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Annual BiennialFruit Edible

Glycine max

soya bean

An upright, bushy annual legume with green foliage and small, insignificant sweet-pea like white to purple-pink flowers which appear from July through to September, followed by clusters of green, hairy fruit pods containing around 3 to 4 soyabeans per pod. Ready to harvest July through to November, when the pods turn yellow and leaves begin to drop

Other common names

soja bean
soy bean
see morewhite gram

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Ultimate height

1.5–2.5 metres

Time to ultimate height

1 year

Ultimate spread

0.5–1 metres

Chalk

Clay

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained

pH

Acid, Alkaline, Neutral

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Full sun

Aspect

South–facing or West–facing

Exposure

Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Fabaceae
Native to GB / Ireland: No
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Columnar upright
Genus: A genus of scrambling annual or perennial, best known for the species Glycine max, which is the cultivated soya bean used as a food ingredient. Tall stems produce green foliage and violet-purple to white flowers followed by green seed pods
Name status: Correct

How to grow

Cultivation

Grow in moist, well-drained humus-rich soil in full sun under glass April to May. Remove cover when seedlings appear and transfer outside to harden off from late May when the risk of frost has passed. Plants may need support in windy areas. Harvest beans when pods turn yellow. For more advice see soya-bean cultivation

Propagation

Propagate by seed

Suggested planting locations and garden types

City and courtyard gardens
Cottage and informal garden
Edible fruit

Pruning

No pruning required

Pests

May be susceptible to caterpillars

Diseases

May be susceptible to bacterial blights, brown spot, anthracnose, downy mildews, powdery mildews and soybean rust, root and stem rots, stem blights and virus diseases

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