A single Chinese Python Snake Bean with blooms on a white background.
Snake Bean Seeds, Chinese Python
Snake Bean Seeds, Chinese Python
A great vegetable that is cooked like green beans
The flower of the Chinese Snake Bean
Young Chinese Python Snake Beans arranged on blue backdrop.
Young tender Chinese Python Snake Beans with foliage and blooms on blue background.
A single tender young Chinese Python Snake Bean with two blooms on blue background.
A bundle of Chinese Python Snake Beans surrounded by chopped beans, whole beans and blooms.
A single Chinese Python Snake Bean with blooms on a white background.
Snake Bean Seeds, Chinese Python
Snake Bean Seeds, Chinese Python
A great vegetable that is cooked like green beans
The flower of the Chinese Snake Bean
Young Chinese Python Snake Beans arranged on blue backdrop.
Young tender Chinese Python Snake Beans with foliage and blooms on blue background.
A single tender young Chinese Python Snake Bean with two blooms on blue background.
A bundle of Chinese Python Snake Beans surrounded by chopped beans, whole beans and blooms.

Snake Bean Seeds,
Chinese Python

4.325 ReviewsSKU: #SM106Min. seed count: 5
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Description

(Trichosanthes cucumerina). Our new favorite vegetable! (AKA Snake Melon or Snake Gourd) Unusual and delicious gourd relative that is referred to and used as a bean in its native China. Its fruit tastes much like green beans, except even more delicious and tender. We could give up a lot of other vegetables before we would not grow this queen of garden crops, known for its divine taste and snake-like beauty. So snake-like, in fact, that the beans terrify more than a few visitors to our garden each summer! Snake bean is almost completely absent in U.S. markets. Its long, delicate fruit doesn't ship easily. Chinese Green Python snake bean is the largest snake bean variety, growing up to 60 inches long and 1.5 inches thick! As it matures, it develops bright green color and a thin layer of wax on the skin. When harvested at 12-30 inches long, it can be used like green beans or summer squash. Traditionally stir fried with peppers and onions, this vegetable has many culinary uses. In Africa the inside of fully mature fruit is scraped out and used like tomato paste. This variety will need a sturdy trellis; pinching lateral branches under 30 inches will encourage climbing. Fun to grow in kids' gardens; an absolutely unique new vegetable!

Growing Tips: Tolerates extreme heat, humidity. Soak seeds overnight; direct seed well after last spring frost. Trellis vining types; pick when pods reach 12-18 inches.

Plant Details

Botanical Name
Trichosanthes cucumerina
Life Cycle
Annual
Growth Habit
Vining
Sun Requirement
8–12 hr.
Days to Germinate
5–8
Days to Maturity
55–65
Planting Depth
½–1 in.
Plant Spacing
6 in.
Ideal Temperature
75–95°F
Frost Hardy
No

When to Grow

Soak the seed overnight and direct sow well after your last spring frost, once the soil is warm and settled night temperatures have arrived; where the season is short, start in pots 2 to 3 weeks ahead and set the plants out without disturbing the roots. If you're not sure how to find your first and last frost dates or seasonal high temperatures, consult our blog post 'Our Experts Answer Questions, Share Resources.'

How to Sow and Plant

Can be slow to germinate. Gently crack the outer seed coat, and soak the seeds in warm water for a few hours before planting. Some growers report success with sowing seeds into pots and covering in plastic wrap until germinated, while others use a heat mat.

How to Grow

Once germinated, snake beans are quick to grow. It will definitely need a trellis or fence. Harvest fruits when no longer than 2 feet long. While there is typically little or no pest pressure on these plants, they do best in hot weather with warm nights.

How to Save Seeds

  • Likely, your snake bean will not cross with other lageneria (gourd genus members as it is unique in its species) but to be entirely certain, snake bean should be grown at 1 mile isolation from other gourds to avoid cross pollination.
  • Otherwise, caging and hand pollination is required for seed saving.
  • Seeds are ready to save when the coating has become quite hard and cannot be dented with a thumbnail.
  • Keep seeds in a cool, dry, dark location.
  • Also remember that snake gourd has a low germination rate!

FAQ

Are Snake Bean gourds edible?

Yes. The young fruit is delicious and tender; it can be used like green beans, and the red pulp of mature beans can be used like tomato paste.
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