How to Grow Broad Beans (Bakla): Sowing Dates, Pots, Aphids
Broad beans (bakla) are a cold loving crop: sow them straight into the soil in October or November on the plains, and you will pick fat green pods from about February to March. If you want to know how to grow broad beans in pots, the short answer is a container at least 15 inches wide, full sun, and pinching off the tips once the first pods form, which also deals with their one big enemy, black aphids. One safety point comes first, because it matters more than any growing tip.
People with G6PD deficiency can have a serious reaction, a breakdown of red blood cells called favism, after eating broad beans. MedlinePlus notes it can also follow breathing in pollen from the flowering plants. If anyone in your home has G6PD deficiency, including a child diagnosed at birth, do not grow broad beans. Signs such as sudden tiredness, pale or yellow skin, or dark urine after contact need a doctor the same day.
Before you start
- Sow: direct, never transplanted from a tray if you can avoid it
- Depth: 5 to 7 cm, with the black scar facing down
- Spacing: about 15 cm apart in pots, 15 to 23 cm in beds
- Pot: at least 15 inches (40 cm) wide and 12 inches deep; a 30 to 40 litre tub holds four to six plants
- Sun: 6 hours or more
- First pods: roughly three to four months after sowing
Prefer to listen? This post as a 4 min video · Watch the video
When to sow broad beans: a range for each city
| Zone | Sowing window | Picking |
|---|---|---|
| Punjab plains: Lahore, Faisalabad, Delhi | Mid October to late November | February to March |
| Hot dry: Multan, Bahawalpur, Sukkur | Late October to November | February; finish before March heat |
| Coastal: Karachi | November to December | February to March; mild winters suit them but heat arrives early |
| Sub-humid: Islamabad, Peshawar | October to early November | March to April |
| Hills | February to March (spring sowing) | May to June |
The deadline is heat, not cold. Broad beans shrug off frost once established, but flowers drop and pods stay empty once days pass the low 30s °C. Sow late and you get a lot of leaf and little bean.
How to grow broad beans in pots, step by step
- Fill the container with 2 parts soil, 1 part compost and 1 part sand. Our potting mix guide gives variations.
- Soak seeds overnight only if the soil is dry; in moist soil, sow them dry to avoid rotting.
- Push each seed 5 to 7 cm deep, scar down, about 15 cm apart. Sow two extra at the edge to fill gaps.
- Water once well, then only when the top 3 cm dries. Shoots usually appear in about one to two weeks, slower in cold soil.
- At 30 cm tall, put a few canes and a ring of string around the pot so wind does not snap the stems.
- Once the first flowers appear, feed every two weeks with a potassium rich liquid feed (a tomato type feed).
The RHS suggests dwarf varieties for containers. Tall types need a deep tub and sturdy staking. For general seed handling, see seed starting at home.
Watering through the season
- October to November: soil just moist; overwatering rots seed.
- December to January (frost nights): water every 5 to 7 days in the morning. Established plants handle light frost; seedlings may need a cloth on the coldest nights.
- February to March (flowering and pods): steady water, every 2 to 3 days in pots. Dry spells now drop flowers.
The black aphid problem, and the pinch that solves it
Pinch the tips, then cook them
When the lowest flowers have set small pods, nip off the top 8 to 10 cm of each stem. Black aphids gather on that soft tip, so removing it takes away their favourite food, and the plant sends its energy into filling pods rather than growing taller. The RHS recommends exactly this. The tips are edible: wash them well and cook them like spinach.
If aphids still cluster, rub them off with your fingers or wash them away with a firm spray of water. A soap based spray is the next step: read the label, wear gloves, and keep children away.
Broad bean leaves turning yellow or spotted?
| What you see | Likely cause | First response |
|---|---|---|
| Brown chocolate coloured spots | Chocolate spot, a fungus in damp, foggy weeks | Space plants, water the soil only, remove spotted leaves |
| Lower leaves yellowing slowly | Age, or too wet soil | Check drainage; let the top dry |
| Whole plant yellow and wilting | Root rot from waterlogging | Remove it; improve drainage next time |
| Rusty orange dust under leaves | Rust fungus, late in the season | Pick off and bin; plants often finish cropping anyway |
When to harvest broad beans
Pick pods when they are full and plump but before they turn leathery. Open one: the bean’s scar should still be white or green. A black scar means older, tougher beans. Very young pods around 5 cm long can be cooked whole. Pick every few days; regular picking keeps more pods coming. Our guide to picking and cooking bakla covers the kitchen side.
At the end of the season, cut the plants off at soil level and leave the roots in. Like other beans, broad beans host nitrogen fixing bacteria in root nodules, which add a little to the soil for the next crop.
Grow it or skip it?
Grow it if no one in your home has G6PD deficiency, you have a sunny spot and a big tub, and you can sow by November. It is one of the easier winter crops, and our first five plants guide pairs well with it. Skip it if you have only small pots, or live in Karachi and cannot sow before mid December. Browse more in Kitchen Garden.
Raw broad beans are not a snack for small children; cook them. Whole beans are a choking risk for under fives, so mash or split them. Keep any spray, even soap based, away from children and pets until it dries.
Broad bean growing questions
How do you grow broad beans at home?
Sow seeds 5 to 7 cm deep straight into a sunny bed or a large tub in October or November, water lightly, stake the plants, and pinch the tips once pods form.
Can broad beans grow in pots?
Yes, in a container at least 40 cm wide. Dwarf varieties suit pots best.
When should broad beans be sown in Pakistan?
Mid October to late November on the Punjab plains, a little later in Karachi and a little earlier in Islamabad.
How many days do broad beans take to grow?
Usually about three to four months from sowing to the first pods, depending on cold and variety.
How long do broad bean seeds take to germinate?
About one to two weeks in moist soil, slower in cold weather.
Why are my broad bean flowers falling without pods?
Heat or dry soil, usually. Sow earlier next season and keep watering steady in February.
Is it safe to grow broad beans if someone has G6PD deficiency?
No. Eating the beans, and even breathing pollen from flowering plants, can trigger favism in people with G6PD deficiency. Choose another legume such as peas.
Should I soak broad bean seeds before sowing?
Only if your soil is dry. In damp, cold soil, soaked seeds rot more easily.
Bakla kaise ugaye?
October ya November mein beej 5 se 7 cm gehre seedhe zameen ya bade gamle mein boyein, dhoop mein rakhein, aur pehli phaliyan banne par oopar ki konpal tod dein.