Well I'm going to answer my own question in case anyone needs to know the outcome.

I did a search on google for "what is a pole bean?" and learned that they are the vine type and will need a support of some sort. Like my previous post said (i think i mentioned it in there) I found bamboo pryamid supports that you simply place over plants. They open like a fan into a wide pryamid structure-type support. The vines grow upward in the form of a pryamid. From the photos in my gardening books, once the pryamids are full of growth it looks real pretty.

On the other hand, I googled "what is a bush bean?" and learned they needs no support because they grow into a bush and are not viny.

I will still return here to see if anyone leaves me any comments. Thanks in advance.

Oh by the way, those pryamid supports are apparently called teepees.

Thanks for the feedback. My sugar snap pea pods that I plan to plant this year, according to my research on the web today, are therefore considered pole beans because they will make vines.

If I see the Kentucky Wonder bush beans, I'll grab a packet and try them.

"My sugar snap pea pods that I plan to plant this year, according to my research on the web today, are therefore considered pole beans because they will make vines."

Uhhh, no, sugar snap PEAS and pole BEANS aren't the same thing. One is a variety of peas and the other is a variety of beans. They both just happen to be vining varieties (rather than bush form) of their respective vegetable family and so require a trellis to grow.

Both beans and peas are available in many different varieties, some grow on climbing vines and some grow on bushes, some produce a continuous crop, others crop all about the same time. Your seed packet, if you have one will tell you the difference and needs of the variety you plan to plant.

I don't consider bush beans to be "bushes" at all. They have tendrils and climb all over themselves, they just don't climb quite as far as pole beans. I've also got bush and climbing peas growing next to each other, and the difference is that the climbing peas are hanging a little farther over the edge of their raised bed than the bush peas (they've been growing all winter, so that description of them is pretty much the sum of it).

I've been investigating companion gardening/permaculture to avoid using chemical fertilizers. One thing I can say is that pole beans are nitrogen fixing and work well with corn (nitrogen using) but bush beans do NOT fix nitrogen into the soil as well.

Last year I did Kentucky Wonders alongside the corn (corn stalks as the poles, no extra effort needed) and it worked super well. Unfortunately, my wife didn't like the taste of them. New experiments underway this year.

Bush beans do fix nitrogen in their roots. They're the exact same species as pole beans, they just have different growing habits. And regardless if they are bush or pole, the nitrogen they do fix won't be available until after the roots have started decomposing. As the plants are growing that nitrogen is locked up and is being used by the plant itself.

"Last year I did Kentucky Wonders alongside the corn (corn stalks as the poles, no extra effort needed) and it worked super well."

It'd be nice if you included the spacings you used as well as the timing of the plantings. I've read accounts where such a companion planting has less than stellar results.

Rodney

What I read suggested that the nitrogen fixing was less efficient and thus was not a good match for a nitrogen hog like corn over the long haul. Maybe I read it wrong, but that's what I came across. As for that nitrogen not being available, you are absolutely correct. But for me, that's the point, I'm trying to be sustainable without chemical fertilizers. After harvesting, I chopped up the above-ground corn stalks and left the rest till spring.

I modified two different planting plans to fit what made sense to me. I tilled a 9x9 square (from fallow) and amended the soil with about 3 cubic feet of sand to counteract the heavy clay and a thin layer of my own compost. By accident I made a shallow ditch around the outer edge that I just left there, this meant my planting soil was slightly elevated (not sure if that matters or not). I planted 8 circular "groupings" spaced as evenly as I could by eying it. The pattern was three on the outer "rows" two in the middle splitting the gaps. In each circle grouping, I planted 8 seeds (two in each hole) half a finger deep in a square-ish configuration maybe 6 inches across and deep. Then wait for the corn to pop out of the ground to give it a head start, then plan the rest. If the corn forms the corners of the square, I put beans (one each) in the middle of the "sides" of the square. and then put my squash varieties (medium size pumpkins, and far too many zucchini) around the whole 9x9 square. I put some in the interior space but they were quickly shaded out and did nothing.

I was super late planting all of this (mid June in Ohio) but we had a great crop of everything, including far too many zucchini (who doesn't do that at least once). I did water it several times during the drier parts of Summer (I used captured rainwater in keeping with the permaculture experiment). What I read on pollination of the corn is that 9x9 is the smallest you can go and still get an actual crop. With wind pollinators, bigger is probably better.

I know that description is about as clear as mud, but I had two or three ideas that I was working with and in the end, kind of had to wing it to make it work.

Edit: For those who like a well ordered garden with nice straight lines, this is not that. When it is going well, it looks like a giant wall of green with the corn, beans and squash filling every available space from 5 feet up to the bottom, and (pumpkins especially) stretching out as far as you will let them. It is unruly and probably ugly, but it did work.

I plant both types...the bush beans are earlier and the pole beans grow to at least 6-7 feet before they start to produce. From my experience, they both produce continuously as long as they are picked and not allowed to go to seed. I have my pole beans growing up a wood pyramid structure, planted on all four sides. By the end of summer they are well over 8 feet tall and I have to extend the support (using string) to connect them to the fence behind it.

Read the seed packet for more information on your particular variety. Giving plants the proper support (if they need it) increased your chances of having a good crop.

Some things are clear cut. Others are not. Pole beans are called pole beans simply because in times past people went to the wood lot, cut small saplins (poles) and stuck them into the ground for the beans to climb on. Common vine beans readily climb a pole by twing around it. Don't try with a tall pea, they cant get a grip on a pole. Really vigorous vining beans were often called cornfield beans. Vigorous enought to compete with corn and climb the corn stalks. Works best with field corn. They will usually pull sweet corn down as the stalks are not sturdy enough. Bush beans/ bunch beans don't run. Relatively compact plant. And then there are half runners. While they are often grown as bush beans, they send out multiple runners that reach 3 - 4 ft. They grow well without support, but form a tangled mass that makes harvest more difficult.

Farmerdill covered most of it, but there is a 4th growth habit for beans. Sprawlers are beans that usually make short to long runners but will not climb. They are common in the western U.S. They are not adapted to my climate. The beans are usually produced very low or dragging on the ground. When it rains, they tend to rot or else bugs eat them. In western areas with less rainfall, they are outstandingly good producers.

I love beans. My goal this year is to can enough beans to last until next season. I planted several heirloom varieties of pole beans. I prefer pole beans they are much easier to harvest. I also planted some for dry beans too. I will probably plant some bush beans toward the end of the season. I have also planted the three sisters with corn and pole beans and baby butternut winter squashes. That planting is very wet now and may not make it. I may plant some more corn some where else if I can find room. I don't have enough space to plant much corn anyway, but I like all that organic matter for my compost pile. Any ways I can't wait to sautee me some fresh baby beans!! I'm not done planting beans I tuck some in any spot I can find.