All we are saying, is give peas a chance. Ok, that was dreadful joke, but I still do encourage you to think about adding peas to your garden.
I like peas for many reasons but certainly one of the first is that you can plant them early in the season and get a wonderful first harvest of the year. Here in Northern California, I've planted them in pots in my greenhouse on New Years day and successfully harvested plenty of peas for the kids in the early Spring. This year, I'm planting peas in a raised bed without protection, so I planted on February 13 and they should be ready for harvest in 60-70 days.
Generally speaking, you can plant peas about 6 weeks prior to your last frost date. Below is a list of frost last frost dates for select cities around the country to give you a general sense for when to plant peas in your neck of the woods. To find you exact last frost date, check out this helpful guide from Victory Seeds.
Peas generally grow on vines but some varieties have a growth habit that's more like a bush and don't need trellising. Traditional shelling peas, or English peas, are a personal favorite, but we tend to buy these from the farmers market where we have a local grower who sells the most wonderfully sweet peas. With such a good supply of the English variety, I shift production in my garden to Sugar Snaps. These are peas where the pod is completely edible.
If you want to try a low maintenance variety of sugar snap pea, give Sugar Sprint a whirl. This is a bush type that requires no support. And as an extra benefit, they are almost string-less, making them a particularly kid-friendly crop.
If you sow pea seeds directly, plant them about 1 inch apart and eventually thin to every 3 inches. You can grow the bush varieties in rows that are about 1.5 feet apart. If you are growing peas that are supported, you should space your rows about 5 feet apart.
Peas fix nitrogen via nodules on their roots that take advantage of beneficial bacteria. You can increase the yield of your peas by adding a bacterial inoculant to your soil. This inoculant is often available at garden stores, but Burpee also sells it mail-order if you can't find a local supplier.
Peas Shoots Can Be Eaten
Here's one last tip...Tender young pea leaves and tendrils can be eaten. We've had these as the green vegetable in Asian noodle soups and you can also add them to stir fry dishes. They are a nice change of pace from pak choi.
Give peas a chance. You'll be glad you did.
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