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Growing Sweet Peas

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  • PS. protect from slugs 'n snails.

  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 23,966

    Wow! David! Half mine haven't germinated, did all that I should have done according to advice. They were going straggly on a windowsill in a cool room, now are in a cold frame. I used loo roll middles which are starting to fall apart. Silly me! They are bio-degradable ones!

    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 23,966

    Tracey, if you want flowers in the veg garden there are lots that go well. Sweet peas of course, French Marigolds to keep whitefly of tomatoes, nasturtiums to keep blackfly of broad beans. You can eat nasturtiums too, the flowers and the leaves, pretty and peppery in salads. You can grow flowers for picking to put in vases indoors, antirrhinums, cosmos, cornflowers, dahlias.

    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • rosemummyrosemummy Posts: 2,010

    david i do pick them every day and don't let any seed pods stay, mine are shockingly straggly,must get mini greenhouse up,tracey my friend grows hers in 2ft planter as wel as ground, ones in pots never do as well

  • Busy-Lizzie wrote (see)

    Wow! David! Half mine haven't germinated, did all that I should have done according to advice. They were going straggly on a windowsill in a cool room, now are in a cold frame. I used loo roll middles which are starting to fall apart. Silly me! They are bio-degradable ones!

     

    Going back to basics, mine are never indoors at any time, they are just too hardy and react by romping away.

    I just sow the seed in late October/early November in a cold greenhouse. As soon as the seed has germinated, then they go into a cold-frame.....even the lid isn't closed unless very extreme frosts are expected and there they stay until planting out time.

    On reflection, I'm beginning to wonder if either sowing as above, or just sowing the seed in situ would be best.  

    I know this works, but if anyone feels like trying an experiment, try sowing the seed where they are to flower in the autumn. The main setback with this is protecting from slugs & snails and probably birds.

    Frost & snow will never be a problem.

  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 23,966

    I'm always worried about sowing in the autumn, never managed broad beans. Here in Dordogne the winters are usually colder than in the UK. -10° is quite normal, and we have snow. No protection from the gulf stream! The winter we've just had has been much milder than usual and very wet.

    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • That's a fair point, Lizzie.....TBH, I've never succeeded with overwintering broad beans either. I put this down to my heavy cold/clay soil.

  • Orchid LadyOrchid Lady Posts: 5,800

    Right, I am going to be brave, stop playing at 'mummy' with them and get them in the ground......tough love image 

  • Orchid LadyOrchid Lady Posts: 5,800

    My sweet peas are in their new 'homes' and no longer look sad image

    Another question David, possibly a silly one.  I know sweet peas like to be supported, usually by trellis or net or an obelisk or something, but would they grow up a hedge (ie a privet hedge).  I was wondering whether to sow some of my seeds against the hedge, there is chicken wire at the bottom which stops the dogs getting through so something to attach to initially, but then would they entwine around the privet?  Just a thought I had whilst in the garden image

    image

     

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,102

    Mine haven't all germinated, but most of them have - they've gone outside into the mini-greenhouse/coldframe - they really weren't getting enough light even by the big studio window and they were becoming etiolated (love that word) and apart from that they were in danger of being painted image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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