When to plant garden peas? Unfortunately, in my garden, that means mid- to late March! However, our fortunate southern friends can often start planting in January and February. Wherever you live, see my pea-planting tips. Garden peas Pisum sativum L. However, a good rule of thumb is: Wherever you live, plant peas as soon as you can stick your finger into that rich, dark brown, crumbly soil, you are generally ready to plant.
Two inches down it was 52 degrees. I love my soil thermometer! Peas are the first crop that I plant from seed outside and they will germinate in soil as cold as 40 degrees. Early planting makes for tender peas and since we use raised beds I have never had them rot, even in a wet year. Even if a foot of snow fell on them after planting—and it usually did—and they would be fine. There is actually some truth to this bit of gardening lore.
The falling snow absorbs ammonia from the air which breaks down as the sun melts the snow, releasing a small amount of nitric acid into the soil. French peasants used to believe that a spring snowfall was as beneficial as a coating of manure. Colonial farmers took it one step farther, plowing a spring snowfall under. Like all legumes, peas can take nitrogen directly from the air with the help of nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria. Instead of fertilizing, try moistening the seeds and rolling them in a powdered legume inoculant before planting to give these helpful bacteria a helping hand.
Whatever variety you choose to plant, edible-podded or traditional English shelling peas, plant them to mature before really hot weather sets in if you want sweet tender peas.
One of the easiest methods is to sow the seeds in a length of guttering, then simply slide the whole row into the ground once the plants are big enough. Peas climb using shoots called tendrils, which they wrap around just about anything they come into contact with, so choose supports that are thin enough for the tendrils to wind around.
Large twigs, known as pea sticks, are the traditional choice, but a row of netting makes a good alternative. Peas should be ready to harvest about three months after sowing. Other types are ready once the pods are swollen with peas. Pick the pods from the bottom of the plant upwards, as the lowest are the most mature.
Use two hands to avoid damaging the plant. If you have a glut, you can freeze them. Peas can be steamed or boiled and served with mint and a knob of butter. Add them to recipes, such as risotto or pasta, during the last few minutes of cooking. Pea moth can lead to an unpleasant infestation of maggots, but the risk is reduced if you sow early October to mid-February or late June and July.
You can also cover the crop with horticultural fleece or fine mesh as soon as you transplant the seedlings or see them emerge. If slugs are a problem, try copper rings , gritty barriers or biological control. It helps if you grow peas in huge pots, but do keep them well watered. This charming hardy climber creates a canopy of glossy green foliage, which in summer is strewn with flat white panicles of flowers on long stems.
Add colour to your garden this winter, select from pansy 'Colourburst', 'Grande Fragrance', wallflower 'Wizard' and viola 'Valentino'.
A superb evergreen bearing delicate, waxy, bell-shaped flowers in the depths of winter, with lush green foliage for year-round interest. If you sow a second row, space it at a distance equal to the height of the crop. Water the plants when they start to flower and two weeks after. Add a thick mulch around the base of the plants to help prevent the soil drying out. Most peas, apart from dwarf cultivars, need supports to scramble up. For taller varieties, trellis, bamboo canes and netting are ideal, while smaller varieties can be supported with pea netting or pea sticks twiggy branches.
After flowering, plants need sufficient water for the pods to swell. Check the soil moisture at root level regularly and water if necessary. This is the caterpillar that you find when shelling your peas. Female moths lay their eggs on peas that are in flower. Early or late peas, flowering outside their flying period, are undamaged, which means March and June sowings are best.
Grow under insect-proof mesh. Trapping can be effective for mice in a garden situation, although voles can be harder to control. Break-back traps of the type used against house mice can be effective when set in places where damage is occurring. Pieces of carrot or dessert apple are effective baits for voles, and peanut butter for mice. When using traps or baits out of doors, they must be placed under covers to reduce the risk of other animals interfering with them.
Birds are particularly vulnerable to accidental trapping. Wood pigeons are often the worst bird pest in gardens and on allotments. They peck at leaves, tearing them, sometimes only leaving the stalks. Pigeons can attack many plants, but particularly brassicas and peas. The only certain way of protecting vulnerable plants from pigeons is to grow them under netting or in a fruit cage. Scaring devices or repellent substances are likely to give, at best, only temporary protection. Larger plants such as established lilacs will usually recover from pigeon damage and so it can be tolerated.
Pick regularly, otherwise the plants will stop producing flowers and pods. Mangetout and sugarsnap peas should be picked when the pods are about 7. Buy now. Take action Why take action? Support us Donate Careers Commercial opportunities Leave a legacy.
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