In many places peas only produce for a few weeks, so getting a whole week's head-start would make a big difference. Thanks for doing a good, fair trial and letting us know the results.
We always direct sow our peas but wait until we are clear of any hard freeze or snow coming. Good job done showing us the three different ways you done yours. Stay safe and have a wonderful week!
A big thank you to you CB, as you're the one who pointed out the error in my original pea video!!! Also, I completely missed the notification for your new video- heading over to check it out now!
Great information Jenna. I'm in zone 6 New Hampshire and this year I chose to grow Green beauty snow peas for my spring crop. I Sowed them on March 15th and got my first fistful of peas by May 30th. They are very tasty and fairly productive. I'm pretty sure they might die out soon however with the upcoming heat.
Ooh- I love Green Beauty! Glad to hear you are growing them. I've got Magnolia Blossom (a sugar snap from the same breeder) out this year- it's been in the upper 90s this week and I too suspect my plants are on their last legs... but they sure are delicious right now! Enjoy the last of those peas!
Thanks for sending me this link- great test, well done. We live on the border between NY/PA and we battle the same weather & soil conditions in the spring. I already harvested my peas (this hot weather was killing them) and replanted the same bed with more seeds, I don't know how this will work. Thanks again for your response!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I'm still trying to find a way to get them in a fall crop scenario. I had ripe tomatoes until November. Cool weather used to start around Labor Day, but now our seasons are Wet and Dry. Dry starts as soon as the normal garden crops are planted, and continues with infrequent rain until whatever did come up dies. 😐
Awesome!! thanks for the comparison! What this tells me, is that I do not need to waste space under my grow lights, or indoors with peas. I can just toss them in the ground. Super great, since space is limited for me indoors. Zone 5b NH.
Zone 6b here… facing similar issues, but I love peas. Always looking for ways to extend pea season. This years cold start and then intermittent heat waves have done a number, but I’m happy overall with a decent crop.
Your complete correct....I have done the same thing in my garden for many years....the started one's always seem to give you a crop first....but I have been doing them a different way for about 6 years now....I built a box ( 12 " wide pine barn board) the frame is 12" high x 12 feet long and 24" wide....I dig down about 10" and fill a trench 6" deep with well rotted composted manure....the 4" to 6" of the garden topsoil....I then plant 2 rows of peas 6" to 8" apart then cover the seeds and water....then I cover on cold days and night the seeds....and sprouts with a double plastic frame that covers the full size of the box....once the weather is better and free from snowy times...I pound into the grown 3-6 ft. High stakes with cross members and to this frame I add a 6"x6" mesh....the peas grow very well on this....(it does takes some time🥴) but I grow the tall types....
Started snow peas in paper pots March 14th, planted 2"plants sometime in late April. Peas just started flowering a few days ago, looking forward to some fresh peas. I do a lot of pre germinating, it cuts down on seeds that do not germinate from going into a pot or in the garden and gives me an idea of the germination rate of my saved seeds. I started pre germinating some carrots last year and it worked really well. Enjoy your videos!
I hope you get to enjoy those peas very soon! I'm also trying to do more pre-germing. I've not tried carrots, but that is a great idea. I think this would work especially well for both very early plantings when the ground is still cold AND later plantings, when I have trouble with them germinating due to the heat. I tried parsnips a couple years back (which are notorious for taking forever to germinate) and it worked really well. Thanks for sharing!
Please keep trying for 🥕 carrots. They are almost impossible to kill and VERY forgiving plant!! I keep moving them around and they, literally BLOOM where they are planted and continue to GROW!!! It's been an exciting year for me with carrots 🥕 ☺ 😊 try it !!!
That was interesting! My great-grandmother, grand-parents, as well as my dad, always soaked peas, beans, and corn over night. Then they planted the next morning. I will only soak peas and beans if we really have a very dry spring or if I'm planting at different intervals during the first part of the hot summer. I have even soaked winter squash seeds at times. That would give me a few days head start in very dry weather. I did a test a couple of times with the squash seeds side by side. Once I gain 3 days and the other 5 bays by soaking for just 2 hours. I never watered them in, just planted them. It was interesting to see the outcome of your peas. Thanks for sharing your test. It is always fun to experiment. I do it all the time. Take care!
Now if only you can tell me how to successfully germinate/plant carrots in your family’s tradition! I’ve had success in the most difficult crops but carrots 🙁
@@GrowfullywithJenna I germinated the seeds using the wet paper towel and placing in a ziplock bag. As soon as they grew roots, I planted them in seed starting mix and those seed cups from dollartree. Once they were ready for planting in my containers, they started producing peas around the second week of June. I have done a second container around the middle of May and waiting for them to show peas soon. What has worked for me is germinating the seeds before any planting and giving my transplants a chance to grow. I need for my aluminum greenhouse to be repaired so that I have the space to seed start more veggies. I had to buy another portable greenhouse to place my plants needing to get hardened off before planting them in permanent containers.
I live in Aurora, Oregon, zone 8b, 45th parallel. Sugar Sprint Peas are my favorite spring crop and I have extreme clay soil along with tall trees shading the property. I've had good success growing the peas indoors in 3.5 gallon black buckets and small pepper cages until the weather is cooperative then I set them out where they can get the best sun exposure. If the weather takes a turn for the worst it takes me 5 minutes to relocate them. I completely finished cropping the first planting (removed the plants and transplanted a small squash) last week. I have more to pick next week and then I should be done for the spring.
I've had good success with the damp paper towel method .. at least for germination rate. I used to direct sow in cold wet spring soil and many did not come up but if I sprout them in side first I seem to have much better success.
@@GrowfullywithJenna I use the method for eggplant and pepper seeds also since they seem to take a long time to germinate indoors under my grow lights. I don't actually wait for them to sprout necessarily but just keep them in damp towels for a week to soften them up and they germinate quickly for me then..
Great video Jenna! I really like these experiments with real world results. Would you say the soaked and planted method was the best balance between easy and effective?
I am also in OH. I only soak them over night and then right in the soil...never have a problem unless I get them in too late due to heat. I usually container my peas so if it starts getting too hot for them I just move them into the shade.
I have! I do think this would help give them a jump start, but with the pea trellises I was using, it's a bit of a challenge to cover them. A gardener on FB shared that she covers each of her plants with clear plastic solo cups with holes drilled in them, and that worked very well for her!
I was actually wondering about this! I soaked and pre-sprouted my peas for the first time this year. I usually direct sow but here in MA zone 6 garden we have the same spring issues as you do.
Great information. Thanks for taking the time for the trial. Given the week or so difference in production time I'll probably go with direct sow just to eliminate the extra steps of soaking and transplants. I wonder what planting soaked seeds indoors would do to the test?
Ooh- that's a good question. It would speed up the process, but I'm not sure if it would be enough to really make a difference. What could have moved the gauge would have been if I kept the peas in the warm house longer (versus moving them to a cold greenhouse). The transplants could have been ready to plant much more quickly (though I would have needed a longer hardening off process).
Columbus OH and seeing a little color change in my Gold Nuggets I'm thinking maybe some June tomatoes and put out first plants right about last week of May. Any time before mid July is is a win. I would think starting your seeds in your paper would be great. Thanks Lady for your teaching
I'm in OH Zone 6, too, and I pre-sprouted my snow peas. After planting in mid-April, mine broke the soil surface in about a week. I just harvested by biggest round of pods (I was actually a bit too late for a some, so I just took them out of the pods (still darn tasty). The one factor that also may influence growth that I don't think you mentioned is using legume inoculant. I find it helps the plants grow faster, stronger and more resistant to everything. Cheers. Jenna.
Great point! With legume inoculant, once you've applied it in a planting area it is not necessary to add again with each subsequent planting, plus some soil has more Rhizobium bacteria present naturally than others. So the inoculant can be a HUGE help for some folks and others won't see much of a difference with application (such is the case for me). I'd encourage folks to experiment with it in their own garden- and check your pea and bean roots for nodules at the end of the season. If there are none, definitely consider using the inoculant!
Thank you so much for this comparison! Wonder what the result would have been with a pre-sprout that was grown indoors to 2 inches? Do you ever grow a second batch of peas? Last year I grew sugar snaps in June with great sucess. The method was sowing in a module but outside. This year I will try the pre-sprout!
Hello Jenna, ok, I need some help. The pea harvest this year was very exciting at first, however the chipmunks decided that they needed them more. So what did I do, I decided to plant a fall crop and hope for the best. I planted the peas after working the soil in a different area, covered the ground with mulched straw to keep the ground temperature down. As you now these days beginning in August are very warm. Any advice from you would be much appreciated. Thank you very much. Also thank you for your knowledge on the harvest of the onions. Learning is taken place.
I'm sorry, Richard! I thought I responded to this, but apparently TH-cam ate my comment! Just keep those peas watered and perhaps consider some some 30% shade cloth if they look like they're getting sunburnt!
I pre-sprouted my corn this year and so far the progress has been comparable to when I do with peas. Basically, if a seed is big enough that I won't crush it with my delicate tweezers, I pre-sprout. Usually just with paper towels. I find it easier to maintain good moisture and air levels for that first bit of growth in the paper towels. Plus it gives me something to do while I wait for the ground to thaw in my 5b climate.
Also in Ohio, nearish Cleveland.I did all directly in a 2x3ft bed. the first run of..idk 8 plants i put a clear plastic container over. they got to a decent size but did take some damage. I think I put then out around st. Patricks day. the others grew when weather was right and caught up. I noticed only about a week difference in harvest. I got my first handful a week ago. and the rest will size up in next day or two.
That's an interesting comparison- I'm glad you mentioned this. Growing them in a cold-frame type setup was one more thing I wanted to try and didn't get to do... but your results tell me it's likely not worth it! Thanks for sharing!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I forgot they were snap peas. I am going to try next season doing it differently. I did the same with spinach and mustard greens in a tall raised bed that same way and they did great. But bolted during the heat wave. Its been an interesting year.
Our springs are colder here - the average temperate for April is a high of 53F and low of 37F. However, our last frost is typically in late April, and the risk of
It is possible those early direct sown peas were killed by the cold. My two biggest culprits for non-existent peas are that they rotted in the ground or voles ate them. Very interesting to hear the results from your different planting dates. I have one batch that I planted later (April 10th)- it is a different variety, but it's just coming to maturity now, and is struggling mightily in the ridiculous heat we've been having.
@@GrowfullywithJenna The heat hasn't really been bad here yet. Thursday got to 90f but aside from that, we've been getting 65-80f highs this June. (we also got a couple 85-90f days in late May).
Thanks! Late frosts/snow/cold temps are the norm for me here- but what I believe was a bigger factor was the prolonged, extreme cold and wet. In a 'typical' spring (though our springs are so all over the place, I'm hardly sure what that means anymore), the temps overall are warmer with random cold spells sprinkled in. This year it stayed very cold and very wait until quite late in the season. If the peas had experienced more warmth (temps in the 60s and 70s) they would have matured later and the transplants may have had a bit more of an advantage. I do also think the timing of that dip into the teens + snow set the transplants back a bit.
My preferred method is direct sowing in October. If the winters don't go below -6° C, then I'm ok. Usually only one winter out of 4 or 5 is that cold near Paris with global warming. However, pigeons love peas, so it's hard... This year they ate all my direct sowings, whether it was in October, or in February. So I had to do transplants, which worked ok. But honestly it's one of my least favorite things to grow, because it's so fragile and demands so much work... You need a trellis for a quite low yield, harvesting is a work of patience, and birds attack the seedlings. And once it hits 30+ °C, boom, you're done, the plants dry out and die. Not to mention the seeds are quite expensive, coz you need a lot of them. I much prefer to grow beans or fava beans, they're easier.
Interesting! I never thought of sowing in late fall. The winter peas in my cover crop blend typically overwinter for me (though they are hardier than shell peas)... but I'm wondering if I could get away with this by using some frost cover over my starts (it regulary drops to -12C, sometimes lower here). No trouble with birds, but voles would probably eat mine if I tried to fall sow. I have to admit, I'm with you on them being too much work for what you get in the end. But I love to eat fresh peas so much that I keep on doing it!
Very nice video. I appreciate the three method test. I use the paper towel method, due to the cold wet Springs we have in southeastern Wisconsin. Will you be planting a second crop of peas for Fall harvest? I plan on planting my sugar snap peas in about a six weeks. I will pull out my garlic bed and plant the peas in this spot. So 'iffy' to plant in July/August because of the peas not liking heat. But if I wait too much longer we could get hit with a hard freeze in September/October, right when the peas are looking good. Wish me luck. Thank you for your tips and ideas.
Thanks! And yes, I always try to plant out a second crop for fall- typically mid-July. That sowing date is a challenge due to the heat- but if I'm diligent about keeping the ground moist (and I sometimes put a shade cloth over the area), I ususally have good results. Best of luck with your sugar snaps!
@@GrowfullywithJenna Do you think throwing a 'row cover' over the peas would cast enough shade or would it simply cause lack of air flow? Your opinion is appreciated.
@@dkulikowski Shade cloth could help, definitely! I like to use this tunnel: www.gardensalive.com/product/pest-netting-tunnel it's not marketed as shade cloth, but I find that it functions as such, and it's very breathable. But even the 'real' shade cloth (something like this: www.agfabric.com/products/40-shade-cloth-netting-black-10ftwidth?_pos=9&_sid=79c4a3c74&_ss=r) should allow plenty of air through and help cool that soil just a bit.
I always nurture pea seedlings but when I plant the seedlings I also direct sow some extra seeds here and there. I don’t like direct sowing peas and beans as the only method as pests like birds and rodents tend to eat the seeds. With any growing season, timing is everything, can’t afford to rely on pests behaving, need to ensure we have a crop to harvest. The growing season is gone before you know it, no time for disaster management.
I think you probably would have gotten even faster growth and more pea production if you had set up a large outdoor speaker and pumped that rockabilly music throughout your garden. The video was good but the music was what made it 5 stars! Naturally, this is coming from a viewer in Mississippi, where Elvis, Jerry Lee, and the other great rockabilly musicians lived and made that music great.
In zone 9b - downtown Sacramento CA - there is a household which grows Peas on a Trellis = all year around 😀 timing is key. But, they're yummy 😋 all year around in temperate climates. I am trying it this year 😁
We're in central Ohio also, and this Spring weather (late snow and frost, rain and flooding) and then a stretch of upper 80's heat in mid-May wreaked havoc on the cool-weather crops. I direct-sowed all of our peas and have just started harvesting in the past week. Now we're having another heat wave and our Sugar Snaps have enation virus so we're ripping them out. For the Fall pea planting and next year I'll start all of them indoors to give them that head start. Questions: Do you innoculate your peas anytime? also, do you have recommended varieties that are resistant to pea enation virus? Snap peas seem to be particularly suceptible to it.
I do inoculate- but only the first time I'm planting peas or beans in a spot. From what I've read, it's uneccesary to incoluate after that initial application. I also seem to have a fair amount of the Rhizobium bacteria in my soil, as even when I do not inoculate, I have observed nodulation on my legume roots. Knock on wood... I've not had issues with pea enation yet. Cascadia sugar snap has resistance, Oregon Sugar Pod II, Oregon Giant and Avalanche snow peas have resistance, as does Serge shell pea.
Hi Jenna. Conundrum indeed... I'm in ne ohio and JUST managed to get plot plowed due to massive rains... what can still be sown so late in the season... beets, potatoes corn, bush beans, squash? I have herbs in small raised beds and they are doing great.
Definitely corn, beans and squash- you might find this video helpful as well (covers what I plant in June): th-cam.com/video/t5dRO1knU5k/w-d-xo.html Beets and potatoes don't typically do well for me in this heat, so I wait and sow those later, for a fall harvest.
Soak the peas for 24-48 hours, plant directly BEFORE the seed sends out a root, it could break off while planting. Doing more than that is not really worth the effort. Do it every few weeks and you will have plenty to harvest throughout the summer
In many places peas only produce for a few weeks, so getting a whole week's head-start would make a big difference. Thanks for doing a good, fair trial and letting us know the results.
That is a great point!
We always direct sow our peas but wait until we are clear of any hard freeze or snow coming. Good job done showing us the three different ways you done yours. Stay safe and have a wonderful week!
A big thank you to you CB, as you're the one who pointed out the error in my original pea video!!! Also, I completely missed the notification for your new video- heading over to check it out now!
Great video. I used an inoculant this year for my direct sown sugar snap peas. Best harvest ever! Ohio growers have definite challenges w/ weather!
Glad to hear it!
Oh! Thank you!
Thank you for mentioning the inoculant! I ordered some - MA weather is also challenging (Zone 6b for me).
That is so awesome that you tested it like that! I love it!!
Thank you!
Interesting! We usually plop ours in the ground-ours are still very short at the moment! Thank you!
I've always wanted to try peas early indoors and this looks like there is a reason to.
Yes! Give it a shot!
@@GrowfullywithJenna Your experiment with peas was brilliantly done.
@@sbarr10 thanks!
YOU ARE THE BEST! Followdng all of your recommendations. Thank You.
Thank you so much!
Great timing about to go plant peas 😁
Happy planting!
Yesterday ate my 1st snow pea pod from garden. Gonna do a fall harvest and start indoors in a few weeks
Oh and nice job mom. Nails look ok after gardening.
Glad to hear your peas are ripening up!
Great information Jenna. I'm in zone 6 New Hampshire and this year I chose to grow Green beauty snow peas for my spring crop. I Sowed them on March 15th and got my first fistful of peas by May 30th. They are very tasty and fairly productive. I'm pretty sure they might die out soon however with the upcoming heat.
Ooh- I love Green Beauty! Glad to hear you are growing them. I've got Magnolia Blossom (a sugar snap from the same breeder) out this year- it's been in the upper 90s this week and I too suspect my plants are on their last legs... but they sure are delicious right now! Enjoy the last of those peas!
You bring out genuine joy and fun in gardening! Peas n sweet corn my 2 favorite to eat right off the plant. There still great cooked too. LOL
Thank you so much!!
Thanks for sending me this link- great test, well done. We live on the border between NY/PA and we battle the same weather & soil conditions in the spring. I already harvested my peas (this hot weather was killing them) and replanted the same bed with more seeds, I don't know how this will work. Thanks again for your response!
You are welcome, Earl! I hope this planting performs well for you- I'm getting ready to sow some more as well.
Thanks!
Thank you so much!
LOVE these comparison videos! Thank you! I do a lot of presprouting too. 🌱🌱🌱
Thanks, Carol! Glad you like them!
Always love your experiments! 👍
Glad you like them!
Loved the test. Thanks for helping us learn.
I'm glad to hear it- thanks!
Love the experiments.
I'm glad to hear that!
Your amazing! this was a wonderful experiment!!!
Thank you!
We can plant peas in February here in NC
Lucky! Typically my ground is still frozen here in Ohio.
@@GrowfullywithJenna I'm still trying to find a way to get them in a fall crop scenario. I had ripe tomatoes until November. Cool weather used to start around Labor Day, but now our seasons are Wet and Dry. Dry starts as soon as the normal garden crops are planted, and continues with infrequent rain until whatever did come up dies. 😐
Yay peas! Something i've never tried growing yet, but want to try. Good to see ive got some options for planting
You should!
Awesome!! thanks for the comparison! What this tells me, is that I do not need to waste space under my grow lights, or indoors with peas. I can just toss them in the ground. Super great, since space is limited for me indoors. Zone 5b NH.
Absolutely!
Zone 6b here… facing similar issues, but I love peas. Always looking for ways to extend pea season. This years cold start and then intermittent heat waves have done a number, but I’m happy overall with a decent crop.
Yes they have-- it's been a challenging year so far! I'm glad you got a decent crop!
I just direct sow early. I have only planted sugar snaps, and snow peas. Besides cow peas after frost.
Nice!
Your complete correct....I have done the same thing in my garden for many years....the started one's always seem to give you a crop first....but I have been doing them a different way for about 6 years now....I built a box ( 12 " wide pine barn board) the frame is 12" high x 12 feet long and 24" wide....I dig down about 10" and fill a trench 6" deep with well rotted composted manure....the 4" to 6" of the garden topsoil....I then plant 2 rows of peas 6" to 8" apart then cover the seeds and water....then I cover on cold days and night the seeds....and sprouts with a double plastic frame that covers the full size of the box....once the weather is better and free from snowy times...I pound into the grown 3-6 ft. High stakes with cross members and to this frame I add a 6"x6" mesh....the peas grow very well on this....(it does takes some time🥴) but I grow the tall types....
That sounds like an awesome setup, Jim!
Started snow peas in paper pots March 14th, planted 2"plants sometime in late April. Peas just started flowering a few days ago, looking forward to some fresh peas.
I do a lot of pre germinating, it cuts down on seeds that do not germinate from going into a pot or in the garden and gives me an idea of the germination rate of my saved seeds. I started pre germinating some carrots last year and it worked really well.
Enjoy your videos!
I hope you get to enjoy those peas very soon! I'm also trying to do more pre-germing. I've not tried carrots, but that is a great idea. I think this would work especially well for both very early plantings when the ground is still cold AND later plantings, when I have trouble with them germinating due to the heat. I tried parsnips a couple years back (which are notorious for taking forever to germinate) and it worked really well. Thanks for sharing!
Please keep trying for 🥕 carrots. They are almost impossible to kill and VERY forgiving plant!! I keep moving them around and they, literally BLOOM where they are planted and continue to GROW!!! It's been an exciting year for me with carrots 🥕 ☺ 😊 try it !!!
That was interesting! My great-grandmother, grand-parents, as well as my dad, always soaked peas, beans, and corn over night. Then they planted the next morning. I will only soak peas and beans if we really have a very dry spring or if I'm planting at different intervals during the first part of the hot summer. I have even soaked winter squash seeds at times. That would give me a few days head start in very dry weather. I did a test a couple of times with the squash seeds side by side. Once I gain 3 days and the other 5 bays by soaking for just 2 hours. I never watered them in, just planted them. It was interesting to see the outcome of your peas. Thanks for sharing your test. It is always fun to experiment. I do it all the time. Take care!
Thanks for sharing this! That's a big gain (3-5 days) for a relatlively little amount of work!
Now if only you can tell me how to successfully germinate/plant carrots in your family’s tradition! I’ve had success in the most difficult crops but carrots 🙁
Great video! I think I will give transplanting pea starts a try next spring. Thanks 😊
Thanks! I hope the transplants go well for you!
Awesome......just found your channel......
Hooray! Welcome!
Good morning
👍
💚
Good morning!
I found that my transplanted peas did better this year than last year. Thank you for this video.
I'm glad they did better this year- what do you think the difference was?
@@GrowfullywithJenna I germinated the seeds using the wet paper towel and placing in a ziplock bag. As soon as they grew roots, I planted them in seed starting mix and those seed cups from dollartree. Once they were ready for planting in my containers, they started producing peas around the second week of June. I have done a second container around the middle of May and waiting for them to show peas soon. What has worked for me is germinating the seeds before any planting and giving my transplants a chance to grow. I need for my aluminum greenhouse to be repaired so that I have the space to seed start more veggies. I had to buy another portable greenhouse to place my plants needing to get hardened off before planting them in permanent containers.
Love this video, Jenna! Such good information, so helpful!
Glad it was helpful! Thank you!
I live in Aurora, Oregon, zone 8b, 45th parallel. Sugar Sprint Peas are my favorite spring crop and I have extreme clay soil along with tall trees shading the property. I've had good success growing the peas indoors in 3.5 gallon black buckets and small pepper cages until the weather is cooperative then I set them out where they can get the best sun exposure. If the weather takes a turn for the worst it takes me 5 minutes to relocate them. I completely finished cropping the first planting (removed the plants and transplanted a small squash) last week. I have more to pick next week and then I should be done for the spring.
What a great idea! Thanks for sharing!
I've had good success with the damp paper towel method .. at least for germination rate. I used to direct sow in cold wet spring soil and many did not come up but if I sprout them in side first I seem to have much better success.
Good to hear! Do you use this method for other seeds as well, or just peas?
@@GrowfullywithJenna I use the method for eggplant and pepper seeds also since they seem to take a long time to germinate indoors under my grow lights. I don't actually wait for them to sprout necessarily but just keep them in damp towels for a week to soften them up and they germinate quickly for me then..
@@franksinatra1070 yes! Especially pepper seeds and me too!
Great video- I have always struggled to get a good crop of peas. I am going to try the soaked and sprouted method and maybe the tranplsnts next year.
Thanks, William- best of luck!
Great video Jenna! I really like these experiments with real world results. Would you say the soaked and planted method was the best balance between easy and effective?
Thanks! And yes, my thoughts exactly- I felt like soak & sprout was the best balance.
I am also in OH. I only soak them over night and then right in the soil...never have a problem unless I get them in too late due to heat. I usually container my peas so if it starts getting too hot for them I just move them into the shade.
Smart idea with the container peas, Julie!
have you considered covering them to help in early spring
I have! I do think this would help give them a jump start, but with the pea trellises I was using, it's a bit of a challenge to cover them. A gardener on FB shared that she covers each of her plants with clear plastic solo cups with holes drilled in them, and that worked very well for her!
I was actually wondering about this! I soaked and pre-sprouted my peas for the first time this year. I usually direct sow but here in MA zone 6 garden we have the same spring issues as you do.
How did your peas do this year?
Great information. Thanks for taking the time for the trial. Given the week or so difference in production time I'll probably go with direct sow just to eliminate the extra steps of soaking and transplants. I wonder what planting soaked seeds indoors would do to the test?
Ooh- that's a good question. It would speed up the process, but I'm not sure if it would be enough to really make a difference. What could have moved the gauge would have been if I kept the peas in the warm house longer (versus moving them to a cold greenhouse). The transplants could have been ready to plant much more quickly (though I would have needed a longer hardening off process).
Columbus OH and seeing a little color change in my Gold Nuggets I'm thinking maybe some June tomatoes and put out first plants right about last week of May. Any time before mid July is is a win.
I would think starting your seeds in your paper would be great.
Thanks Lady for your teaching
Oooh- that's exciting! My earliest tomatoes have only just started forming fruit.
I prefer to sow snow peas and transplant out in my zone 8b Oregon garden
Good to know! I'm guessing you can get away with starting quite a bit earlier than me?
@@GrowfullywithJenna Probably, yeah. I can plant out starts as early as 2nd week of Feb
Love your videos 😍What is your opinion about peat pellets and for starting seeds? thank you
Thank you.
I know some folks with disagree with me, but honestly, I HATE peat pellets.
I'm in OH Zone 6, too, and I pre-sprouted my snow peas. After planting in mid-April, mine broke the soil surface in about a week. I just harvested by biggest round of pods (I was actually a bit too late for a some, so I just took them out of the pods (still darn tasty).
The one factor that also may influence growth that I don't think you mentioned is using legume inoculant. I find it helps the plants grow faster, stronger and more resistant to everything.
Cheers. Jenna.
Great point! With legume inoculant, once you've applied it in a planting area it is not necessary to add again with each subsequent planting, plus some soil has more Rhizobium bacteria present naturally than others. So the inoculant can be a HUGE help for some folks and others won't see much of a difference with application (such is the case for me). I'd encourage folks to experiment with it in their own garden- and check your pea and bean roots for nodules at the end of the season. If there are none, definitely consider using the inoculant!
@@GrowfullywithJenna exactly. This was a new raised bed (all new soil combo) so I used it. :) Thanks, Jenna!
i purchased a bag of whole dried peas to plant.at the end of april...... yes?
Do you do another round of peas for the fall? When would you sow them in Ohio zone 6?
Yes! I typically start them mid-July
Thank you so much for this comparison! Wonder what the result would have been with a pre-sprout that was grown indoors to 2 inches? Do you ever grow a second batch of peas? Last year I grew sugar snaps in June with great sucess. The method was sowing in a module but outside. This year I will try the pre-sprout!
My spring season is not enough for two crops- but I do plant in July for a fall harvest.
Hello Jenna, ok, I need some help. The pea harvest this year was very exciting at first, however the chipmunks decided that they needed them more. So what did I do, I decided to plant a fall crop and hope for the best. I planted the peas after working the soil in a different area, covered the ground with mulched straw to keep the ground temperature down. As you now these days beginning in August are very warm. Any advice from you would be much appreciated. Thank you very much. Also thank you for your knowledge on the harvest of the onions. Learning is taken place.
I'm sorry, Richard! I thought I responded to this, but apparently TH-cam ate my comment! Just keep those peas watered and perhaps consider some some 30% shade cloth if they look like they're getting sunburnt!
Finally found someone in 6b zone. Binge watching now.
Hi Kelly! Great to hear from a fellow Zone 6'er!
I’ve done this… works pretty good. Do you think it would work with sweet corn?
I would think so, but I've never tried it.
I pre-sprouted my corn this year and so far the progress has been comparable to when I do with peas.
Basically, if a seed is big enough that I won't crush it with my delicate tweezers, I pre-sprout. Usually just with paper towels.
I find it easier to maintain good moisture and air levels for that first bit of growth in the paper towels.
Plus it gives me something to do while I wait for the ground to thaw in my 5b climate.
Helpful vid! Curious if/when you plant a fall crop of peas?
I do! I try to start them mid-July.
@@GrowfullywithJenna awesome, thanks for replying!
Curious whether covering small plants when snow is forecast would prevent as much stunting of growth as happens when it snows?
Also in Ohio, nearish Cleveland.I did all directly in a 2x3ft bed. the first run of..idk 8 plants i put a clear plastic container over. they got to a decent size but did take some damage. I think I put then out around st. Patricks day. the others grew when weather was right and caught up. I noticed only about a week difference in harvest. I got my first handful a week ago. and the rest will size up in next day or two.
Near Kent here
That's an interesting comparison- I'm glad you mentioned this. Growing them in a cold-frame type setup was one more thing I wanted to try and didn't get to do... but your results tell me it's likely not worth it! Thanks for sharing!
@@GrowfullywithJenna I forgot they were snap peas. I am going to try next season doing it differently. I did the same with spinach and mustard greens in a tall raised bed that same way and they did great. But bolted during the heat wave. Its been an interesting year.
Our springs are colder here - the average temperate for April is a high of 53F and low of 37F. However, our last frost is typically in late April, and the risk of
It is possible those early direct sown peas were killed by the cold. My two biggest culprits for non-existent peas are that they rotted in the ground or voles ate them. Very interesting to hear the results from your different planting dates. I have one batch that I planted later (April 10th)- it is a different variety, but it's just coming to maturity now, and is struggling mightily in the ridiculous heat we've been having.
@@GrowfullywithJenna The heat hasn't really been bad here yet. Thursday got to 90f but aside from that, we've been getting 65-80f highs this June. (we also got a couple 85-90f days in late May).
My peas have survived some pretty serious cold in the beginning of the season. I guess my variety is very frost hardy.
Another informative, well-done video. Thumbs up once again Jenna. Just wondering if you believe a season without the late frosts might alter results?
Thanks! Late frosts/snow/cold temps are the norm for me here- but what I believe was a bigger factor was the prolonged, extreme cold and wet. In a 'typical' spring (though our springs are so all over the place, I'm hardly sure what that means anymore), the temps overall are warmer with random cold spells sprinkled in. This year it stayed very cold and very wait until quite late in the season. If the peas had experienced more warmth (temps in the 60s and 70s) they would have matured later and the transplants may have had a bit more of an advantage. I do also think the timing of that dip into the teens + snow set the transplants back a bit.
My preferred method is direct sowing in October. If the winters don't go below -6° C, then I'm ok. Usually only one winter out of 4 or 5 is that cold near Paris with global warming. However, pigeons love peas, so it's hard... This year they ate all my direct sowings, whether it was in October, or in February. So I had to do transplants, which worked ok. But honestly it's one of my least favorite things to grow, because it's so fragile and demands so much work... You need a trellis for a quite low yield, harvesting is a work of patience, and birds attack the seedlings. And once it hits 30+ °C, boom, you're done, the plants dry out and die. Not to mention the seeds are quite expensive, coz you need a lot of them. I much prefer to grow beans or fava beans, they're easier.
Interesting! I never thought of sowing in late fall. The winter peas in my cover crop blend typically overwinter for me (though they are hardier than shell peas)... but I'm wondering if I could get away with this by using some frost cover over my starts (it regulary drops to -12C, sometimes lower here). No trouble with birds, but voles would probably eat mine if I tried to fall sow. I have to admit, I'm with you on them being too much work for what you get in the end. But I love to eat fresh peas so much that I keep on doing it!
Very nice video. I appreciate the three method test. I use the paper towel method, due to the cold wet Springs we have in southeastern Wisconsin. Will you be planting a second crop of peas for Fall harvest? I plan on planting my sugar snap peas in about a six weeks. I will pull out my garlic bed and plant the peas in this spot. So 'iffy' to plant in July/August because of the peas not liking heat. But if I wait too much longer we could get hit with a hard freeze in September/October, right when the peas are looking good. Wish me luck. Thank you for your tips and ideas.
Thanks! And yes, I always try to plant out a second crop for fall- typically mid-July. That sowing date is a challenge due to the heat- but if I'm diligent about keeping the ground moist (and I sometimes put a shade cloth over the area), I ususally have good results. Best of luck with your sugar snaps!
@@GrowfullywithJenna Do you think throwing a 'row cover' over the peas would cast enough shade or would it simply cause lack of air flow? Your opinion is appreciated.
@@dkulikowski Shade cloth could help, definitely! I like to use this tunnel: www.gardensalive.com/product/pest-netting-tunnel it's not marketed as shade cloth, but I find that it functions as such, and it's very breathable. But even the 'real' shade cloth (something like this: www.agfabric.com/products/40-shade-cloth-netting-black-10ftwidth?_pos=9&_sid=79c4a3c74&_ss=r) should allow plenty of air through and help cool that soil just a bit.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Thank you,
👍👍👍👍
Hi, Jena. Awesome video, as usual. Do you think this will also apply to Pigeon Peas?
Thank you! I have never grown pigeon peas, but I feel like this would probably apply to most any legumes.
Do you replant for a fall harvest? I'm in PA zone 6b and I'll be trying fall peas this year. I have a feeling they may do better?
Yes I do- I typically try to plant mid-July.
Im also PA, right on 6a/6b border. I do well with fall snow peas, but i plant around June 30 so i can harvest before hard frost kills flowers
Do you think the zig zag trellis makes a difference?
It helps with stability, especially if you have a lot of strong wind in the spring.
@@GrowfullywithJenna Thank you. Wind is definitely an issue for my garden.
Do you ever try and grow a fall crop of peas Jenna,and if so when did you start those?🤔
Every year! I sow in mid-July.
I always nurture pea seedlings but when I plant the seedlings I also direct sow some extra seeds here and there. I don’t like direct sowing peas and beans as the only method as pests like birds and rodents tend to eat the seeds. With any growing season, timing is everything, can’t afford to rely on pests behaving, need to ensure we have a crop to harvest. The growing season is gone before you know it, no time for disaster management.
That's a great idea, Steve!
I think you probably would have gotten even faster growth and more pea production if you had set up a large outdoor speaker and pumped that rockabilly music throughout your garden. The video was good but the music was what made it 5 stars! Naturally, this is coming from a viewer in Mississippi, where Elvis, Jerry Lee, and the other great rockabilly musicians lived and made that music great.
Recently I was told that peas can also be grown as a fall crop. Have you ever tried that? I was wondering if they will germinate in hot weather.
Yep! I try to get my peas planted by mid-July for a fall harvest here. Keeping the ground moist is key when planting at that time!
In zone 9b - downtown Sacramento CA - there is a household which grows Peas on a Trellis = all year around 😀 timing is key. But, they're yummy 😋 all year around in temperate climates. I am trying it this year 😁
We're in central Ohio also, and this Spring weather (late snow and frost, rain and flooding) and then a stretch of upper 80's heat in mid-May wreaked havoc on the cool-weather crops. I direct-sowed all of our peas and have just started harvesting in the past week. Now we're having another heat wave and our Sugar Snaps have enation virus so we're ripping them out. For the Fall pea planting and next year I'll start all of them indoors to give them that head start. Questions: Do you innoculate your peas anytime? also, do you have recommended varieties that are resistant to pea enation virus?
Snap peas seem to be particularly suceptible to it.
I do inoculate- but only the first time I'm planting peas or beans in a spot. From what I've read, it's uneccesary to incoluate after that initial application. I also seem to have a fair amount of the Rhizobium bacteria in my soil, as even when I do not inoculate, I have observed nodulation on my legume roots. Knock on wood... I've not had issues with pea enation yet. Cascadia sugar snap has resistance, Oregon Sugar Pod II, Oregon Giant and Avalanche snow peas have resistance, as does Serge shell pea.
Hi Jenna. Conundrum indeed... I'm in ne ohio and JUST managed to get plot plowed due to massive rains... what can still be sown so late in the season... beets, potatoes corn, bush beans, squash? I have herbs in small raised beds and they are doing great.
Definitely corn, beans and squash- you might find this video helpful as well (covers what I plant in June): th-cam.com/video/t5dRO1knU5k/w-d-xo.html Beets and potatoes don't typically do well for me in this heat, so I wait and sow those later, for a fall harvest.
@@GrowfullywithJenna very helpful, thanks Jenna... happy harvesting!
Just put in the ground people. Don’t make it harder than it should be. I just till the ground and toss and casted my seeds. Bumper harvest.
You should paint your thumbnails green to match the rest of your thumbs (green thumbs).
😄💚
Soak the peas for 24-48 hours, plant directly BEFORE the seed sends out a root, it could break off while planting. Doing more than that is not really worth the effort.
Do it every few weeks and you will have plenty to harvest throughout the summer
It could break off yes, but I've actually never had this happen.
The greatest benefit of transplants is protection from birds and mice that dig up and eat baby pea sprouts.