How to grow broad beans
Takes light frost · Legume family
When to sow and plant
No sourced time window
Based on: average for Germany, last frost 19 April, safe from 6 May
Planting calendar for your areaWhere the dates come from
The weeks come from our sources; the dates use the average frost in Germany. Enter a German postcode to get dates for your area.
We don’t have a sourced value for this yet.
Good and bad neighbours
Good neighbours · 1
White cabbage, Red cabbage, Savoy cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Kale, Kohlrabi, Chinese cabbage, Pak choiExpert rule· C
Legumes fix nitrogen that cabbage can use – but it is only released once their roots rot.
C: Expert rule with a reason
White cabbageRed cabbageSavoy cabbageCauliflowerBroccoliBrussels sproutsKaleKohlrabiChinese cabbagePak choi
Crop rotation
After the legume family, leave the bed free of it for at least 3 years (sources: 3–4 years).
- The same species should go back to the same spot after a break of 3 years at the earliest.
- Example: grown here in 2026, again from 2030.
At a glance
- Family
- Legume family (Fabaceae)
- Frost
- Half-hardy, tolerates light frost
- Spacing (row × plant)
- 45 × 15–23 cm (18 × 6–9 in)
- Plants per m²
- 14.8
- Per square foot (30 × 30 cm)
- 1 plant
- Life cycle
- Annual
Spacing according to RHS: How to grow broad beans. Other sources: 46–91 × 10–15 cm (18–36 × 4–6 in) (Johnny's Selected Seeds: Fava Bean – Key Growing Information).
Questions and answers
How far apart should I plant broad beans?
45 × 15–23 cm (18 × 6–9 in) (row × plant), according to RHS: How to grow broad beans.
What grows well next to broad beans?
White cabbage, Red cabbage, Savoy cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Kale, Kohlrabi, Chinese cabbage, Pak choi: Good neighbour (C).
How long a break do broad beans need in the same bed?
After the legume family, leave the bed free of it for at least 3 years (sources: 3–4 years). The same species should go back to the same spot after a break of 3 years at the earliest.
More from the legume family
Sources
Show 9 sources
- University of Maryland Extension: Growing Beans in a Home Garden
- RHS: How to grow broad beans
- Johnny's Selected Seeds: Fava Bean – Key Growing Information
- Südtiroler Bauernbund: Merkblatt Fruchtfolgen im Gemüsebau (Oktober 2022)
- Landwirtschaftskammer Schleswig-Holstein: Fruchtfolge im Garten (Gartenmerkblatt, 2020)
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy (über die GBIF-API, species/match)
- Oregon State University Extension: Companion Planting (Guides for beginning gardeners, Juni 2021)
- RHS: Growing Your Own – The three sisters
- BUND: Mischkultur – Gute und schlechte Nachbarn (August 2026)
Retrieved on 23 October 2026. Facts in our own words, one source per value.