The term Lima bean and butter bean are interchangeable. Butter beans require a warmer soil than snap beans. In the Middle Georgia area it is usually safe to plant butter beans after April 15. Butter beans require a longer season to produce than do snap beans and the latest this crop should be seeded in the fall in the Middle Georgia Area is August 5th.
Butter bean is a southern term used to describe Lima beans.
A soil temperature of 65 degrees or above is desirable for good seed germination. Butter beans are available in either bush types or pole types and as with snap beans, the pole types will produce more per square foot of garden space than the bush types. Butter beans require a fairly constant supply of nitrogen throughout the growing season. This fertilizer application should be placed 3 inches to the side of the plants. During the fourth week after germination, make a side dress application using ammonium nitrate.