Snow peas: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
How do you sow mangetout peas successfully under cover?
For an earlier start, sow your mangetout peas under cover in good light in late winter or early spring, depending on your climate. Use deep pots or modules filled with seed compost and ensure water can drain freely.
Place one seed per module, about 5 cm deep, following the packet guidance. Water gently, then keep the compost slightly moist without soaking it. Give the young plants plenty of light.
Gradually acclimatise the plants to outdoor conditions before planting into workable soil. Keep their root balls intact and put supports in place at planting time. Watch for slugs around the young shoots.
How do you sow mangetout peas outdoors?
Sow your mangetout peas directly in spring once the soil has warmed sufficiently and is not waterlogged. Adapt the timing to the variety and your climate. Choose a sunny spot with loose, well-drained soil.
Sow about 5 cm deep, leaving roughly 7.5 cm between seeds unless the packet specifies otherwise. Adapt row spacing to the variety's height and the support you plan to use. Cover, firm lightly and water.
Keep the seedbed moist without overwatering. Put supports in place early and watch for slug or bird damage during germination.
How do you plant mangetout peas?
Plant your young mangetout peas in loose, well-drained soil in a sunny spot. Wait until the soil is workable and gradually acclimatise plants raised under cover to outdoor conditions.
Water the root balls before removing them from their pots. Plant without breaking the roots, at their previous depth, about 7.5 cm apart or as directed on the packet. Adjust row spacing to the variety.
Firm gently and water to settle the soil around the roots. Provide suitable support immediately: twiggy branches for low-growing varieties or a sturdy trellis for climbing ones.
How to care for this plant
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Install plant supports
Put supports in place when sowing directly or planting out, before stems lengthen. Match the height to the variety: twiggy sticks for short peas, a firm net or trellis for tall varieties. Check stability as they grow.
How do you harvest mangetout peas?
Pick your mangetout peas while the pods are still young, tender and flat, before the peas swell. Check every two or three days while plants are cropping: pods soon become tougher if you leave them on the plant.
Hold the stem with one hand and detach the pod with the other, or cut its short stalk with scissors. Avoid pulling on the stems. Cook your harvest promptly or keep it briefly in the fridge.
Snow peas
- Type : Vegetables
- Subtype : Seed vegetables
- Botanical Family : Fabaceae (papilionaceae / legumes)
Characteristics
- Lifecycle : Annual
- Exposure : Full Sun
- Frost Hardiness : Frost Resistant
- Cultivation Difficulty : Easy
- Mature height : 60 cm
Sowing & Planting
- Greenhouse Growing : Not Required
- Sowing Depth : 2 cm
- Plant Spacing : 4 cm
- Row Spacing : 60 cm
Maintenance
- Maintenance : Low
- Water Requirements : Moderate
Other characteristics
- Soil Type : Humus-rich
- Soil pH Preference : Neutral
- Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
- Disease Sensitivity : Moderate
- Weed Sensitivity : Moderate
- Pollination : Self-pollinating
- Propagation : Sowing