Gardening Basics: Peas

Preparing to Plant Peas
By: the Editors of National Gardening
Peas are everyone's garden favorite. There's nothing like the taste of fresh sweet peas in spring. Here's some history and tips on planting peas.

A Brief History of Peas

Northerners and southerners have different ideas about the meaning of the word "pea." To southerners, peas are black-eyeds, crowders and creams; to northerners, these same varieties are known as shell beans. The northern version of "peas" is known as English or green peas, and if you ask home gardeners to name their favorite vegetable, many will say green peas.

Garden peas originated in western Asia and Eastern Europe. We know they existed as far back as the Stone Age, because dried pea seeds were discovered among relics in lake villages of Switzerland. Apparently 1,000 years ago the pea, which was small and dark colored, was grown only for its dried seeds. At the turn of the millennium, people started eating them fresh, too.

The popularity of peas increased during the 18th century. The Anglo-Saxon word for peas was "pise," later to be called "pease," but nobody knew whether that referred to one pea or many. So, the word "peas" was coined. Because our green garden peas were derived from varieties that thrived in England, they are called "English peas."

Planting Peas

When you're deciding where to plant which vegetable, there are two good reasons why it's a good idea to locate your peas in a section that receives full sun:

* Sunny spots will be the first places to thaw in the spring, and you want to get your peas into the ground as early as possible.

* If peas are planted in the shade, they'll grow. However, the sugar content will be low, and the peas will taste as if they've been sitting around at the store for a few weeks.

Although peas do need full sun, be careful not to plant the tall varieties where they'll shade other plants.

No matter what size your garden, you'll have the best results if you plant peas in 16-inch-wide rows with walkways at least the same width. Not only will you harvest more, but you'll put less time and work into your crop. For most varieties, if you plant in wide rows there's no need to build trellises or fences for support, because the vines hold each other up. Also, wide-row vines form a living- mulch canopy that helps to eliminate weeds and keeps the soil cool and moist.

When To Plant Peas

Peas are a cool-weather crop that can withstand frost. Northern gardeners can often plant their first crop near the end of March, as soon as the garden has thawed and the soil can be worked. A few varieties, however, are happier being planted when it's warmer and harvested during midsummer. Seed catalogs and packets indicate the preferred time for planting different varieties.

In the Far North, garden peas can be harvested almost all summer if you use a little ingenuity. Plant peas every three to four weeks for a continual summer harvest. Once you've harvested your first crop of peas, pull out and compost the vines or till them in and replant a second crop of peas in the same space. Or you can plant another short-season vegetable.

In the West, gardeners can harvest peas year-round; in the South they're best if grown in the fall, winter and very early spring before the weather gets too hot.
Planting Peas
By: National Gardening editors
You can plant peas in a number of different fashions. Check to see which one suits your garden best.

Wide Rows

Although peas can be grown successfully in single rows, you'll have a more abundant harvest with much less work if you grow peas in wide rows. With wide-row growing, you'll spend less time weeding, watering and harvesting, and more time shelling, because the harvest is larger.

It's easiest to make your wide rows the same width as your rake, which is normally 14 to 16 inches. To mark off a wide row, put a stake at each end of the row. Stretch a string close to the ground between the two stakes. Hold one edge of an iron rake next to the string, and drag the rake down the length of the row. This will level and smooth the seedbed at the same time that it marks off the width of the row.

Remove large stones and any debris from the seedbed and really smooth the soil before you plant. Once you've finished, don't walk on the bed - you'll only pack it down. You want the soil loose for your seeds.

Broadcast pea seeds 1-1/2 to two inches apart across the entire raked area.

Using the back of a hoe, gently tamp down the seeds, pressing them into the soil. With a rake, pull enough soil from outside the row to cover the seeds. The amount of soil covering each seed should equal four times the diameter of the seed, or about 1-1/2 inches for peas. Gently level off the row.

Finally, the soil should be firmed down again, so that there's good contact with the seeds.

It's a good idea to water the rows gently after planting, especially if the soil is dry. If you water before planting, you'll pack down the soil.

Leave 18-inch-wide walkways between your wide rows. This allows enough room for the plants to spread out, and it's also wide enough to walk through, allowing you to cultivate and harvest easily.

Single Rows

The simplest way to make a single row is to put stakes in the ground at each end of the row and stretch a string tightly between them. Draw a shallow furrow with a hoe beside the string in the well-spaded seedbed.

Plant seeds one to two inches apart in rows at least 16 inches apart. After planting the row, use a hoe to cover the seeds with 1-1/2 inches of soil. Then gently firm the soil with the back of the hoe and water well.

Double Rows

Although they're similar to single rows, double rows use garden space more productively. Make two shallow furrows four to five inches apart. Drop the seeds into the furrows, one to two inches apart and 1-1/2 inches deep. Continue planting as you would for single rows.

The double-row method is especially helpful for trellising tall pea varieties. Simply place the vine supports between the double rows.

If you have irrigation problems, place a soaker hose (a garden hose made of porous material that allows the water to seep out slowly) between the two rows for efficient watering.

Another way to irrigate double rows is to dig a shallow furrow between the two seed rows. To water the peas, simply run water down the middle furrow.
Caring for Peas
By: the Editors of National Gardening
Peas don't need as much attention as other vegetables, but do need support, weeding, some fertilizing and care.

Support for Climbers

'Alderman' and 'Super Sugar Snap' peas are both climbing varieties. Because they grow five to six feet tall, these peas usually need some type of support, like a fence, trellis or brush.

In single rows, position the support about three inches behind the row. For double rows, put it in between the rows, so the peas can grow up either side of the support. Or, to maximize space, you can plant a double row on each side of the trellis.

Supports are easy to make. A simple one uses 4- to 5-foot-long stakes placed five feet apart down the row. Run three wires horizontally between the stakes, one foot apart. If you prefer, use chicken wire with a 2-inch mesh instead of the separate wires.

Unlike other climbing vegetables, peas naturally grasp the support with their tendrils, though you may need to guide them gently towards the support as they become tall enough to reach it.

Fertilizng

Because peas are good foragers, they don't need much fertilizer - especially nitrogen. A day or two before planting, broadcast three to four pounds of 5-10-10 commercial fertilizer over each 100 square feet of garden space. Then work it into the top two to three inches of soil.

You may prefer to use organic fertilizers, such as well-rotted or dehydrated manure or bone meal. Spread a one- to two-inch layer over your raised beds and work in the material. If you use local manure, be sure it's well aged. Animals' digestive tracts don't destroy weed seeds, so if you put fresh manure on your garden, you'll probably also be planting weeds.

The primary ingredients of synthetic fertilizer are three nutrients that are vital to all plants: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). If you have a 100-pound bag of 5-10-10 fertilizer, it contains five percent nitrogen, 10 percent phosphorus and 10 percent potassium. (The order is constant.) The remaining 75 pounds is sand or other filler plus some trace minerals.

Each of the three major nutrients contained in fertilizer has a unique job to accomplish while your plants are growing. Nitrogen helps plants have healthy lush green foliage. However, too much nitrogen can burn seeds or plants if it comes in direct contact with them, and it can also generate too much vine growth rather than pods with peas inside. Phosphorus is necessary for the development of strong, healthy roots. Potassium, or potash, helps the plant to grow, bear fruit and resist diseases.

It's important to mix chemical fertilizers thoroughly into the soil before you start planting.

Weeding

Once your seedlings start to emerge, weeds also appear. Weeding is the scourge of gardening for most people, but it doesn't have to be. If you stay ahead of it, which is easy with wide rows, you won't have to bribe the neighborhood kids to do it for you.

With wide-row growing, you can usually drag an iron rake across the row as soon as the seedlings emerge in order to thin the row and get rid of early-germinating weeds. Do not do this with peas or beans. These plants are tender, and they may break. However, peas and beans grow quickly, forming a canopy that soon shades weed seedlings from the sun, which inhibits their growth.

Mulching

When your single- and double-row plants are a few inches tall, you can sharply curtail weeding by putting mulch in the walkways. A 3- to 6-inch layer of mulch completely shades the ground, preventing weed growth.

Mulch also conserves moisture and helps to keep the ground at a constant cool temperature. Mulch is almost a necessity if your soil is sandy, warm and too dry. You can use black plastic, or organic mulches, such as bark, straw, lawn clippings, leaves or pine needles.

To keep moisture in the soil and weeds out, apply mulch soon after you cultivate following a soaking rain. Be sure not to add trouble where there wasn't any before. Use only mulch that's free of weed seeds.
Harvesting Peas
By: the Editors of National Gardening
One of the marvelous things about growing your own vegetables is that you decide when it's time to harvest. You can pick your vegetables just before preparing them, knowing that you have the youngest, freshest ones in town. Most commercial gardeners won't pick the youngest vegetables because they earn more money for heavier crops. But generally, the younger the harvest, the more tender and flavorful it is.

English Peas

There's nothing more delicious than the first tender peas, picked right off the vine, shelled and eaten raw. Not only are they sweet and tasty, but they also contain an abundance of vitamins A, B and C.

English peas are sweet because of their high sugar content. However, just a few hours after picking, the sugar starts turning to starch. That's why it's important to shell and cook peas immediately after harvesting them.

In general, you can begin harvesting English peas between 55 and 70 days after planting, depending on the variety. When mature, the pea pods will be nearly round and the peas will taste sweet. You should have several pickings over a period of seven to 10 days.

Use two hands to pick peas, so that you won't damage the brittle vines or uproot the plants. Hold onto the pea vine with one hand, and pick off the pods with the other.

Always pick overmature pods. If allowed to remain on the vines, they'll decrease your total yield.

Once the peas have been harvested, till or spade the whole plants back into the ground, or pull the plants and put them in your compost pile.

If your peas were planted early in the spring, you'll have time to plant another vegetable in that same location. Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, root crops and spinach do well in soil where nitrogen-fixing legumes have grown.

Edible-Podded Peas

Harvest snow peas the same way you would English peas, only pick them before the peas have filled out in the pods. These pods will be bright green, tender and flat.

Snap peas, on the other hand, should fill out completely, so they're nice and plump. Remove their strings and blossom ends, and then steam, boil, stir fry or freeze them. Better yet, enjoy them raw!

Southern Peas

Picked when the pods are still green, southern peas can be shelled, boiled and served in the same manner as English peas. However, don't expect the same sugar content found in English peas; southern peas contain much higher levels of starch.

You can also leave southern peas on the vine to fully mature and dry. If your growing season ends before the peas are thoroughly dry, either pull the vines and hang them in a well-ventilated area, or shell the peas and dry them in the sun or in a dehydrator.

Dried Split Peas

'Alaska' is the English pea variety usually grown and dried for split peas. This hardy pea has a low sugar content and produces smooth seeds. Although generally dried commercially, home gardeners can dry Alaska peas easily.