It looks like snail/slug damage to me.

Keep in mind that snails/slugs can hide as deep as two inches underground during the day. Find some untreated scrap lumber and lay it down under the beans, then check under it in the morning. Sluggo and some other snail/slug killers are perfectly safe for pets, kids and beneficial insects. Check the label to make sure the main ingredient is IRON PHOSPHATE. It will break down into soil nutrients.

A couple of edge cuts in your photo might be from leaf-cutter bees, but you should be seeing them flying around during the day, esp with that amount of damage. But I still think it's snails/slugs.

Sue

I'm wondering if it could be a nematode. Here's some info from the Univ. of CA, Davis (note part twisted leaves):

Stem and bulb nematode (Ditylenchus dipsaci).
This tiny worm, almost invisible to the naked
eye, invades garlic tissues and can seriously
reduce yields. The infestation causes the basal
portion of partly mature plants to swell and to
become spongy and frequently broken by
longitudinal splits. The tissues rot, the leaves
and stems become rolled and twisted, and the
plant is stunted. In severely infested plants the
basal plate may be so rotted that it pulls away
when the plant is lifted, leaving the roots in the
ground.
This is a difficult pest to control because lightly
infested bulbs show no symptoms and might get
planted into clean land. Once introduced into a
field, the stem and bulb nematodes may persist in
the soil for years. California Early garlic
appears somewhat less susceptible to nematodes
than California Late, but will not withstand
severe infestations. Nematodes are currently not
a serious problem in garlic because control
measures have been developed and utilized.
However, continued use of these controls is
essential if the problem is to remain minimal.
When certified planting stock is unavailable, one
should carefully select planting stocks that are as
nematode-free as possible. Seed should be grown
in disease-, nematode- and insect-free soil.

Never grow onion crops following garlic, since
the stem and bulb nematode infests all of the
commonly cultivated onions, including chives and
leeks. Other hosts are shasta pea, miner's lettuce,
hairy nightshade, parsley, celery, and salsify.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garlic nematode, UC Davis

I'll go along with Sue's 1st take on the issue - slugs/snails.

Are those beans in concrete blocks, Marleigh? Every critter likes to eat bean plants and slugs will take advantage of any surface debris to hide under during the day. You'd almost need bare, naked dirt to deprive them of cover and I'd bet the concrete is giving them all the cover they need. On bare, naked dirt they'll come from cover 6 feet+ away to munch on your seedlings. Once the veggies are some size, you'll find them hiding under the plants.

Sluggo works altho' I have seen sparrows grab some of the pellets . . . wonder what that's doing to 'em. After a rain or irrigation - it's gone but there may be enuf time for the slugs to find it. It kills the slugs.

Steve

Check for Sow/pill bugs also.

It was said: "I'm wondering if it could be a nematode. "

Nematodes don't make holes.

The comments about a chewing pest are right on.

But I suggest something other than slugs/snails. The edges of the damage appear to be caterpillar or beetle.

I suggest a 10pm search-and-destroy mission because the marauders may well be on the late shift.

I wondered where that nematode post went... it was supposed to be in the twisted garlic thread, not here.

OH, NO! EARLY BRAIN DEATH!

Sue

First off, thank you everyone for your replies.

I had some iron phosphate snail bait down but I need to be more vigilant about applying it, since it tends to disappear with watering after a week or two.

Sow bugs eh? I wouldn't be surprised if I had more than I saw. What would help me combat them? Diatomaceous earth?

There's another couple of sprouts that have been eaten right down to the stem, but I couldn't get a good picture of them.

Hey, could it be earwigs? I've read the earwig thread where there was a minor disagreement over earwigs eating vegetation or not - I don't think it was settled. ;)

But we've always had an earwig problem. I've just never had a garden before.

Yes, but I'm not completely sure about beans.

The most serious damage I have from earwigs is in the dahlias. They will shred blossoms but they also chew on the leaves while the plants are just emerging.

They also do some damage to lettuce.

Like slugs, earwigs are another critter that makes use of debis under which to hide. Until the plants themselves are large enuf, you can often find them under boards and such. The dahlias close to an old board fence are the ones most likely to be damaged by the earwigs.

Steve

I should say that earwigs are really, really tuff to kill. The debris clean-up is about the best way to deter them and some folks have good luck putting down "debris" like newspapers and then destroying the earwigs that hide under the paper. That works for slugs, too.

And, I'll go back to my original statement that "everything" likes bean plants. I've even had magpies eat the plants just coming up.

Don't be discouraged, Marleigh. Plant plant 'em again and plant other veggies. Thrash around out there and destroy/dissuade pests as best you can. Rotenone/Pyrethrum and Prayer may help.

Steve

I'm worried about you, Sue. :-)

Jim