Sweet, homegrown garden peas, mangetout and petit pois can be added to salads and stir fries straight from the pod.
There are lots of recipes to try, from pea and ham soup, pea puree, pea salsa, smashed peas to good old lightly boiled or steamed peas.
Classic garden peas come in a number of different varieties, with some better for planting out in the earlier months of March and April.
Other varieties of peas include mangetout, sugarsnap and petit pois.
You might like to mix and match varieties for different peas to use in the kitchen.
Pea Early – Anubis
These delicious and highly nutritious pea shoots are super tasty!
An easy crop to grow and produce super quick crops that are truly flavoursome.
Pea Maincrop – Onward
Onward pea is the most popular of garden peas that produces plump blunt ended pods that are produced in pairs with large peas of super flavour.
Pea Sugar Snap – Sweet Horizon
Mangetout pea variety with tasty, flat, almost stringless pods with a long harvest window
Peas do well grown in rows directly in the ground but if you are short on space, you could use a pea and bean planter, bag or just a deep pot.
The depth should be from 20 to 40cm depending on the variety.
If you’re using a pot, a porous material like terracotta is better than plastic as it allows breathability and retains moisture more.
Once they are established, watering for peas grown in the ground is usually minimal unless there is a long period without rain.
Once they flower, water well, at the roots.
As the pods start to grow give the plants another good watering.
If you are growing in a pot or planter, they will need more regular watering as the compost will dry out quicker.
Adding a good layer of mulch to the planting area will both deter weeds and help retain moisture.
Avoid sowing when the soil is very wet.
Birds love fresh young peas! Netting can offer protection from hungry beaks.
Pea shoots can be added to salads, but don’t pick too many as this may affect the harvest.
Peas grown in well prepared ground don’t usually need feeding.
However, if you’re growing in pots or planters, feed fortnightly with a tomato feed or other feed high in potassium, once the flowers appear.
As well as birds, beetles and aphids may munch on peas. Pick them off by hand, or use a spray – either just water or, if you prefer, soapy water.
Pea moth will affect pods but often isn’t seen until you start shelling. Discard any infected peas.
Diseases include powdery mildew which first appears as white or grey spots on leaves. Avoid by planting disease resistant varieties, and watering well during the cropping period.
This will depend on when you planted your peas, but they can be ready as early as June.
It’s important to keep picking so the plants continue to produce new flowers and pods.
Pick pods from lower down the plant as these are ready first.
The pods should be nicely swollen – you can always taste test one or two to see if they are ready.
If you have a glut of peas ripening at the same time, pick them all and freeze those you won’t use straight away.
Need more advice?
If you’re still unsure or need any advice, our friendly teams will be happy to chat with you and suggest which varieties would be best for you to plant, as well as when and where to plant them.
We hope you enjoy planting your peas– but more importantly, enjoy eating them!
Facebook
YouTube
Instagram