PlantFiles: Scarlet Runner Bean, Scarlet Conqueror, Fire Bean, Mammoth, Red Giant
Phaseolus coccineus

I planned this bean along with Lazy Wife this year. Based on other user's reviews, I expected that the Lazy Wife would be primarily for eating and the Scarlet Runners for their appearance. But I was pleasantly surprised; not only were the Scarlet Runner bean plants beautiful, but they yielded an excellent green quality bean. The beans are completely stringless until they get about 6-8 inches long, so you don't have to pick every day. They have that classic "green bean" flavor, but with more texture (the outside of the pods is slightly rough). I find them to have a better flavor and less strings than Lazy Wife, which I had bought based on reviews that they were good tasting and stringless!

I grow Scarlet Runners here in central British Columbia. This was my first year planting them and I used a black plastic grid as a climbing frame (2'' x 2" squares). This did not work as well as I hoped since the vines grew in and out of the grid and some beans were difficult to harvest because they were behind the grid. Next year I will use poles or twine secured at the top and bottom.
I also had a problem with some animal eating the plants (rabbit or deer), so I used stucco wire to cage the plants. No more problems.

I wish every vegetable in my garden was like this one: producing beautiful flowers all summer long and also being very productive! And so easy to grow! It would be a fantastic choice for a first-time gardener, especially to provide a very positive experience for a young child's first attempt at gardening.

I found these seeds very difficult to germinate. I had purchased 10, and had tried to germinate seeds in various manners. On the 10th seed, I was able to germinate seed with a heat mat. The vine itself grew ok, and grew to 6' tall. It was not a very full vine - it looked a bit scraggly (nothing like pictures posted here). IF I grow these again (which is unlikely), I will of course use the heat mat for germination, and not put the vine in full sun.

Grew like the dickens. Some problems with aphids and with cottony scale. VERY attractive to hummingbirds, as noted by others. I'm especially intrigued by someone's note that it can be a perennial. I had trouble pulling it up and instead snipped off the plant, figuring the decomposing roots would be easier to pull or break up in the spring. When I went to add compost and plant something else in mid March where it had grown, I had to dig out some enormous woody tuberous roots. Makes me wonder if it would have resprouted? If so, I'm surprised it hadn't done so yet, as fallen beans that I missed have been popping up all over my garden due to unseasonably warm weather. This will definitely be a regular; was growing it only for dry beans, not harvesting as green. Dry beans have a marvelous chestnut-like taste.

I join the other people who've had great luck with this plant attracting hummingbirds. I actually had hummers fighting over the one or two plants I had growing last year, despite the fact that I had other attractive h-bird plants. This year I've stuck it wherever I can near a verticle support because of this. It's nice because beans get along with almost everything else I grow, so won't compete in limited space. Another bonus is that I will always have a supply of seeds for next year to grow and give away.

Great plant to grow on anything vertical. It is very pretty and is a real hummingbird attractor, with fire red blooms. I used it as a seasonal privacy barrier. My soil is PH neutral and it grew well even in the recent drought.

This fantasic bean has edible flowers and pods that can reach up to 12 inches long. My vines grew a minimum of 12 ft each and need some type of structure to climb up and around. The only issue I had was when I initially planted them in the garden some of the beans became infested with some type of insect larvae. This problem was easily remedied by started them inside and them planting them outside.

I have grown the scarlet runners for food primarily. After the harvest i canned them for the winter months food storage. When you cook them they loose all the color and look like large butter beans, but the purple black color enhances the flavor. A little butter, some fresh herbs, salt and pepper disguises the strong flavor and theres nothing better for the palate than the full density of these beans. Word of caution: Wear a hat and look both ways before standing up when your weeding a row of these beans, the humming birds fly in at a super sonic rate. One skimmed the top of my head, the hum sounded morn like a horn... scared me to death!

I needed something to grow on my new arbor and my neighbor suggested this plant and gave me a packet of seeds. I planted the beans after the last frost in pots outside, covered so that the squirrels wouldn't find the beans and then transplanted two-three plantlings on each side of the arbor inside and out of each leg. I had fabulous results and would love to plant this again next spring. It grew so fast! On the seed packet it said they were annuals but I read elsewhere that it was a perennial. I suppose I will find out in the spring. It is truly a lovely vine with delicate red-orange flowers.

I liked this plant originally because I wanted a colorful vine for a chainlink fence. A friend had germinated some seeds and shared the plants with me. The beans were okay as for as eating, although I didn't get a lot. But what I discovered after awhile was that hummingbirds just love the blooms! I garden for the wildlife and have many hummer plants. Have never heard of this being a hummer plant, but often they'll visit these plants before going to the other hummer plants.
Linda, in Texas

These can also be called scarlet conqueror, fire bean, mammoth, red giant, scarlet emperor, and white Dutch runner.
They are beautiful decorative plants that work well with white morning glories on fences. The beans are best when used young and small, the bigger they get the stringier they are but the flavor is always delicious true green bean type flavor. They can be invasive if not kept in check.

This fast-growing vine produces clusters of brilliant red flowers that bloom mid summer to frost. The flowers are followed by green pods that turn purple and can be eaten.The seeds are black,mottled red.Needs support for the vines to grow on.