Christina Websell wrote:
My grandfather, who was a master gardener, planted his runner beans seeds
outside on May 8th every year even though he had a greenhouse he never
started them in there, or indoors. He said it would make them too soft.
I don't remember him every having a failure.

I think he may have been right. I started mine in the greenhouse last year
for the first time and I had my worst crop ever. Despite my dad putting a
proper bean trench under at least half of them, which we haven't bothered
with previously.

We certainly ate a lot of runner beans and when we got sick of them he would
salt them in jars for winter. We always had home grown runner beans with
our Christmas dinner.

Ooh, how does the salted jars work? Whole bean pods or just the beans?
Blanched first? How much salt? And then how do you serve?