last year i planted from seed and had what id call a bush of sweet peas in a lovely sunny spot and kept the seeds for this year.
i gave my grandam some plants that id grown from seed the same time as i planted mine out and hers failed miserably. her friend told her to soak the seeds in a small bit of water for a day or so then plant them out. personally ive never done this, only planted them in a pot/plugs then left them in the green house and plantes out when ready. i cheated this year and bougt plugs from b&q As we didnt move in till the start of feb and by the time we got settled i didnt have time to do it from seed.
i cannot wait for my first pick to pop on the kitchen table
Yeah, my sweet peas were sown in Feb last year but were still flowering on Christmas Day last year, only the really heavy snow killed them off, some time in January.
I'm hoping the seeds I took off the plant are going to be just as nice. I will also sow some this autumn as I absolutely love sweet peas.
Anyone know when the spring sown ones are likely to flower ? My first attempt this year . They are approx 3 ft high but now signs of any flowers yet . I was also advised to pinch out to make them bushier - hope this was the correct advice ! Think they are Spencer mix and they all seem to be growing well .
David K your advice on sweetpeas is so interesting I live in the north of Scotland so have always done a spring sowing of seeds but for next year Im going to go wth October minus 12 thats amazingly low temps for them to survive.
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last year i planted from seed and had what id call a bush of sweet peas in a lovely sunny spot and kept the seeds for this year.
i gave my grandam some plants that id grown from seed the same time as i planted mine out and hers failed miserably. her friend told her to soak the seeds in a small bit of water for a day or so then plant them out. personally ive never done this, only planted them in a pot/plugs then left them in the green house and plantes out when ready. i cheated this year and bougt plugs from b&q As we didnt move in till the start of feb and by the time we got settled i didnt have time to do it from seed.
i cannot wait for my first pick to pop on the kitchen table
To prove David's point about the hardiness of sweet peas, here is a photo of sweet pea seedlings in my garden in December 2010:
http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt165/koala_girl/2010Dec02sweetpeasunderthesnow.jpg
And here they are a few days later:
http://i608.photobucket.com/albums/tt165/koala_girl/2010Dec04sweetpeas.jpg
Yeah, my sweet peas were sown in Feb last year but were still flowering on Christmas Day last year, only the really heavy snow killed them off, some time in January.
I'm hoping the seeds I took off the plant are going to be just as nice. I will also sow some this autumn as I absolutely love sweet peas.
Koalagirl, your photos are amazing, and I am now thoroughly convinced. Two sowings are going to be the way for me in future. Thanks everybody!
gardengirl - these are my autumn sown sweet peas just before planting out:
I'm sure you would agree, they are very healthy & compact plants.
My autumn sowings are now 5 feet high in the garden, spring sowings are no more than 2 feet!
Ever notice how the first sweet pea stems are very long,and gradually they get shorter in time !
Anyone know when the spring sown ones are likely to flower ? My first attempt this year . They are approx 3 ft high but now signs of any flowers yet . I was also advised to pinch out to make them bushier - hope this was the correct advice ! Think they are Spencer mix and they all seem to be growing well .
David K your advice on sweetpeas is so interesting I live in the north of Scotland so have always done a spring sowing of seeds but for next year Im going to go wth October minus 12 thats amazingly low temps for them to survive.