Yesterday we had a rainstorm.
Today we have peas sprouting! YAY!
The seeds we sown on Feb 17th and 18th under hoop-and-loop tunnels to keep birds from eating the new shoots.
I believe peas are self-polinating. Is that correct? Will I need to remove the Remay once they start flowering to allow for pollination.
Thanks for any and all comments/answers.
I found the answer!
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_does_pollination_take_place_in_pea_flowers
I'm supplying the link for anyone who has the same question.
I did have the same question, so thank you for the link.
Ok, I've fired the starter's pistol! Spring has begun! This weekend will see many of my starts going outside and lettuce seeds, etc. planted out.
You're welcome for the link, Terri.
I tested the soil with my hands this morning, and it felt very cold! The local weather person said their spring starts March 1st, even though the "official date" is March 20th.
So, yes, Spring has begun! When it warms up later, I'll set out some hardened-off beets and parsley.
Lucky you! We still have snow on the ground here, but it is melting.
I am having trouble finding the right time to start my peas. My grandmother used to plant them around her birthday in mid March. I tried that last year, but they didn't do well. Last year was an unusually warm and early spring. I'll try again this year.
Our last frost date is May 30, but last year we had our last frost in mid April. The ground is starting to melt as we have daytime temperatures above freezing, but we now have a bit of mud over frozen ground. The mud refreezes every night.
GardenQuilts - did your grandmother live in the same Zone as you do now? If not, you will have to adjust your planting time accordingly.
The seed packet should tell you the best time to sow peas in your zone.
She lived with me when I was young. We were technically in the same zone, but the weather could be different. Friends nearby say mid to late march as soon as the ground is unfrozen. One friend starts her peas inside and replants them outside in April.
GardenQuilts - I've never tried starting peas indoors. Does your friend put the peas in soil, or does she/he just let them sprout, and then set them out? I would be afraid I'd hurt the tap root by starting them indoors in soil.
For some reason, only three of my "Wando" peas have sprouted, so today I stopped by W-mart and purchased some called "Alaska".
My other bed has "Burpeena Early" and it looks as though every one of those peas has sprouted.
People around me can plant their peas much earlier than I can because I'm in a little valley that dries out a little later in the season. Could your peas just of rotted? Even though I lived in a colder zone 25 years ago I could plant peas a month earlier than I can now because I had better drainage. I keep adding compost every year to get my garden up higher. It's a slow process.
HelenVT - The peas could have rotted. Last summer we had a problem with Voles, so perhaps they ate them. The seed was dated for 2010, so perhaps it was too old. I know it was not birds - the rows are covered with Remay over hoop-and-loops to keep them out!
The bed next to this one has three rows of peas and they look okay, and that was 2010 seed, too.
I'll go ahead and replant with the fresh seeds I purchased today.
I also had a problem with voles and/or mice last year. (There were small grey rodents and something digging around. I am not sure what kind of grey furballs they were. I didn't look too closely when carrying the carcasses to the garbage after my dog got them.) Something had dug my lilies, but I moved a few and didn't lose any. I think that skunks could have dug the lilies looking for grubs. Maybe the peas rotted or were eaten. My friend starts them inside like tomatoes or peppers and plants them in the garden. I'd rather be able to plant them in place. I'll try again this year once the ground is thawed and the weather is a bit warmer.
It's supposed to rain all day today, so perhaps the peas will sprout. I often find seeds will pop-up after a good rainfall.
I had to replant most of my Golden Snow Peas for lack of germination, an the same thing happened last year. I should give up on them, but they're so pretty *G*. My other snow/snaps had decent germination, but ii had to wait a week (maybe more) before they all peeped out. Today I'll go see if they were beaten down by the Deluge. Sigh.
Plante 72 Alaska in peatpots only got 6 seedlings. I think the seed may have been too old, Bakers Creek 2010. Come to think of it, if I remember correctly I got poor germination last year too. I start my peas indoors and don't have anyproblems with setting them out. I just do that for the ones going in early, later sowings go in the ground. I wanted to plant them out yesterday, but it just poured here something awful.
It poured here yesterday also. Today we have snow flurries. Glad that I didn't jump the gun and plant my peas. I think I will try starting them inside this year.
I planted my bush peas on Friday and we had a lovely soaking rain yesterday. Normally I try to get my peas in by St. Patrick's Day, so I'm ahead of myself this year. I'm curious to see if that makes a difference.
I dug up the pea bed yesterday and didn't find any peas, so either they rotted, or something ate them! There were exactly 20 peas that had sprouted, so I transplanted them into a short row and covered them with Remay. This from two-and-a-half packages of 2010 seed!
After reading of others success with starting pea seeds indoors, I think I'll do the same the "Alaska" . The bed of "Burpeena Early" are still looking good.
I've ordered "Plantskydd" from Johnny's, which is supposed to repel Voles! Will keep y'all posted as to whether it works.
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/p-7635-plantskydd-repellent-granular-og.aspx?source=Online_Catalog_2011
Do any of you use inoculant (sp?) when planting your peas?
This message was edited Mar 8, 2011 8:49 AM
terri - I have never noticed a difference between peas that have been inoculated and those that haven't - so I don't bother anymore.
One doesn't really see it offered for sale as much anymore. I was wondering if it would help with a new bed or with the older seeds.
Terri - the first year I started a vegetable garden here, I used an inoculant on one group of pea seeds and not on the other, and the ones that were inoculated did not do as well as the other. Actually, I forgot to inoculate the second batch...
The bed where the peas disappeard this year were planted with soybeans last summer. From what I have read, there should have been something in that soil to help the peas grow.
The bed where the peas are growing well had strawberries for the last three years. (We pulled them up at the end of last summer because we were tired of the slugs and birds eating more strawberries than we did! ) - So there was no inoculant in this bed.
Hmm... maybe my "pea problem" is following Soybeans with Peas?
Hmmmm, I was thinking the inoculant might not me such a big deal if your soil was already good to go.
LOL! And I'm starting a new bed for strawberries this year. I have the row cover ready, you just reminded me to get some Sluggo! =D
terri - I would suggest you purchase "Sluggo Plus" because when slugs/birds take bites out of strawberries, pill/sow bugs move in and eat the rest!
Evil pill bugs! I will, thanks!
I think I saw peas advertised somewhere that were treated with a fungicide just like some corn is. I wish I could remember where.
I have read mixed review about Sluggo for slugs. It is worth a try. I use ammonia/water. It is cheap and effective. The main downside is that it requires frequent re-application, especially in rainy weather.
I used to live in a place with a lot of slugs. I had great success when I put out shallow containers of beer. Slugs love beer, but they don't know how to swim. Too bad.
We had a perimeter run around our garden when we lived in Western Washington, the Slug Capital of the World. Ducks patrolled our lettuces and peas, and very few slugs made it across that militarized zone!
HelenVT - I think if I put out beer the dog would drink it!
greenhouse_gal - I don't think I could keep ducks within city limits. I'm still thinking about getting some chickens, though.
That's a shame not to be able to keep ducks! But then, they're one more thing to take care of and the eggs seemed weird. I would bake with them but that was about it.
greenhouse gal -- what kind of ducks did you have? Where they given free range in the garden? I've read certain ones are good at keeping the bugs out of the garden, but of course, I have no idea what breed they were?
We had Indian runners, mostly, but I doubt that the variety matters. Their run, which had a five foot fence around it, was around the perimeter of our vegetable garden, and the garden itself was fenced with two or three foot high chicken wire. It kept them out but it was easy for us to walk over.
I'm starting to pick peas! YAY!
"Burpeena Early" were sown outdoors Feb 18th
"Wando" were sown outdoors Feb 17th
"Alaska" were sown indoors under lights March 11th and transplanted outside March 25th
Guess which one gave the first peas?
ALASKA!
That's interesting. I've read in several places that veggies started later, when it is more time for them to start, often produce better than ones started earlier. I have been thinking of starting more tomatoes, because the ones I started at my usual time of year look a little banged up. This convinces me.
My peas are just starting to come up. I too have had very spotty showing from some of them and then others coming up en masse. I put inoculant on all of them, since I was planting in ground that had never seen any peas, so that's not the difference. And the ones that are growing well are from the same company and the same year as the ones that are doing poorly. I sure can't understand it.
My peas are blossoming but not setting pods yet. The ones I planted from French seeds I saved came up quickly; the ones theoretically of the same variety that I got from Sand Hill, with an English name, never showed at all, so I had to replant with what was left of my saved seed, although it wasn't enough for a full row. They're up too, now. I do think that getting a jump start on planting doesn't do you much good if the weather doesn't cooperate. Mine have been in the ground since March 5th, but I don't see any early crops from them.
Congrats on your peas, Honeybee. Eatin' good this year, eh!
One of my pea patches, broadcast/sown Feb 27. Took their merry old time declaring but I started picking last Thursday. Now if I can convince the deer to leave me alone I'll have quite a bounty, eh?
Shoe
Okay, Shoe, how do you find your mature pods in such a mass of vegetation? Looks like a healthy crop, for sure!
Mine are blooming, too! I planted them very close together too, cuz I figured I'd lose some. I should be able to harvest some to enjoy before leaving on vaca. Then it will be up to DIL and DS to pick.
"Okay, Shoe, how do you find your mature pods in such a mass of vegetation? Looks like a healthy crop, for sure!"
gh-gal, actually they're pretty easy to spot. I pick from both sides of the bed, especially when they are this tall. (Lots of rain this year, nice cool pea weather, making them a bit taller than usual.) Oftentimes I carry a 3-legged stool right into the garden bed, sit and pick all around me, then scootch on over and pick some more.
Shoe, wishing ya'll a good day in the garden.
Shoe, I carry a stool with me, too; sounds like we pick peas the same way!
