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'Kwintus' Beans

Sub-Category:	Pole Green

Sub-Category 2:
Description:	Early pole bean with long, flat, green pods that stay tender and flavorful even when large.
Days To Maturity:	60-80
Seed Sources:

Rating Summary

Overall: (4.7 Stars) Taste: (4.7 Stars) Yield: (3.8 Stars) Ease/Reliability: (4.3 Stars)

Reviews

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Number of Reviews: 6

KEY: O=Overall Rating, T=Taste, Y=Yield, E=Ease

Reviewed on 09/12/2012 by Ferdzy - An intermediate gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Ontario, Canada Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days Soil Texture: Sand Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40') Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
These are quite the amazing bean. They also get around under quite a few names. In addition to Northeaster, already mentioned, they are sometimes sold as Early Riser. They are a Tuscan type piattelli (plate) bean, although it seems this particular strain came to North America via Holland. At any rate, they beat Blue Lake by two weeks this year, so the Early Riser name is appropriate. They are good for green beans as long as they stay flat, which can be anywhere from 6 inches to 10 inches in length. You should still pick them daily, they grow so fast. Still, if you miss them and they start to thicken, leave them and eat them as shelly beans or fully dried as storage beans. Very versatile, and mine have produced almost all summer. Like a lot of pole beans they seem to take a little break after the first flush but then start producing again. They are also extremely rampant - you will need a very good sturdy large trellis for these. UPDATE 2013: Poor resistance to anthracnose.

1 of 1 gardener found this review helpful.

Reviewed on 05/26/2011 by containergardener - An experienced gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Los Angeles, California, United States Frost Free Season: More than 203 days Soil Texture: Sand Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
Johnnys Northeaster, which I am growing, is Kwintus. I looked long and hard for this pole bean variety because we had eaten it as Piatelli in Sicily and thought it was the best bean we had ever eaten. It is unusually sweet and tender. It is long and flat, with slow-developing seeds and quickly developing pods. It yields as early and quickly as Provider bush beans, which we planted at the same time. It is unusually hardy and survived some rather chilly spring weather. Fedco says Kwintus bean plants have a relatively short life, but we have been picking beans for at least 3 weeks now and the plants show no sign of slowing down. Kwintus beans command a premium price, but it they are OP so the seeds can be saved. Kwintus is also called Early Riser.

1 of 1 gardener found this review helpful.

Reviewed on 06/13/2010 by SpokaneRose -
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Spokane, Washington, United States Frost Free Season: Soil Texture: Garden Size: Sun Exposure:
Prolific in our garden, the vines formed a solid wall across the northern half of our alley fence line. We averaged 2-3 lbs a day from 8 feet of plants. They are delicious. Caveat: do not try to plant these early, they will not germinate. We plant them the first week of June. We grow on poles with crochet cotton strings threaded through a hole on the top and held to the ground with 10" wire U's . We have little luck with bush beans so these were a happy discovery.

1 of 1 gardener found this review helpful.

Reviewed on 05/30/2010 by bobdodster - An experienced gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days Soil Texture: Clay Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
Extremely early romano-type pole bean. Is a very high yielder, However I usually end up replanting them due to poor germination

Reviewed on 12/12/2005 by MaineMan - An intermediate gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Maine, United States Frost Free Season: 123 - 143 days Soil Texture: Sand Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day
There are contradictions in the descriptions of Kwintus pole beans in the listings of various vendors. Fedco Seeds catalog says, "280NO Northeaster Pole Bean OG (55 days) Also known as Kwintus. The seed comes from Holland." Kitchen Garden Seeds lists "#1290 Kwintus Pole Beans: 60-80 days". The inconsistencies make me suspect that there are distinctly different strains of Kwintus being supplied by different seed growers. This year I grew Kwintus pole beans from seeds that I purchased from Park's Seeds, and my review here is based on the strain of Kwintus pole beans that Parks sells. Parks described Kwintus as "5023 KWINTUS. 43 days. This favorite offers crisp, succulent flavor on super-early vines. Flattish stringless 8- to 10-inch pods. Pkt is 100 seeds. Pkt $2.95." The packet itself said the seed came from Holland. Our Kwintus beans from Parks grew like rockets and quickly set beans, coming quite close to the 43-day description, and were as described and tasty. Their label "super-early" is well deserved, and we will grow them again in 2006 as our ultra-early pole beans. In our short Maine growing season we appreciate early beans.

1 of 1 gardener found this review helpful.

Reviewed on 08/31/2005 by Nancy B - An intermediate gardener
Overall Taste Yield Ease	Illinois, United States Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days Soil Texture: Loam Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day
Easy, prolific, reliable, but skins can go a tad tough. Harvest smaller.

1 of 1 gardener found this review helpful.

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