Unversity of Maryland Extension: Plant of the Week
Edamame bean
Glycine max
Text by Bob Orazi
Photo by University of Kentucky
Edamame bean, a vegetable soybean, has been gaining in popularity as a snack food or ingredient in soup, salad and stir fry.
It contains no cholesterol or saturated fat, yet has 40 percent protein and is rich in calcium, vitamin A and B as well as fiber.
They are easy to grow and suitable for Maryland soils, preferring a slightly acid pH of 6.0 to 6.5 and full sun.
Treat seeds with a bacterium inoculant before you plant them the first time. After danger of frost has passed, place edamame seeds 6 inches apart, 1 inch deep, in rows 2 feet apart, applying a complete fertilizer.
Like most vegetables, they require 1 inch of water per week. Side dress with a nitrogen fertilizer after 6 weeks.
Maturity dates vary from 75 days to 125 days, so you can plant a mid and a late season variety at the same time and repeat the process every two weeks for successive plantings.
Maturity dates vary from 75 days to 125 days, so you can plant a mid and a late season variety at the same time and repeat the process every two weeks for successive plantings.
Deer and rabbits are fond of soybeans, so use a protective row cover. Stink bugs and aphids feed on the leaves but yields are not affected.
Harvest beans when they are plump in the pod but before pods begin to yellow. The seeds are self-fertile, meaning they can be saved for next season planting if pods are dried completely before winter storage.
