How To Grow Adzuki Beans From Seeds In 8 Easy Steps

To give you a heads start-this sweet and delicious legume is very simple to grow and maintain. If you are starting adzuki bean seeds indoors, make sure you sow seeds in biodegradable pots so that you won’t have problem while transplanting. Adzuki beans thrive well in USDA Zones 4 to 11. Sow seeds 0.5-1 inches deep in well-drained soil with average fertility.

For more details about growing adzuki beans, growing sprouts, preparation, and uses, follow along with this handy guide.

Learn about adzuki beans

Adzuki bean is an annual crop, which is widely grown as vegetable in East Asia. It is scientifically known as Vigna angularis, and it is belong to the legume family or fabaceae. It is also known with other names. These common names of adzuki beans include red bean, azuki bean, red mung bean, and aduki.

With this basic information about adzuki in minds, let us look at how to grow adzuki beans.

Read also: How To Grow Legumes From Seeds At Home 

How to grow adzuki beans from seeds

Here is a step by step instructions:

1. Choose the right adzuki bean variety: the first step to growing adzuki bean variety is to choose a good variety that is well adopted to your local climatic conditions. Plant a variety that developed resistant to some of the common pests and diseases in your area. You can get this variety of adzuki bean from your local growers. I recommend that you should not buy online unless you trust the website.

2. Plant your adzuki bean at the right time: the next step is to wait till the right time for planting adzuki bean comes. This is if you are not growing indoors. If you are living in colder climates, wait till all the dangers of last frost have passed. Plant your adzuki bean seeds when the soil temperatures pass 60°F.

However, if you are living in very warm areas, I recommend that you plant your adzuki bean seeds when the soil temperatures is below 90°F. Adzuki beans thrive well in USDA Zones 4 to 11. In general, the ideal temperatures for growing adzuki bean seeds is between the range of 69-90°F.

3. Choose a good garden spot: another important step that can’t be skipped is choosing a good garden spot. Do not start your garden in poor garden spot. Adzuki beans love a well-drained soil with average fertility and pH that is near neutral.

Adzuki beans also love full sun but doesn’t like extreme heat. The garden spot shout be moist but avoid planting in waterlogged area. Look for place that is well ventilated and free from pests.

Read also: How To Grow Artichokes From Seeds And Crowns

4. Prepare the garden spot: remove grasses and weeds using your garden hoe. After removing grasses and other off plants, use your garden rake and fork to loosen the top 10 inches of the soil. Remove large rocks, stones, debris, roots, and other off plants.

Add in about 2-5 inches of all purpose compost ( Learn how to make a compost). Make rows that are about 18-24 inches apart. Water gently the soil to moisten the soil and make it ready for planting.

5. Plant your adzuki bean seeds: sow adzuki bean seeds 0.5-1 inches deep and space about 4 inches apart. However, if you are starting seeds indoors, make sure you start your adzuki bean seeds in biodegradable pots (biodegradable pots are containers that can be composted. You can find them at Amazon). This is because adzuki beans are very intolerant to transplanting and they may die during transplanting. So, when you start seeds in these containers, while transplanting, you can transplant and bury the seedlings in the planting holes together with pots.

6. Take care of adzuki beans garden: as I explained earlier above, adzuki bean is easy to grow and maintain, you only need to plant them in the right place. However, you also need to water regularly and gently. Do not ever water or flood your adzuki garden. Just water enough to keep the surface of the ground moist. Flooding your garden can attract pests and diseases. The next thing is weeding. Weed the garden to reduce competition for water and nutrients.

Related: How To Grow Caraway Plant From Seeds

7. Pests and diseases: common pests of adzuki beans include aphids, bean borer beetles, whiteflies, and more. While common diseases of adzuki beans include Bacterial stem rot, white mold, and aphid-borne viruses. Management involve practice of crop rotation (such as growing cereals with adzuki beans) and planting of resistant varieties.

8. Harvest your adzuki beans: adzuki bean plants can be harvested when the pods are green and can use them as vegetable. You can also leave them till when they turn yellow-brown and dry.

In general, under normal circumstances conditions, a healthy adzuki bean plants can take about 120 days from seeds planting to harvest. However, some varieties of adzuki beans may mature sooner or later than the stated days here.

Now, we have looked at how to grow adzuki beans from seeds, let us look at how to grow adzuki bean sprouts for consumption as vegetable.

Read also: How To Grow Aubergines From Seeds And Aubergines 

How to grow adzuki bean sprouts

You can also grow adzuki bean sprouts and take either in salad or cooking. Here is a step by step guide on how to grow adzuki bean sprouts:

Find a glass jar with wide mouth or diameter (to avoid mistake, buy  sprouting jar from Amazon). Placet 2 tablespoons of adzuki bean seeds in the glass Jar (you can place more or less seeds depending on your need).

Add water and rinse two times a day. Use a cheesecloth to cover the mouth of the jar. Secure the cheesecloth to the jar with a rubber band. Drain the water by turning the jar upside down. The mouth where the cheesecloth is attached should face down while the bottom should face up. After 24-48 hours you will have your sprouted adzuki beans.

Read also: How To Grow Asparagus From Seeds And Cuttings 

How to use and prepare Adzuki Beans

The young tender pods of adzuki beans can be harvested early and used them as snap peas. Adzuki beans contain many nutrients such as folates, vitamin A, and B. It also contains minerals such as iron, magnesium, calcium, and manganese. It is also parked with 25% of protein and this makes adzuki bean a common additive in many dishes. The sprouts can be used in salad dressings as vegetable.

Conclusion

In this article, I looked at how to grow adzuki beans. I also looked at how to grow adzuki bean sprouts. I hope you will find this article helpful. Let me know if you have any questions.