[rowlandwells]

I'm not having much luck with our pea crops this year maybe because the seeds getting past its sell by date going to buy new pea seed for next season and try again

although we did manage a couple of pickings of mangetout [Carouby de Maussane] I've decided to have a go with Hurst green shaft and sugar snap [Sweet Sahara] peas next season i have to admit i haven't grew snap peas before are they like the Mangetout varieties basically picking young pods and is this a variety one you would recommend me to grow or would you suggest another variety any advise would be most welcome RW

[upert]

A friend of mine once grew Hurst Greenshaft so well and uniformly they looked (and tasted) great. We all too pictures. I would gorw them every year yet I dread the pea moth and stick to earlies... plus I forget.

[CHRISDONOHUE]

The spate of dry summers we have had recently has made pea growing difficult which needs rich soil able to hold the moisture peas crave - a runner bean trench of manure or compost under peas may be needed in impoverished soil to get good crops - but fewer people are growing peas at allotments now which means that the pea moth is likely to be less prevalent than previously.   Good varieties are Kelvedon Wonder early and Hurst Green Shaft main crop but the sweet mange tout Norli or mange tout Sugar Ann means you can eat both pod and seeds.   All have AGMs.

[lettice]

Always had good success with peas and mangetout.
I save my seed each year, so easy to do with peas and mangetout.

Last few years, I have done the grow in a gutter first technique.
Well I use the plastic long mushroom 10 inch by 4 inch supermarket mushroom trays, that you get the four or five large flat mushroom in. I get about twelve peas in two rows diagonally sowed in those. I sow in the greenhouse. The ends of the trays are cut so you can slide out easily and fold up sides for holding soil and sowing.
You can then just slide the peas, when they are a few inches high into the a trench in the ground, so less disturbance.
My crop was much stronger and a better cropper this way.
I've never gone over board preparing the soil for peas. Just sow them in the same place each year, with a quick turning over the soil and a layer of seaweed from the beach and a trickle of home compost over the winter to freshen it up.
Never had any kind of bug attack my peas.
Do water them daily and I use poles each end and about five lines of string between poles to let them climb up.

[mumofstig]

I always grow Hurstgreenshaft (about 3 ft here) and Alderman (usually 5-6ft but not that tall this year  )

Sugarsnap peas are like Mangetout - but you allow the peas inside to get fatter before you eat them, so a good harvest, compared to ordinary Mangetout
I usually grow either Sugar Ann (about 3ft) or Super Sugar Snap (about 5ft)

[rowlandwells]

I've noted the sugarsnap varieties Mum and from what your saying your having good results from those varieties including Hurst greenshaft that I'm intending to try next season

a friend of our always grows his peas from direct seed sowings in the allotment using wire netting and apart from a few mice that he deals with and he always gets good crops? yet i grow ours in pots and never do any good?

[mumofstig]

I think it depends how quickly your soil warms up in Spring, how well direct sowing do..

In the past I've covered the pea-patch with clear plastic for a week or two, before sowing, and then left the covers on until I can see the first signs of growth. Because the growing season was weird earlier this year, I sowed mine inside, and planted out - but none of them are doing that well, despite regular watering.

I think I'll go back to direct sowing again, next year

[rowlandwells]

i think I'm going to follow you Mum with direct sowings and I'm going to ask my farmer friends how they get on with there pea crops because there pea crop looks good in the field

[AnneB]

My peas have not done too bad this year.  I always grow a variety called Stokesley that I got from the Heritage Seed Library.   It always seems to do well on the clay soil at the allotment, which is often quite wet.   It grows to about 5 - 6 feet tall and the peas are a splendid taste. 
I always so direct.   I don't have much trouble with mice, but this year I had problems with the pigeons sitting on them.
This year there has been a noticeable reduction in pea moth activity, but the peas are finishing a bit early.  I reckon I have about half the crop I normally get.  I put that down to the weather - scorching hot in April and cold and damp in June and July.  All the wrong way round.