Joan Swenson: Sweet peas are sure to please, and they do most of the work
| Friday, Aug 29 2008 06:06 PM
Last Updated Friday, Mar 27 2009 06:04 PM
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Sweet peas (Photo courtesy of Joan Swenson)
I’m late and the guilt is killing me.
Labor Day weekend is the beginning of the sweet pea planting season and I hadn’t bought my sweet pea seeds by last weekend and I hadn’t prepped the soil, despite great intentions.
Instead, I went to the beach.
Still, we have several weeks of prime sweet pea planting time, so I’m not too worried. Sweet pea seeds can be planted from now until October, even November if you want to push it, and you’ll still have flowers in the spring.
Planted in the late summer and early fall, sweet peas will germinate and have a growth spurt in the warm weather as long as you keep them watered, of course. Hunkering down in the rain and fog of winter, they will grow with fantastic speed as the days turn brighter in January and February. By late February and early March, the flower picking season begins.
And it’s just a wonderful season. I don’t know of a flower I love more than a sweet pea. The range of colors is exquisite, particularly if you shop around locally or online for seeds, with bright and brilliant colors — reds, purples, bright pinks — to the exquisitely delicate colors such as pale peach, cream trimmed with lavender, or heavenly near-blues. Look for ruffled and bicolor flowers, too. Spiced and sweet, sweet peas are in the class of certain heavily scented roses and freesias for an unforgettable, luscious scent.
Here’s what you must do to get ready:
Pick the perfect spot: You should have a western or southern exposure if you want to grow sweet peas. The east and north won’t have enough sun for plant development.
Prep the soil. Dig in some mulch to help retain water, particularly now, during the germination period.
Plan to provide a trellis: You have to provide something for the plants to climb upon by Christmastime. I like bird netting, which I rig up on a temporary fence using wire and twisty ties. Not pretty, but the plants grow well on it. At the end of the growing season, pull the whole thing down and discard it or pull off the old plants and use it again. Cotton string trellises are also handy and can be used over and over. If you can plant the seeds next to a fence facing the west or south, so much the better. The netting can be temporarily attached to the fence during the growing season. If you can’t put up a trellis, plant bush sweet pea seeds. Chain-link fences are ideal for growing sweet peas.
Pick the seeds: Shop around, online and locally. Any nursery is going to carry sweet pea seeds; some carry them in bulk bags. I like Renee’s Garden seeds because of the huge selection of more than a dozen varieties. OSH carries Renee’s and you can also buy them on Renee’s Web site, reneesgarden.com.Even though I am loyal to Renee’s, any type of sweet pea seeds that you can find are likely to be a hit.
Plant: I should say, “overplant.” There is nothing wrong with going crazy with sweet peas. I plant mine as close as an inch together so I can grow as many plants as possible and get a wall of flowers for weeks in the spring.
Keep them watered: Water is critical in the fall, during the hottest part of the season, to ensure germination (soak your seeds overnight to get them to germinate more quickly) and get the plants through until the rainy season starts, we hope.
Gather the bouquets and compliments in the spring: People will think you’re fantastic gardener, when the sweet peas did all the work.
