, which I hope will be enough for French beans

by the hedge to harden them off before planting them out.We've had mixed results with broad beans. I usually sow them in autumn - trouble is that they need to get established as soon as they're planted otherwise the mice can dig them up and eat them. As well

As container-grown fruit and veg start to crop, it's important keep your eye on the ball to ensure they stay productive. I've just harvested a small batch of French beans from my late container sowing as part of the Grow Yourself Healthy campaign

.I love the way home-grown salads start off as a meagre collection of leaves in spring, then steadily grow as tomatoes, broad beans and other ingredients are ready to harvest. The watercress growing in my pond is always the first leaf crop I pick, followed

for eating in salads, some for using in sauces and some for roasting. My aubergines will be so plentiful, I won’t need to buy any again (no matter how many aubergine parmigianas I make). I’ll grow enough garlic to hang in plaits around my kitchen and my

I've a confession to make: my efforts at growing veg in pots, as part of this year's Grow Yourself Healthy campaign, haven't been a great success. The French beans I sowed indoors germinated well, but as soon as I moved the pot outside, Sid

with the easy crops I've mentioned above, then expand their horizons with broccoli, carrots, sweet peppers, peas, sweet corn, beans and courgettes. So you're giving them several things all in one go: the freshest, tastiest food, veg-growing know-how, fun

The health benefits of eating fresh fruit and vegetables are well documented, and our shopping baskets increasingly reflect our desire to eat a healthy diet. Food labels reiterate the '5-a-day' mantra, and influence our shopping choices