I have found these broad bean plants absolutely fascinating. First of all there was a white flower with a black middle. I figured out right enough that after the flower dies back then the beans appear. However a couple of days ago I picked off a couple of green pods as a lot of them were all black and rather foosty looking. I later learned from Jim the lollipop man that actually the blackness falls off and then the new pods appear. And so it proved when I was down watering the plants today although the picture still looks rather decrepit it's all these yukky black looking things that go to make the pods as green as they are today!