As you look toward building your roster of storage crops, go ahead and put “how to grow pinto beans” on this year’s to-learn list. Or maybe it’s not storage crops that you’re into but heirlooms. On the other hand, it could be that you’re looking for something both interesting and edible to grace an archway or trellis. The point is there are a lot of reasons why you might want to learn how to grow pinto beans. In this article, I’ll cover the basics of growing pinto beans; specific tips for growing them in gardens, raised beds, and containers; how to harvest pinto beans; and a few troubleshooting pointers.

Why grow your own pinto beans 

Pinto beans fall into the category of dry beans, alongside kidney beans, navy beans, cranberry beans, and black beans. Many varieties of pinto beans are heirlooms, which have been grown for generations and often have cultural or regional significance. Pinto beans are among the first to come to mind when we think about dry beans. Why?

• They’re a great storage crop to use in the kitchen year-round. Properly harvested when dry and stored in an air-tight container, dry pinto beans keep for one to two years.
• Dry beans of all kinds are high in fiber, protein, iron, phosphorus, and vitamin B1. They are also low in cholesterol.They’re also delicious and versatile in recipes.
• By saving some of your bean harvest, you already have next year’s seeds. Beans are the easiest seeds to save and you’re continuing and contributing to this bean’s story.
• Pinto beans are legumes, meaning when you learn how to grow pinto beans, you learn how to infuse nitrogen into your soil for the next season’s crop. Plants in the legume family, like pinto beans, take nitrogen from the air and fix it in the soil with the help of soil bacteria called rhizobia. The rhizobia form nodules on the plants’ roots for this conversion to take place. Leaving behind nitrogen, pinto beans are a great in a crop rotation followed by most other crops, including strawberries, celery, onion, garlic, fennel, and cucumbers. 
• Their large, bright green leaves are beautiful and the tiny blooms are a delicate accent to the wall of green foliage. When the pods form and take on color, their mottled shell is gorgeous.
• Pinto beans are available in bush bean varieties and pole bean varieties, meaning there’s one that’s right for your garden style.

When to plant pinto beans 

These beans are summer-weather lovers, thriving in daytime temperatures between 80 and 90 degrees F (27 to 32 degrees C) and nighttime temperatures above 65 degrees F (18 degrees C). Direct seed the beans into your garden or containers 4 to 6 weeks after your last frost, when soil temperatures are consistently 60 degrees F (15 degrees C) and above. Measure this by using a soil thermometer in the top 2 inches of soil. 

If you have a short growing season, use care to select an early maturing variety, as some pinto beans need as long as 120 days or more. In northern climates, consider using soil-warming techniques, like raised beds and black plastic mulch to help warm your soil sooner.

Before planting, pick out a spot that receives at least 8 hours of direct sunlight. Give them a windbreak, if you’re in a particularly windy area. Test the soil for pH and nutrients. Dry beans do best with soil pH of 6.5 to 7. Start your growing season by working compost into the soil to increase the organic matter, but go easy on any fertilizers, unless your soil test shows the soil is lacking.

How to grow pinto beans in rows 

The first step in how to grow pinto beans in your in-ground garden is to be sure you have deep, well-drained soil. Choose a site in full sun. If you’re growing bush-type pintos beans, sow them 2 to 3 inches apart in rows that are 18 to 24 inches apart. These plants don’t need supports or trellises.

For pole-type pinto beans, you have two choices:

* Seed pinto beans in straight rows, 4 to 6 inches apart. Space rows 30 to 36 inches apart. 

* Mound the soil in hills that are 30 inches apart with 30 inches between rows. Sow four to six bean seeds per hill. 

How to grow pinto beans in raised beds 

In deciding how to grow pinto beans in your raised beds, look at the bed size and configuration that you have available. Here are a few options:

• Put a mesh trellis on the north end of a raised bed and let pole beans climb it.
• Put an archway that spans the space between raised beds. Plant pole beans on both sides to create a fun tunnel of beans.
• Stick with bush beans if space and materials don’t allow for climbing pinto bean vines.

Use the spacing I outlined for growing pinto beans in rows, above.

How to grow pinto beans in containers 

You might become overwhelmed by the size of the entire plant—especially when looking at pole bean varieties—but pinto beans make great container plants. Around the outside of a 2½-gallon container (or larger fabric planters), seed three or four beans. Supply the pole-bean pinto bean varieties with a climbing structure, and let the bush beans grow on their own.

Be sure to use a container with drainage holes and a potting mix that allows for good moisture retention and drainage. Garden soil is too heavy for this job.

Caring for pinto bean plants 

Whether you’re learning how to grow pinto beans as bush beans or pole beans, the plants themselves have the same cultivation and watering needs. Pinto bean plants want just the right amount of moisture. Keep them watered, but don’t let the ground become waterlogged. Adequate water is especially important when the flowers and pods are forming. As the season comes to an end and the beans are drying out, you can stop irrigating.

The major difference in bush pinto beans and pole pinto beans is the support they require:

• Pole bean vines need to be trellised to improve production, reduce pests and disease, and make harvest easier. The trellis can come in the form of DIY teepee structures, store-bought supports, a fence, netting, and more. 
• Bush bean plants will grow to a couple of feet tall and stand up on their own. If they need some help—as sometimes happens after a rough and windy storm—you can create a structure around the whole row using stakes and twine to help them stand upright again, or you can place a single stake to help prop up each plant.

When and how to make the harvest 

Pinto beans take several months to mature. You’ll harvest dry beans 85 to 120 days after seeding, depending on the variety and the weather conditions throughout the growing season. Pinto beans can be harvested before they mature as green beans, but they won’t be as tender or tasty as true green snap beans. You’re better off growing a pinto bean variety as dry beans and a green bean variety as your snap bean.

It’s great to be able to leave the plants in the garden until the pods are yellow and dry, then harvest the pods by hand and bring them inside for shelling. Depending on the weather, this is not always possible. You don’t want to leave your drying beans outside if significant rain is coming or a freeze is forecast. In this case, cut off the plants at the base, and spread them out on a tarp in your garage, basement, or greenhouse—somewhere dry that has the area to accommodate the plants—to continue drying. When the plants dry out, remove the pods, and give them another week to continue drying before shelling and storing them in an airtight container in a dry place.

Troubleshooting issues 

Let’s take a look at some of the problems that could arise as you learn how to grow pinto beans:

Cultural problems:

• Your pinto beans had poor germination. First, look at how old your seeds are. Bean seeds lose their viability as they age. Second, consider the soil temperature. When soils are cooler than 60 degrees F (15 degrees C), germination is slower or doesn’t happen at all. Finally, pay attention to your soil texture. Crusting of the soil, which is common in heavy clay soils, can make it difficult for seedlings to emerge.
• Your beans are sprouting in the pod. If your beans have matured but you’ve left them in the garden to dry and you get a warm rain, the beans could be fooled into thinking it’s time to grow. Once they’ve sprouted, you can’t replant them next year. Cut the plants and let them dry indoors to prevent this.
• Your vines had flowers, but the flowers fell off. Flowers drop from bean plants if the plants are stressed, like when the weather is hotter than 95 degrees F (35 degrees C) or the plants aren’t getting enough water. Try mulching to cool the soil and conserve water, and use shade cloth during the most intense part of the sunny, dry, warm summers.
• You have tremendous foliage growth but little flower growth and bean production. An abundance of nitrogen in the soil can be the cause here, and this leads to other issues. Foliage that’s too dense is more susceptible to powdery mildew.

Insect and disease issues:

• Fuzzy, yellow things are damaging your bean plant leaves. These are Mexican bean beetle larvae, which are even more damaging than the adult beetles, which look like large, orange lady bugs. If you know Mexican bean beetles are a problem in your garden, cover the plants with row cover until they flower to give them a jump on any damage. Remove eggs, larvae, and adults by hand. 
• Your vines wilted after flowering, and soon after, spots form on tissue across the entire plant. Eventually, the whole planting turns into a rotting mass. This can be caused by several bacteria, viruses, and fungi, including white mold and bacterial blight. Plants are susceptible to these during high humidity and with wet leaves and soil. This, like the powdery mildew above, can also be caused by planting beans too densely.

Last tips

Now that you have the basics of how to grow pinto beans; some tips for getting started with pinto beans in gardens, raised beds, and containers; an understanding of how to harvest pinto beans; and my pointers for troubleshooting a pinto-bean crop, you’re ready to go. As heirlooms, as storage crops, and as interesting-looking garden plants, pinto beans are a sure thing.

For more information on growing beans in the garden, be sure to read these articles:

• Support ideas for pole and runner beans
• How to grow green beans
• Planting and growing pole beans
• Learn how to plant and grow lima beans