Released: March 16, 2004

Plant Peas Soon, Please

EL DORADO, Kan. – Like potatoes, peas are among the earliest crops to plant in the garden.

“In fact, peas do fine if you sow their seed as soon as your soil is warm enough to work,” said Larry Crouse, who is a Kansas State University Research and Extension horticulturist.

Whether standard (English), snow (sugar pod) or edible-pod snaps, peas like cool weather. They grow quickly and produce abundantly for weeks, Crouse said.

In the central High Plains, however, getting them established early can be vital, because peas also succumb rapidly in summertime heat.

“Besides, pea shoots make a nice early-spring salad green or garnish. In fact, several varieties are specifically recommended for that,” the horticulturist said.

If gardeners are not planning to harvest pea shoots, they’ll find that a 10-foot-long row can provide enough peas for one person. Some varieties – especially snap peas – may require trellising, but many modern varieties do not.

“The seed packet usually will say whether a trellis is required,” Crouse said. “No pea plants stand very well on their own, however. So, the other varieties can benefit from being planted in double rows, 6 inches apart. That will allow the plants to support each other.”

Most varieties call for planting peas 1 inch deep and 2 inches apart. If trellised, the rows should be 4 to 6 feet apart. If not, the doubled rows should be about 2 to 3 feet apart.

Standard (English) peas offer the most variety choices, but Crouse recommends sticking to the “wrinkled seed” type.

“For the most part, the wrinkled ones are sweeter. Most smooth-seeded standard peas were developed for dry processing. Alaska, for example, is a smooth-seeded pea, and it’s starchy, not sweet,” the horticulturist said.

Crouse also encourages gardeners to plant several varieties, including some snow and snaps, as well as standard peas. By spacing out their plantings over several weeks, they also can enjoy a succession of harvests.

“Then all you have to do is refrigerate your peas immediately after harvest. And if you get around to eating them soon, they’ll be at their sweetest,” he said.

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K-State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well-being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K-State campus, Manhattan.

Story by:
Kathleen Ward
kward@oznet.ksu.edu
K-State Research& Extension News