How to keep beans in winter?
All gardeners have long known that growing a good harvest of beans is half the battle. It is equally important to store it until next season, especially if home-grown vegetables are used as seed.
So how and where to store beans in winter? You can use one of the following options:
- in cloth bags in the refrigerator or on the balcony;
- in glass jars;
- in the freezer.
Before using any of the above methods, you should prepare the legumes for storage.
Preparing beans for storage
To keep the beans well, they are pre-dried. To do this, sort the pods and put them in a dry place, where they will not be exposed to direct sunlight.
When all the pods turn yellow, and the beans knock slightly when shaken (after about a week), they need to be husked and the beans must be revised again. If holes are found, such beans are thrown away, since they can contain grain bugs that will damage the entire crop.
If you do not plan to use beans for planting, the beans are heated for an hour in a slightly open oven to destroy bugs.
Storing beans in the refrigerator and on the balcony
When you need to keep small supplies, beans in fabric bags can be temporarily (while the weather is still warm) put on the shelf in the refrigerator door. With a decrease in the temperature outside, the bags are taken out to the glazed balcony. The simpler issue is storage for residents of the private sector who have a dry storage room or a shed - this is ideal. The beans are placed in cardboard boxes, in which holes are previously made so that the beans "breathe".
The advantages of such storage are that pest larvae die in a cool room, and besides, the beans do not germinate. However, this method is not very suitable for those who have open balconies - in severe frost, the beans will freeze. It will also be inconvenient to store large volumes in the refrigerator.
Storing beans in glass jars
The advantage of storing in jars is that the beans can last for several years. From above, the container must be closed with a lid. Recently, plastic bottles have also been used quite often for storing beans. Before pouring beans into them, you need to thoroughly dry the container.
Jars and bottles of beans are kept in a closet (away from batteries). To combat bugs, put a few cloves of garlic, bay leaves or dill seeds.
Storing beans in the freezer
Beans can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months. This method works well with asparagus beans. Before placing in the freezer, the pods are cut into small pieces (5 cm) and blanched for several minutes in boiling water. Then you need to let them cool and dry a little. Arrange the cooled asparagus beans in bags or pour into small containers with a lid. Release air from the bags and tie tightly.
When stored in the freezer, ordinary beans are not boiled, just wash and dry them.
When freezing beans, it is recommended to apply them in portions - in order to use them at a time, since you cannot re-freeze them.