Beans are not widely grown in Scotland, but an Innovative Farmers trial may spark a change. Over two years, five arable farmers are trialling several bean varieties, to see which are best suited to the country's growing conditions. The field lab has produced its first year of results which can be found on our website, alongside a webinar with further insights from the growers. A key aim of the trial is to start to build a bank of knowledge to support farmers to grow beans in Scotland.
We speak to Erin Matlock, Research Agronomist at PGRO who coordinates the trial (with research support from Scottish Agronomy) to find out more.
It’s been a really valuable experience working closely with farmers on this. Having trials at field scale, under real farm conditions, means the learning is practical and immediately relevant. What’s really encouraging from year one, is that where crops established well, yields were not just viable, they actually exceeded UK averages. That shows the potential is absolutely there in Scotland.
We lost two sites to winter kill which was disappointing, but it also an incredibly valuable learning. It highlights that success with beans in Scotland is as much about getting the agronomy right as it is about variety choice.
These results are important because they provide real, Scotland-specific evidence. For a long time, decisions around beans have relied on data from other regions, but this shows what’s actually achievable under Scottish conditions.
We want this report to be a starting point – something growers and advisors can use to guide decisions on variety choice, drilling timing, and overall management. It’s about turning uncertainty into informed action.
The trial is now being repeated for a second year so we can build a more robust dataset across two seasons. That’s really important for capturing different weather conditions and starting to refine best practices around establishment, drilling timing, and overall crop management.
Beyond these two years, I’d like to see this work spark further projects, perhaps looking at how we can better manage risks like winter kill and poor establishment. If we can tackle those challenges, there’s a real opportunity to make winter beans a consistent and reliable crop for Scottish growers.
The legacy of this work will be confidence – for growers to try beans, for agronomists to recommend them, and for the wider industry to support them as a genuine break crop option in Scotland.