Sweet Pea
Sweet Pea: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
Sweet pea, Lathyrus odoratus, is an ornamental annual in the pea family, Fabaceae. It is valued for colourful, often fragrant flowers and for the bouquets they provide. Its name must not be confused with the edible garden pea, Pisum sativum. Sweet pea seeds and pods are poisonous and must not be eaten; the plant’s appeal concerns its flowers and ornamental outline.Climbing varieties develop herbaceous stems that rise by attaching with tendrils. The leaves carry green leaflets and a terminal tendril, giving the foliage a light appearance. Some dwarf selections remain more compact and create a different effect from tall climbing forms. Height and spread vary with the variety and conditions; the species name does not describe one fixed size. These differences influence how the plant appears within a garden composition.The flowers have the characteristic form of many members of the pea family, with a large upper petal and lateral and…
