Whether raw or cooked, in a salad or in a stew - sugar peas from your own garden are a welcome snack in the summer. Growing them is worthwhile because sugar peas are not only undemanding, but also extremely easy to care for.
How to grow sugar peas in your own garden?
Sugar peas thrive best in a sunny location with well-loosened, nutrient-rich and calcareous soil. They are sown between March and April, require little care and are ready to harvest from mid to late June. Mixed culture with lettuce, kohlrabi, carrots, radishes and radishes prevents fungal diseases.
The basics decide: location and soil
The sugar pea plants prefer to grow in full sun. This is where they thrive best and produce lots of pods. In addition, they are also content with a partially shaded location. A temperate climate is enough for them. But be careful: the location should be changed after three years at the latest.
At the bottom, sweet peas place wishes that are usually easy to fulfill. These include the following features:
- deeply relaxed
- well drained
- medium difficulty (ideal: sandy-loamy)
- nutrient-rich
- humos
- calcareous
- pH value between 6 and 7.5
From sowing to harvest
Sugar peas are sown directly outdoors between the end of March and mid-April. Pay attention to a sowing depth of 5 cm and a distance between the individual plants of at least 3 cm. Trellises should be put into the ground right at the time of sowing.
Sweet peas require little care from their gardeners. They should be watered regularly at the beginning and during longer dry periods. Adding fertilizer is not absolutely necessary. However, the later yield can be helped by adding rock powder (€18.00 on Amazon) or compost. As soon as the plants have reached a size of 10 cm, they are piled up with soil in the root area in order to become more stable.
After the sugar peas enter their flowering phase between mid-May and early June, the pods are ready for harvest in mid/late June. They are generally harvested before they are ripe, when they are narrow and tender.
Tips & Tricks
To protect sugar peas from fungal diseases, it is advisable to plant them in mixed culture. Ideal plant neighbors in your immediate vicinity include lettuce, kohlrabi, carrots, radishes and radishes.
