SOTON BEANS
Beans, Brains, and Everything in Between – Start Here!
Q.1. Why is this project being carried out?
The future climate will be more unpredictable, and the summers are likely to be hotter and drier. Legumes are pretty good at tolerating low soil moisture and can grow without the need for expensive fertilisers that are harmful to the environment. This project trials a range of legumes across 100 schools in UK to see how they fare. It ranges from commonly grown chickpeas and lentils, and then one very drought tolerant legume called lablab. You can read more about the six legume species on the webpage here: https://research.soton.ac.uk/sotonbeans/
Q.2. When do I get my seeds?
The seed will be mailed in the middle of April.
Q.3. What do I do and when?
Please plant the seeds in the first week of May! Simply plant them 1-2cm below the surface of the soil and give them a little water. Full information will be available once all seed packs are sent.
Q.4. What data do I collect?
Data sheets are included in the pack with the seeds. Please record germination data, flowering data, when you see pods as well as the soil pH (pH sticks are included in the pack) on the provided data sheet. Its great if you can take pictures! Data collection link and photo uploading space will be soon available on the website.
Q.5. What if my beans don’t grow?
Not all types of beans will grow successfully in every place—and that’s part of what makes this experiment exciting. The team wants to hear about the beans that don’t grow just as much as the ones that do. With a little water during hot and dry weather, some legumes should still grow well.