A tasty and healthy vegetable crop, as a rule, pleases the gardener with a rich harvest. But you can lose it if you don’t read the recommendations on how to preserve beans so that they don’t get bugs at home. Particularly dangerous is the bean weevil, which can destroy supplies in a couple of months. Even a hermetically sealed container will not save you. You need to store this product according to your own rules.
How to protect beans from bugs
A small insect that starts in an unripe pod causes significant damage to plantings. Pests become active in hot weather. The larvae settle in numbers of 20-30 individuals per bean. After this, the product becomes unsuitable either for food purposes or as seed material. To protect plants from infection by the grain beetle, you should sow intact seeds, treat the plantings with Detis or Metafox, and harvest before the pods crack.
Tips to help protect beans from bug damage:
- Harvest in the morning, carefully cutting the pods with scissors and supporting them with your hand;
- ensure the glass container is sealed;
- carry out pre-sowing soil preparation: enrich with nodule bacteria by introducing bacterial preparations or soil from the ridges on which the beans were grown;
- grow individual plants to obtain seed material, which will increase the quality and productivity of the crop.
How to prepare beans for storage
To preserve most of the harvested beans for the winter, you need to pay close attention to drying, which is carried out in several stages:
- collect the pods;
- Place in a sunny, well-ventilated place. In urban conditions, beans are poured onto paper spread on a balcony or loggia;
- wait about two weeks until the pods turn yellow, open slightly, and the grains harden;
- heat the seeds intended for consumption in the oven at 60 degrees for half an hour;
- place the seed material in the freezer for a short time.
Proper processing beans will protect against pests and destroy the larvae.
The second drying option: the beans are husked and distributed over a dry surface, stirring occasionally.
Rules for storing beans to prevent bugs
Home conditions are suitable for storing a rich harvest when the necessary rules are followed. Seeds can not only overwinter, but can be preserved for several years without being damaged by pests and bugs: it is important to know how:
- Sterilize glass jars, add a little ash and fill with beans. Wash the seeds before cooking.
- Chop a few cloves of garlic and stir into the beans.
- Place large quantities of beans in boxes or boxes lined with newspapers: printing ink serves as protection against insects.
- Add a sprig of calendula, dill or rosemary to the container with beans, which repel bugs.
Choosing containers and premises: creating optimal conditions
Dry beans are placed in sealed containers: plastic bags, glass jars or plastic containers and placed in a dark, cool place with an air temperature no higher than +10 degrees and humidity up to 50%. To protect against weevil, the product is placed in the freezer and taken out to the balcony or terrace in winter. Beans do not lose their taste and nutritional characteristics after prolonged exposure to low temperatures.
Warm and moist air promotes grain germination.
If a canvas bag is chosen for storage, it must be prepared in advance: soak in a salt solution and dry. This measure serves as reliable protection against bugs.
Ideal premises for storing beans are barns, pantries and cellars with suitable temperature conditions. Loggias and basements are allowed as temporary storage, as they do not maintain constant temperature and humidity.
Frozen beans
Harvesting green beans occurs on the 14th day from the moment of flowering and continues every other day.
To preserve the pleasant taste, delicate aroma and tenderness of green beans, you will have to freeze young, freshly cut fruits for the winter. The pods are washed and removed from tails and external damage. It is possible to freeze the pods whole or in portioned pieces. To preserve the taste and beneficial properties, blanching is recommended: the pods are boiled for three minutes in boiling water and placed in cold water with ice.
Then the product is dried with a paper or cloth towel and distributed into polyethylene bags or plastic containers, which are then stored in the refrigerator. The pre-cooked stock serves as a semi-finished product. After defrosting, the finished pods are not re-frozen.
Storage at room temperature
Properly prepared bean products can overwinter in a room. A certain amount of the harvest can be placed in the refrigerator, the remaining beans are frozen for three hours in plastic bags in the freezer. After this, the seeds need to be dried.
In order to get rid of bugs, the beans are cooked in a slightly open oven at 100 degrees for 20 minutes. The container should be tightly closed and located in a dry, dark, and well-ventilated place such as a kitchen cabinet or table. Ambient humidity should be low and room temperature moderate.
Necessary steps when storing beans at home:
- culling of fruits with black dots;
- peeling of pods;
- getting rid of seeds with plaque on the surface.
Prohibited:
- wash the beans before placing them in containers;
- use containers that can accumulate condensate;
- organize storage near a heat source.
Terms and conditions
The main requirement for storing this legume is maintaining a certain temperature and humidity: the shelf life of the product largely depends on these parameters.
Other factors also influence the shelf life of beans:
- Tara. It is preferable to use bags made of natural fabric, cardboard boxes, and wooden boxes.
- Conditions. Bugs multiply in warm conditions, so you should ensure a low temperature in the storage area, which will protect against pest damage and preserve the shell. The bean weevil lays up to two hundred eggs at a time and destroys reserves in a short period of time. Optimal room temperature: +5 – +10 degrees. If the indicators rise higher, you need to lower them or provide the products with cool storage. High humidity (more than 50%) is unacceptable, the grains become moldy, absorb the smell of dampness, and lose their presentation.
- Duration. The period for storing beans at home to prevent bugs from infesting them is largely determined by the container. If the rules are followed, canvas bags and wooden boxes can store legumes for two to three years. The processed product, in hermetically sealed glass jars, retains its consumer properties for up to 8 years.
If the housewife is thinking about an alternative way to preserve the harvest, with reliable protection against the appearance of insidious bugs, canning is suggested. Beans prepared in this way are suitable for consumption for two years. The preparation will serve as a help for the cook, because it is used as a side dish and component of first courses, salads or stews.
By familiarizing yourself with the rules and options for home storage, you can expand the area for growing this healthy vegetable crop.
