Grow Your Own Peas
By Vanessa Richins
When I was growing up, I HATED peas.
I would grimace every time they were served for dinner and refuse to eat them.
Years later I discovered fresh, uncooked sugar snap peas and to my surprise, I liked them.
There’s something satisfying about the crunch of the pod that appeals to me. I can even eat the peas inside now. I still don’t like them cooked, though.
Peas are a great choice for your urban vegetable garden because you can plant them twice a year. Since they are a cool season veggie, they can be planted in early spring and fall. I am planning on planting seeds soon so I can put them in my Earthbox. (Review of the Earthbox to follow later this year).
As the University of Illinois Extension office points out, choosing which pea to grow is the first step. Pea seeds can be either wrinkled or smooth. The wrinkled ones are sweeter, while the smooth are starchier and are the ones used in split pea soup. Their site has a list of wrinkled seeds (which are also fusarium wilt-resistant for the most part).
Peas like it cool, and are one of the first vegetables that are planted yearly. As soon as the ground gets to be a bit above freezing (at least 45 degrees) and has dried out a little, you can go ahead and start planting peas. Plant the seeds 1″ deep and 1″ apart from each other. Leave 1.5-2′ between rows.
Fusarium wilt is a possibility, along with root rot disease. If the plant starts to turn yellow and wilt, you may have one of these problems. It will unfortunately mean that there will only be a few peas to harvest. The best way to combat these is having soil that drains well and planting varieties that are resistant to fusarium wilt.
Peas are ready to harvest when the pod fills out. Pick them before they are fully mature so they will be soft and taste better.
What’s your favorite variety of peas to grow?
August 28th, 2009 at 1:34 am
They do not have to take up a lot of space. They can be grown so that the vines go up on a trellis or something like that to support them. Nice blog post.
Dan and Deanna “Marketing Unscrambled”