Dating back to the late 19th century, this heirloom variety is justly popular for its flavour and its heavy crops of round, stringless pods. With consistently good results over a long cropping season, this prolific climbing French bean produces clusters of fleshy pods that have a superior texture and taste and are rich in vitamins and fibre. As well as being easy to grow, 'Blue Lake' makes an attractive feature whether grown in the veg garden or nestled amongst herbaceous plants in your beds and borders. They look particularly good when grown up a trellis or 'wigwam' of canes, not least for their pretty white flowers. Plant them with sweet peas for a pleasing contrast of colours. 'Blue Lake' is generally grown as a green bean for cooking. In fact, they should not be eaten raw as they contain toxins that are destroyed in the cooking process. The pods are best picked young to increase yields, and steamed or boiled rapidly to make the best of their flavour and texture, as well as to retain the most nutrients. Inside the rich green pods are white seeds or beans, which can be harvested from pods that are left to mature for longer on the plant. They can then be dried and stored to be used as haricot beans in soups and stews. This climbing bean will thrive in neutral, humus-rich, moisture-retentive but well-drained soil in a sunny position. Sow the seeds indoors from April to May to plant out May to June; or sow outdoors from May to July, directly where they are to crop. Harvest from July to October. Supplied as a pack of 100 (approx.) seeds ready to sow indoors into individual pots or outdoors directly into their cropping position. Grows to 180cm height x 45cm spread.