July 28, 2011

Growing Peas

I have come a long way. 
The first year I had a garden, the only thing I wanted to grow were peas. I bought seeds that said "sweet peas". Those sound good! You can imagine my disappointment when a month later I had pretty flowers, and no green peas.

Peas are so easy to grow and are great for in-garden-munching.

How to grow:
  • Peas are an early season crop and prefer cooler temperatures, they can tolerate down to 40 degrees F.  Bean varieties are more of a warm weather crop. 
  • Plant peas 1-2 inches a part. They can handle crowding. 
  • Give your peas something to climb on such as a trellis or string, lined between two stakes. 
  • Peas can withstand partial shade however, the more sun you can provide them, the sweeter they will be.

How to maintain:
  • Harvest your peas often to encourage growth of new peas.
  • If pods are not developing or your plant has a yellowish tint, you may need to add a side-dressing of fertilizer. See this post for info on fertilizing.
  • Aphids love peas, see this post for removing aphids. 
How to harvest:
  • You can harvest peas at any time. The smaller they are, the sweeter they will be. 
  • When the pod lightens in color, the pod is over ripe and the peas become bitter. 

Ever wondered what kind of peas you should grow?

  • Do you like eating the whole pod? Look for snap peas. 
  • Do you like to just eat the seeds/peas? Try English or garden peas.
  • Do you want to stir-fry your peas? Grow snow peas. 

If you didn't get your peas started this year, it's not too late to plan for a fall crop. Once temperatures are below 75 degrees in the late summer, you can directly sow your pea seeds!
Pin It

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...