Peas are a fast-maturing cool-climate crop. Spring-planted peas yield higher yields than fall-planted peas.
How to Grow:
- seed propagation
- Germination temperature: 40 F to 85 F - optimal temperature is around 75 F.
- Days to Emergence: 9 to 13 - 9 days when soil is 60 F. 13 days at 50 F. It can take up to 4 to 5 weeks at 40 F.
Maintenance and care:
- Sow seeds in the spring as long as you can work the soil—as early as late March or early April, depending on how quickly the soil warms and dries. Peas grown in cold soil (40 degrees Fahrenheit) will germinate slowly. Later plantings when soils are warm (60 degrees F or higher) usually catch up with earlier plantings quickly. Use a raised bed if your soil drains slowly.
- Do additional planting in early to mid-May, or plant varieties with different maturity dates to increase harvest time.
- Plant seeds 1 to 2 inches deep and 1 to 4 inches in 18-inch rows. Or sow about 1" in 3" wide strips (about 25 seeds per foot). Shallow planting is best when the soil is cool and moist. If the soil is dry, plant deeper. A quick way to sow is to open a trench or furrow with a hoe, place the seeds in the trench, cover and secure. Don't be skinny.
- Use barbed wire, brushes, or other suitable trellis material when planting to erect trellis for tall vine types. For trellis, increase the row spacing to 4 to 6 feet.
- Keep the soil moist, but avoid watering heavily during flowering, which can interfere with pollination.
- Intercropping peas with fast-growing cool-season crops such as spinach or radishes. After the final harvest, plant late squash or fall harvest cool-season crops such as broccoli, leeks, or potatoes.
- Sow fall crops about 8 to 10 weeks before the first frost date. If the hot weather persists, the fall crop could be a disappointment. Powdery mildew-resistant varieties are best for fall crops.
- Do not use high nitrogen fertilizers. Too much nitrogen can lead to lush foliage, but poor flowering and fruiting. If peas have not been grown in the past, inoculation with rhizobia may be beneficial.
- Do not plant peas in the same place more than once every 4 years. Avoid planting in areas that suffered from root rot before peas.
Diseases:
- Seed rot and seedling root rot - Find new plants in a different part of the garden than last year. Plant early. Improve soil drainage.
- Withering - Find new plants in a different part of the garden than last year. Plant early. Improve soil drainage
- Powdery Mildew - Avoid getting the leaves wet as much as possible. Water early in the day so that the above-ground plant parts dry out as quickly as possible. Avoid crowded plants. Divide the space to allow air to circulate. Remove weeds around plants and gardens to improve air circulation. Practice plant hygiene. When the plants are not wet, carefully remove and destroy or discard the affected plant parts. In the fall, rake off any fallen or diseased leaves and fruit.
