Making a Bean Teepee

A bean teepee is the best kind of garden project: it grows into a den, it feeds the family, and it can be built in an afternoon with a few canes and a packet of seed. The idea is simple. A circle of tall poles is tied together at the top, climbing beans are sown at the base, and within weeks the vines have covered the frame and made a leafy room. This guide covers the frame, the beans, the sowing and the keeping of the den through the season.

Choosing a spot and a size

Pick a sunny spot, because beans need light and a den in shade will stay damp and bare. Leave room around the base for the plants to be watered and for a child to walk in and out through the opening. A teepee about two metres tall and a metre and a half across at the base suits a small group of children; a bigger one takes more poles and more seed but is easier to sit inside. Do not put it where a fall would land on paving or a wall, and check the ground is soft enough to push the poles in.

The frame

You need six to eight straight poles, each about two and a half metres long. Bamboo canes are ideal, but hazel sticks, straight branches or thick dowel all work. Push the poles into the ground in a circle, leaning them inwards so their tops meet, and leave one gap wide enough for a doorway. Tie the tops together firmly with twine, and add a second tie a little lower down for strength. Weave a few horizontal strings between the poles at intervals, which gives the vines something to grip as they climb.

Check the frame by hand before sowing. A teepee that wobbles will need to be firmed or re-tied, because a heavy crop of beans adds weight, and a child leaning on it adds more. If the ground is loose, push each pole in a good twenty centimetres and firm the soil around it.

Which beans to sow

Choose a climbing variety, not a dwarf one. Runner beans are the classic choice and grow fast, and climbing French beans such as a purple podded type add colour. Avoid bush beans, which stay short and shrubby and will not cover the frame. If the family likes to eat the pods raw, mangetout and sugar snap peas can be grown on a teepee too, though they crop for a shorter season than beans.

Sowing and early care

Sow two or three seeds at the base of each pole, about five centimetres deep, and water them in. Leave the doorway poles unsown so the entrance stays clear. If the weather is cold, raise the plants indoors first in small pots and set them out once the risk of frost has passed, which is safer than sowing straight into cold ground. Label the sowing date on a stick so the children can see how long the seeds take to appear.

Water regularly while the plants establish, and keep the ground around the base free of weeds. Once the vines start to climb, guide the first few tendrils towards the poles; after that the plants will find their own way. A child can help by winding a stray stem back onto the frame, which is a small, satisfying job.

Making it a den

The den side of the project is what makes it worth building. Once the vines have grown, the inside becomes a shaded room. Put down a mat or a folded blanket, and let the children furnish it with a cushion, a few books and a torch for the darker corner. Keep a small watering can inside so the den has a purpose beyond play, and hang a wind chime or a string of shells from the top tie, an idea developed further in the crafts hub on garden play and crafts.

Watch the den as the crop fills out. Beans grow quickly in warm weather and can close the doorway, so trim the vines around the entrance if it becomes hard to get in. Teach children not to pull on the stems when they climb through, because a broken stem will not regrow.

Safety and looking after the frame

A teepee is a climbing frame as well as a plant support, so it deserves the same care as any play structure. Check the ties at the top every week or two, because twine loosens as the canes settle and as the vines add weight. Push any pole that has worked loose back into the ground and firm the soil around it. If the ground is soft or the teepee is tall, a stake driven in beside each pole and tied to it will hold the frame steady through a windy week.

Teach children to walk in through the doorway rather than pushing between the poles, which snaps the young stems at the base. Keep the entrance clear of canes and low strings that could catch a foot. If the teepee stands on grass, cut the grass around the base so the beans are not competing with it, and so the ground underfoot stays dry. A mat or a folded blanket on the ground keeps the inside clean and makes the den comfortable.

Watch for the common bean problems while the vines grow. Blackfly clusters on the soft growing tips in early summer, and a strong jet of water will knock most of them off before they spread. A dry spell while the plants are flowering will cause the flowers to drop without setting pods, so water well at that stage. If the leaves yellow and the growth stalls, the plants are short of water or food, and a liquid feed high in potash will help them set a better crop.

Harvesting and keeping the den going

Pick the pods young and often, every few days. A bean left to grow long and tough will signal the plant to stop producing, so regular picking keeps the crop coming. Show children how to hold the stem with one hand and pull the pod with the other, so the plant is not uprooted. Runner beans are best sliced and cooked, never eaten raw, as the page on eating from the patch explains.

At the end of the season, leave a few pods to dry on the plant and save the seed for next year, or let the vines die back and cut them at the base. The poles can be stored dry and used again, and the spent vines go on the compost. A teepee that is taken down carefully will stand for several seasons, which makes it one of the cheapest structures a family garden can have.