BUSH PEAS
Sow: Jan 15-Feb 15; Possible Fall Crop - sow before Labor Day
Germination 6-10 days
Maturity: 58 Days
Sweetest of the dwarf snap peas and earliest snap pea. Not as heavy-yielding as tall Sugarsnap. Use the 2' vines to start the season.Mulch with straw 1983 Silver All-America winner bred by Calvin Lamborn and named for one of his daughters. Resistant to Wilt. Still has a small percentage of off-types. Don't pick snap peas too soon: snaps taste sweetest when completely filled out.
inimum soil temperature for pea seed germination: 40°. Optimal range 50–75°. Peas are legumes with moderate fertility requirements. Avoid excess nitrogen: they can fix their own. Use legume inoculant at planting. They prefer cool, moist weather and dislike dry heat. All peas produce more when staked; varieties over 2½' must be supported. Use either Trellis Netting or chicken wire. Install support at planting time to avoid disturbing seedlings. Plant 8–10 seeds/ft on each side of supports in double rows. Set supports for rows 3' apart (5' if very tall varieties).
Young plants are very hardy but frost stops production at the blossom or pod stage. If you love peas as much as we do, try for a second crop in the fall. Timing is crucial, as peas ripen slowly in the cool of September, and frost will halt production. We recommend planting the first two weeks of July for a fall crop in central Maine. Warmer areas try later July. If the summer is hot, cool the soil with a hay mulch in advance of planting, or shade peas with tall crops to hold in soil moisture.
Peas are 25% sucrose by weight and lose nearly half their sugars within 6 hours at room temperature. That's why they taste best grazed right off the vine. Keep cool and shell as soon as possible after picking for freezing.
Varieties quickest to maturity are best bet for southern climates where the spring heats up too quickly. Smooth-seeded peas germinate better in colder soils than wrinkle-seeded peas, but are not as sweet. Pam Dawling suggests that forsythia flowering signals time to sow snap and snow peas.
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