Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Growing FAQs and other Information => Topic started by: sonnycbr on February 04, 2010, 20:57
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I'm sure I saw a photo a while ago (posted by DD?) of the way he grows his peas, I think with nets on both sides of the rows. Could you point me in the right direction for these pics as I fancy trying it myself this year.
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I sow first and net, but only about 6" off the ground. I use debris netting at this stage, well weighted down to keep the mice off.
I don't faff about with chitting them, transplanting them or starting off in guttering etc. (the quantity would make that impossible), they are just thrown into a shallow trench and left to get on with it. Remember - for each foot in a row of peas, you need at least 15 peas. I grow 36' rows - at least 4 of them and that equates to 2160 plants - I'm not faffing with that quantity!
Only when the peas are a few inches high do the supports and twine appear, the debris netting then moves on to be used elsewhere for brassicas and the like and it's replaced with any old netting sufficient to keep the pigeons off.
First stage:
Photo 1
Then increase the levels of the twine until you get:
Photo 2
and then:
Photo 3
and
Photo 4
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do they have anything to climb up or is it just that string ?
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It's polypropylene twine, actually, salvaged off newpaper bundles when Mrs Digger worked at a newsagents, but a lot of the blokes on our site use the thin green twine with good effect.
Peas are generally not good climbers, they need support.
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Superb DD.....Can you explain a bit more about what you did preparing the soil and also spacings etc etc...
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Preparation?
Made a trench with a draw hoe, threw the seed in, covered, netted & went home. Honestly!
Pea spacing within the row in theory is as per the photo, but I throw a few more in for good measure.
Spacings between the rows should be as high as the plant grows, but you could get away with a little less.
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D.D. You appear to be the King of peas- I am a novice when it comes to peas, I sow them (early onward) Feb or early March but never get much germination usually 1 or 2 in a row. My soil is heavy clay, Do peas require plenty of compost or am I too early. Any tips. Thanks.
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It may be that your soil is a bit on the heavy side, peas prefer a lighter soil with plenty of humus, but not fertiliser.
You could try forking in a bit of multi-purpose compost to lighten the soil a bit. Personally, I'd also hold back with the sowing until it gets a bit warmer.
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Thanks DD. Just one more question - How deep would you sow the seeds. The packet usually says 2-3". Thanks
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Very impressive DD - do you have a massive allotment or do you just use a lot of it to grow peas because that looks like a lot of peas!
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you need lots of pea plants to get any great amount we had only a few and got only a few peas.
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I've got 2 1/2 plots amounting to 800 sq yds.
in 2008 there were 4 x 32' rows of KW peas plus a 20' row of Jaguar, (which I wasn't over inpressed with), plus 3 isolated spots for heritage peas, grown purely for seed.
Total, I guess over 150' of peas.
Last year 6 x 24' rows - about the same.
Oh - then there's the mangetout.
I do admit that they take up a lot of space for the return, coupled with the fact only about half the produce makes it home!
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can you help d.d i bought some onward peas from original touch but the instructions are very confusing :) when can i put them in and do they need support? many thanks :)
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I'd treat Onward exactly the same as I've done with Kelvedon Wonder.
Sow late March/Early April, net to protect and support in some way of your chosing. (You've seen my way, but there are plenty of others).
Seed & row spacing as previous posts.
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DD do you bother with Feltham first or any overwintering Pea??
Kelvedon best over the summer then ???
No and yes.
(Sorry missed this before).
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Thanks DD. Just one more question - How deep would you sow the seeds. The packet usually says 2-3". Thanks
2" - about right.
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Is it worth starting the peas pots? sorry for silly question its just my first year of growing peas. the type of pea is junos
Many Thanks
Big Matt
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Just bear in mind that you need a lot of peas for a decent return. 15 plants for each foot of row is recommended. For a decent row, that's hundreds of plant and a lot of pots.
But there's nothing stopping you!
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sorry me again can I start them now as it says March on the packet if starting in doors?
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When you say indoors, where do you mean?
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It's the first week of Feb. If the packet says March for indoors then that's at least a month away, surely ::)
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Just bear in mind that you need a lot of peas for a decent return. 15 plants for each foot of row is recommended. For a decent row, that's hundreds of plant and a lot of pots.
But there's nothing stopping you!
I can't remember how many trays full of paper-pots I grew last year..... it was my first (fib - 2nd) experiment with peas - and it was successful! They were brilliant.
Year before hardly a sausage let alone a pea when I sowed direct into the soil - This year I am sure I will be fed-up making paper pots and try some directly sown as well. Learning by experience!! ;)
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Well, you know my technique.
Dig a hole, throw a generous handfull in.
It is really worth while trying to source loose pea seed. It's a fraction of the price of the rip off packeted ones and you can afford to sow more thickly to allow for losses. Happily this year I've got stacks of my own seed so it's going to be even cheaper - free!
It's also worth the time making sure your seeds are well netted and and the nets securely pegged down. I manage to (mostly) keep the mice off that way.
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Let me quote an example for costs of packet seed versus loose.
There are between 3,000 and 6,000 peas in a kilo. Let's take the middle ground and call it 4,500.
That famous store beginning with "W" sells 300 Kelvedon Wonder seed for 97p. That would be 15 packets and cost a bit short of £15 for a kilo.
My local nursery sells a kilo loose for 1/3 of that cost.
Even ordering a kilo via post from Moles seeds would only cost £8.30.
I know most people would not want a kilo, (but remember stored properly these would last a few years or you could share), it's quoted by way of showing that it's worth trying to find a local, usually independant, nursery or allotment association, failing that ordering from somewhere like Moles.
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Ye sorry about that it says on the pack outdoors in march :wacko: Can I start them indoors now?
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all my peas failed to grow last year, would this be because of the brand of peas or pests?
the peas where ambassador for johnsons got one plant out of a whole packet.
what would be the best brand to buy? unwins?
cheers
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Ye sorry about that it says on the pack outdoors in march :wacko: Can I start them indoors now?
As I asked before, what do you mean by indoors?
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all my peas failed to grow last year, would this be because of the brand of peas or pests?
the peas where ambassador for johnsons got one plant out of a whole packet.
what would be the best brand to buy? unwins?
cheers
Did they fail to grow, or get eaten as they popped up?
Don't think the supplier will make a lot of difference. A lot come from the same source. I've never had a problem with loose, unbranded from the nursery.
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Did they fail to grow, or get eaten as they popped up?
Don't think the supplier will make a lot of difference. A lot come from the same source. I've never had a problem with loose, unbranded from the nursery.
fail to grow only one popped up and was savaged by wood pidgeons! :lol:
what is a good easy to grow variety?
will be trying that method of support! :D
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Did they fail to grow, or get eaten as they popped up?
Don't think the supplier will make a lot of difference. A lot come from the same source. I've never had a problem with loose, unbranded from the nursery.
fail to grow only one popped up and was savaged by wood pidgeons! :lol:
what is a good easy to grow variety?
will be trying that method of support! :D
I never failed with Kelvedon Wonder.
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Im doing even more Rows this yr , What spacing do you use between rows as can see they need lots room?
Cheers MW.
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They usually say you sow then as far apart as their final height ::)
But what advice does your packet give?
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They usually say you sow then as far apart as their final height ::)
But what advice does your packet give?
I bought them from ALan Romans and there is no advice on the web site for row spacing im afraid
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I did grow one row last yr and they got to about 4ft tall , so would that mean 2ft either side? i hope so.
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2ft between rows is for the dwarf peas that grow 2.. 2ft6in tall..if yours grow to 4ft IMO they would need to be farther apart.