GreenlyHow to grow Peas
Pisum sativum · garden peas, sugar snap peas, snow peas
Cool-season legumes that produce edible pods or seeds. They are nitrogen-fixing plants that prefer moist, cool weather.
Quick facts
| Type | Vegetable |
|---|---|
| Family | Fabaceae |
| Light | Full sun |
| Soil pH | 6–7.5 |
| Frost | tolerates light frost |
| Soil for sowing | from 4 °C |
| Germination | 14 days |
| Seedlings ready | 40 days |
| Sowing to harvest | 70 days |
| Where it grows | Greenhouse, Open ground, At home |
When to plant
Sow for seedlings about 8 weeks before planting out.
It tolerates light frost: plant out in open ground about three weeks before your last spring frost.
In an unheated greenhouse everything moves about three weeks earlier.
The first harvest comes about 70 days after the shoots appear.
Care
Greenhouse
| Stage | Watering | Temperature | Feeding |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germination | every 3 days | 10…20 °C | — |
| Seedlings | every 3 days | 12…22 °C | — |
| Growth | every 4 days | 12…22 °C | nitrogen, 14 days into the stage |
| Flowering | every 3 days | 12…22 °C | phosphorus and potassium, at the start of the stage |
| Fruiting | every 2 days | 12…22 °C | potassium, 14 days into the stage |
| Harvest | every 3 days | 10…22 °C | — |
Open ground
| Stage | Watering | Temperature | Feeding |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germination | every 5 days | 4…18 °C | — |
| Seedlings | every 4 days | 5…20 °C | — |
| Growth | every 6 days | 5…20 °C | — |
| Flowering | every 4 days | 5…20 °C | phosphorus and potassium, at the start of the stage |
| Fruiting | every 3 days | 5…20 °C | potassium, 14 days into the stage |
| Harvest | every 5 days | 4…20 °C | — |
At home
| Stage | Watering | Temperature | Feeding |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germination | every 3 days | 15…22 °C | — |
| Seedlings | every 3 days | 15…22 °C | — |
| Growth | every 4 days | 15…22 °C | balanced (NPK), 14 days into the stage |
| Flowering | every 3 days | 15…22 °C | phosphorus and potassium, at the start of the stage |
| Fruiting | every 2 days | 15…22 °C | potassium, 14 days into the stage |
| Harvest | every 3 days | 15…22 °C | — |
Growing notes
Light
Full sun is ideal, though they can tolerate light afternoon shade in very hot climates.
Soil
Well-draining, loamy soil. Avoid high-nitrogen fertilizers early on to prevent excessive leaf growth over pod production.
Care
Provide a trellis or netting for climbing varieties to keep pods off the ground. Water consistently during flowering and pod set to prevent blossom drop. Harvest frequently to encourage continued production.
How to tell it is ripe
- Shelling peas are at their best when the pods are swollen and round but still green.
- Snow peas are ready at full length while the pods are still flat; snap peas as soon as the pods start to fatten.
- Over-mature pods turn yellowish and the peas inside go hard and starchy.
- A ready shelling-pea pod feels firm and full when squeezed.
- Snap-pea pods that have turned tough and stringy are over-mature; shell them like garden peas.
- Pick every one to three days and shell and cook the peas soon after, because their sweetness fades quickly.
Pests and diseases of Peas
- Fusarium Wilt
- Pea moth
- White mould (Sclerotinia)
Sources
Figures cited from these sources.