White Dixie Butterpea Bush Lima Bean Seeds | Treated

Grow White Dixie Butterpea bush lima bean seeds for rounded white beans with a smooth texture and rich flavor when cooked. This heirloom Phaseolus lunatus is suited to warm-season gardens and grows as a bush rather than a climbing pole bean. Shell the plump pods for fresh cooking, or allow a portion of the crop to mature for dried beans.

Important: treated planting seed

This listing is identified as treated seed. Supplied seed is for planting only, not for eating, sprouting, or animal feed. Follow the treatment and handling instructions on the packet. Keep supplied seeds away from children, pets, and food, and wash hands after handling. The specific treatment is not identified in this listing; consult the packet before use.

Pack options

Choose 20 seeds, 1 oz, ¼ lb, or 1 lb. One cart quantity purchases one selected pack. Weight-based packs are sold by weight, not a guaranteed seed count. You are ordering seeds, not live plants or harvested beans.

Variety highlights

• Variety: White Dixie Butterpea.
• Species: Phaseolus lunatus.
• Growth habit: bush lima bean; not a pole variety.
• Bean: rounded and white, harvested for shelling or drying.
• Season: warm-season annual.
• Use: cooked beans for side dishes, soups, and stews.

The previous listing contained conflicting maturity figures. Use pod development to guide picking rather than relying on a guaranteed harvest date; allow a full warm growing season for establishment, flowering, and pod filling.

When and how to sow

Direct sow after frost danger has passed and soil has warmed to at least 70°F. Choose full sun and fertile, well-drained soil. Avoid planting into cold, wet ground, where seed is more likely to rot. Direct sowing avoids unnecessary root disturbance.

• Depth: approximately 1 inch.
• Initial spacing: about 5 inches apart.
• Final spacing: thin to approximately 8 inches apart.
• Rows: approximately 24–36 inches apart.

Keep the seedbed moderately moist but not saturated. Emergence depends on soil temperature and moisture; do not repeatedly soak the bed in an attempt to speed germination.

Watering, feeding, and ongoing care

Water consistently, especially during flowering and pod development, while allowing excess water to drain. Apply water near soil level when possible. Mulch can help conserve moisture and reduce weeds once the soil is warm.

Control weeds gently while plants are young, avoiding deep cultivation around established roots. Feed according to a soil test or vegetable fertilizer directions rather than applying excessive nitrogen. Bush plants do not require the tall trellis used for pole limas, but allow room for airflow and keep developing pods off persistently wet soil where practical.

Container care

Use a roomy container with drainage holes and enough depth for healthy roots, filled with well-drained potting mix. Maintain approximately the recommended final spacing rather than crowding several plants into a small pot. Check moisture frequently in warm weather and never leave the container standing in water. A small support can help if plants lean in wind.

Harvesting and cooking

For fresh shelling beans, pick when pods are well filled and beans feel plump but are still tender. Check regularly as pods develop; delayed harvest produces firmer, more mature beans. Shell before cooking. Lima beans must be thoroughly cooked before eating; do not eat raw beans.

For dried beans, allow pods to turn brown and dry before shelling. Finish drying harvested beans in a dry, ventilated place and store only when fully dry. Refrigerate fresh shelled beans promptly and use while fresh.

Saving seed

If saving seed from the harvested crop, leave selected healthy plants to produce fully mature, dry pods. Protect against unwanted crossing with other lima bean varieties; isolation needs depend on nearby plantings and pollinator activity. Runner and fava beans are different species, so the former blanket isolation instruction for those crops has been removed. Dry saved seed thoroughly and store in a cool, dry location.