It HER way!!
Since I'm in super hot high desert country I try to start stuff as early as possible so they can produce before the temps go over 100*. I usually start 4-5 kinds of beans sometime in April, depending. They usually start to produce around the beginning of June, depending. Some, many years they would produce well for a week or two and then it would suddenly turn super hot and they would just give up. They would slow or stop growing and stop producing and slowly get dry and crispy. I figured that was the best I could get and pulled them out to save the water.

But 3 years ago when this happened I left one trellis of beans in place. I wasn't being super smart or even trying an experiment which I do a lot. I just didn't have the time to pull them up so I kept watering them because I needed more green stuff to add to my compost pile and I didn't need more brown stuff. Well, I was really busy that summer. I always am. And when 2 months went by I realized they had slowly kept growing and were now 8' tall and providing lots of shade for the crops next to them. So I decided to keep watering them because the shade was awesome. I had positioned these trellis' just for that purpose. Color me happy!

And color me surprised when they suddenly started producing like crazy in September! They continued to produce for about 9 more weeks! It was the best bean harvest I have ever gotten!

I've continued to try this. It doesn't seem to work on all beans but I will keep trying every year. This year my purple pole beans and dragon's tongue bush beans did it and I had a great harvest but the Chinese red noodle beans and the rattlesnake beans didn't. And I'm not even sure what the heck my Christmas lima beans are doing!

And this year I had a similar thing happen with my purple cauliflower! I planted my seedlings out around March 15th and hoped for the best. And we all know.... because everybody says.... that these are cold weather vegies and they can't handle hot temps. When they grew slowly and didn't produce I decided to leave them in so they could just bolt and give me new seed. But they didn't bolt! Even though it was over 108* all through July. So I just kept watering them to see what would happen. I suspected that they would do nothing all fall and winter and finally bolt next summer because they are biennials which would take up a whole lot of space for 18 months just for seed. Dang! But this month they produced 4 beautiful heads and 10 more are just starting to grow beautiful heads of purple cauliflower! And I'm tempted to leave 6 of them in just to go to seed but I have been planning a new experiment for this bed and I need the space!

I'm stunned and surprised and flabbergasted! So, the lesson is... don't believe everything you read online. Mother nature is calling the shots and we have to listen, learn and follow her lead!

Very happy beans and amazing purple cauliflower. Happy gardening everyone.
Debbie