Difficulty
Easy, but requires a little bit of time
Why Grow Peas?
Shop bought so-called ‘fresh’ peas don’t even come close to the tender sweetness of picking and serving your very own. Peas are in the legume family which are happy to grow on most soils and are known for their re-nitrogenising properties.
Peas are best grown outside and can vary greatly in height depending on what variety you choose. Those that grow to 45 – 60cm are great for growing in containers. Some tall varieties grow up to 1.4m tall, making them perfect for growing up a ‘wigwam’ support in a bed or allotment, which they’ll cling to with their own ‘tendrils’.
There are six main types of pea:
· Early shelling peas - Early pea varieties can be harvested from as early as May given the right conditions. Early pea plants don’t tend to grow as tall as later varieties so are handy for containers. Shelling peas need to be removed from the pod before eating.
· Maincrop shelling peas – These crop a little bit later than the early varieties and tend to grow to taller plants. They grow well up supports and produce a large crop.
· Late maincrop shelling peas – late peas can be harvested until late autumn.
· Mangetout – these produce flat pods that are eaten whole – they’re incredibly tasty raw or lightly steamed.
· Sugarsnap – the whole pod can be eaten and they have a very sweet flavour when eaten raw or cooked.
· Petit Pois – Petit pois are shelled before eating – the peas are very small but super-sweet.
Our Top Varieties
Early varieties: Kelvedon Wonder, Spring, Early Onward
Maincrop varieties: Onward, Cavalier, Lincoln
Mangetout & Sugarsnap: Delikata, Snow Pea Snow Green, Oregon Sugar Pod.
When to Sow
Early varieties: March – July
Maincrop varieties: April – July
Late maincrop varieties: March – July
Mangetout: April – July
Sugarsnap: February – June
Petit pois: April - June
Harvest time
Early varieties: May - October
Maincrop varieties: July - September
Late maincrop varieties: July - October
Mangetout: June - September
Sugarsnap: June - September
Petit pois: June – September
Site and Soil
Early peas are best started off in the greenhouse, propagator or windowsill and planted out when they’re about 10cm tall. Peas prefer full sun but can also cope with semi-shade. Peas do especially well in ground that has been dug with manure the autumn before and can tolerate most soil types.
How to Grow Peas from Seeds
Sowing
Peas sown directly in their growing position in early spring are very vulnerable and susceptible to pest damage. It’s better to sow early varieties into modules or seed trays in early spring and leave to germinate in a propagator or greenhouse. They can then be planted outside from late April – May.
Later sowings can take place directly in the growing site or under cover. For sowing direct, plant the seeds at a depth of about 3 – 4cm. Sow in rows with the seeds about 12cm apart and allow 45cm between rows. They can also be sown into circles (for ‘wigwam’ supports). Once the seedlings emerge, position a growing support or cane at the base of each plant for it to grow up.
Growing
Keep peas well watered in the summer and pick them regularly to encourage the growth of more. To encourage even more peas to grow, feed occasionally with a general purpose vegetable fertiliser, Bio-Gro Black Gold seaweed fertiliser is ideal. Control weeds growing around the base of the plants to help keep the competition for nutrients low. If the peas are planted in rows the best way to keep it weed free is with The Great Little Weeder.
Harvesting
Shelling Peas
Pick while pods are bright green. Cooked shelled or, to conserve flavour, cook pods whole and shell afterwards.
Dried peas: Leave pods on plants until they turn brown towards the end of the season. Pull up plants and hang them by the roots in an airy place to finish drying. When pods are completely dry, split them open and remove the peas for storage in air-tight jars.
Mangetout: Pick when outline of peas is just visible through the skin. They’re very nice eaten raw as well as steamed or boiled.
Sugarsnap: Pick while green, plump and will easily snap in half. They can be used like mangetout.
Storing
Pea plants can sometimes produce too may peas to be able to eat in one season. Luckily, all types of pea can be frozen and used straight from the freezer later on in the year.
Shelled peas can be dried on the plant and then stored in air-tight jars, and then rehydrated for 24 hours before use at a later a date.
Health Benefits of Peas
Peas are full of great, health-boosting nutrients fibre, protein and vitamin C. They’re a good source of iron, which is great for the blood. Vitamin C is vital for the immune system and other properties within peas can help to lower cholesterol too.
Pea Pests and Diseases
Peas can be susceptible from the following pests and diseases:
Mice – mice love eating the young shoots of the pea plants, which could destroy and entire crop if you’re unlucky. One of the best ways to reduce this is to germinate them in a propagator, greenhouse or windowsill and plant out once they reach about 10cm tall.
Birds – birds like to eat the young shoots of pea plants and can end up pulling the plants out of the ground. If they’re proving to be a problem in the early stages, the plants can be protected with a bit of fleece until they’ve increased in size.
Pea moth – Attacks in summer and will result in maggots being found inside the peas. If these become a problem, control with Plant Rescue Bug Killer.
Pea weevil – Nibbles leaf margins in spring, retarding seedlings. Control with Plant Rescue Bug Killer if you notice it.
Pea thrips/thunderflies – Pots become silvered and distorted. Control with Plant Rescue Bug Killer.
Mildew/wilt/rotting disease – Attack at different stages depending on the weather. Practise rotation, burn unhealthy and diseased leaves. Most of our pea seeds are disease resistant.
For Best Results
Once the plants are established, feed them regularly with a good general purpose vegetable fertiliser, such as Bio-Gro Black Gold.
You May Also Need
Use The Great Little Weeder between rows to keep the weeds down.
Insect Net will keep the birds and insects off at seedling stage once planted out.
