Faba beans are getting more popular in Alberta, says Robyne Bowness, a pulse crop pathology technologist with Alberta Agriculture. Acres have tripled in one year from 5,000 to 15,000 this year.
“Faba beans seemed like a really good fit,” Bowness said of the plant’s popularity in central Alberta. She said the crop has moved into southern Alberta under irrigation as well.
Bowness took attendees to see faba bean trials during a July crop walk at the Lacombe Research Centre.
Zero-tannin faba beans for feed are the more popular crop in Alberta, though beans with tannin for human consumption are garnering more interest, Bowness said. The tannin faba beans are popular for export to countries where the “snap” in the taste is appreciated.
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For those interested in growing faba beans, Bowness warned they need to seed early — it takes 120 days to reach maturity. “Faba beans really do have to be one of the first things you put in the ground,” she said. They’re tolerant of early-spring frost and less forgiving of fall frosts. Make sure to plant faba beans in ground where not much nitrogen was used the year before. When planted they need a little bit of phosphorus.
The aim is to have 90 per cent of the pods black by the second week of September. Bowness said some of the top pods might still be green, but those aren’t the high-quality seeds anyway. The high-quality seeds are lower on the plant.
Diseases and insects to watch for with faba beans are chocolate spot and lygus bugs.
There are supply-and-demand issues with the beans, so Bowness said to avoid planting them on spec alone. “I would suggest you get a contract before you put them in,” she said. While faba beans aren’t cheap to put in the ground, the returns can be good, the tour attendees were advised.
