ANNUALS > LATHYRUS
IN THIS GUIDE
LATHYRUS GUIDES
SowingSupport
Sweet pea are without a doubtfulness one of the most popular annual bloom grow in the UK .
Beautiful , fragrant and utile , there are many reasons to mature them , or a perennial character , in your garden .
L. odoratus‘Gwendoline’
We interview three expert grower of these plant particularly for this guide :
When questioned , Phillip cites the “ stove of coloration and scent ” as his reason for being so passionate about growing Sweet Peas , whilst Georgia puts it down to the plant life ’s “ nostalgia , fragrance and stark prettiness . ”
These climbing plant life are truly pop for their delicate pea plant flowers in a stove of chromaticity , and for their pleasing fragrance .
As legumes , these plants can also be useful for their ability to co - operate with bacterium in their root , which are able to take atmospheric nitrogen and make it uncommitted in the grunge .
Nitrogen is a central plant nutrient , so this is secure news for plants aim in the smear after odorous pea , or , potentially , also for plants grow close by .
These flowering plants are also great for bee and other pollinator , and can help oneself with pull other beneficial insect sprightliness to your garden .
L. odoratus‘Gwendoline’
Overview
PreferredFull Sun / Part Shade
ExposureExposed or Sheltered
Height1 – 2.5 M
L. latifolius‘Pink Pearl’
Spread0.1 – 0.5 chiliad
PreferredLoam , Sandy
MoistureWell drain
pHAny
There are two main types of angelic pea plant , the common yearly type and perennials .
Annual sweet peas , Lathyrus odoratus , as gardener know them today , were cross - spawn and educate by Scottish horticulturist Henry Eckford in the former 19th and early twentieth Century.1Don , M. ( 1999 , June 13).Sweet smell of nimiety . The Guardian . Retrieved March 21 , 2023 , fromhttps://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/1999/jun/13/gardens
Bred from plants with royal bloom , in the wild , sweet peas are now available in a wide range of hue .
While these are the sweet peas well cognize to most gardeners , there are also perennial type , often known as ‘ double-dyed pea ’ .
These include cultivars ofLathyrus latifolius , L. grandiflorus , L. aureus , L. vernus , L. rotundifoliusandL. nervosus , for example .
Though these are not fragrant like the annual type , they will hark back year after yr , bringing many benefit to your garden .
Annual Or Perennial?
The first decision you will have to make when develop sweet peas is whether the annual or perennial type are good for you .
yearly sweet peas are an fantabulous option for tiro gardeners , and for inseminate with nipper .
They can be a great choice for inclusion among the crops in an annual kitchen garden , for turn in pots or containers , or for a sunny mixed border .
There are over 50 cultivar of annual sweet pea plant which have been award with an RHS AGM .
Just a handful of the great choice to consider let in :
“ I love ‘ Mrs Bernard Jones ’ for the rich amounts of gelt pink frilly efflorescence and sweet-smelling scent , ” explains Georgina .
“ Another favorite of mine is ‘ Blue transformation ’ . It is a fascinating variety that deepen colour as it ages .
“ The flush jump out a imperial colour and slowly morph into the most wonderful aquamarine hues . ”
recurrent peas or everlasting pea do not need to be sow anew each year .
As perennial , they can remain in your garden over a number of year .
They can be a great choice for the sunny fringes of a wood garden or fruit tree guild , or for a herbaceous border .
Some groovy perennial types to consider include :
Sowing Guidelines
odorous pea , both annual and perennial , are typically sown either in spring , between March and May , or in autumn , in October or November .
“ I inseminate two raft of Sweet pea for my garden , one in October and the other in February , both under glass , ” share Horticultural Consultant Colin Skelly .
“ This provide both some arcdegree of insurance that at least one batch will be successful and two waves of flowers if both succeed . ”
Sweet peas are particularly easy to grow from seed , even for beginners , so it is unbelievable that you will require to bribe plants .
However , if you care to avoid this step you’re able to also buy plug plant in the spring .
sprouting rates are usually excellent , though you may help secure germination by cautiously snick each seed with a knife , forefend the ‘ oculus ’ area – this is not usually necessitate .
Seeds can be inseminate in small , individual green goddess ( 3 seeds per 9 centimeter pot ) , in soil blocks , or in ejaculate trays – in good lineament , seed - get down peat - gratis compost .
Growing your seed in cooler temperatures might also improve their success rate , Phillip explains : “ When the seeds have germinated , grow them in cooler conditions . This will arrest the plants from growing leggy . ”
“ Sweet peas are hardy yearbook and will hold out icing and snow , ” advises Carol .
“ They sulk a bit but do not die . Mine are outside harden off in March and I embed out in April ( in Lancashire ) .
“ They can be planted to begin with further south in the country , and usually May in Scotland ( there is no point planting in the beginning as the soil is not warm enough and they will just sit down until it warms up ) . ”
“ maturate perfumed peas close to a garden bench so you could sit and enjoy their color and scent , ” Georgina recommends .
If you sow them in autumn , a hoarfrost - destitute lieu to keep them over the wintertime months is therefore preferred but not always essential .
When & How To Plant Sweet Peas
Indoors sown sweet pea plant should be temper off before you place them alfresco .
This simply means slow acclimatising the young plants to outdoor grow condition .
Sweet pea can work well in a range of setting .
Annual types can ferment well , as mentioned above , in a kitchen garden as a companion plant for one-year crops .
recurrent types mould well in borders or the fringes of other polyculture planting schemes .
Phillip from Kerton Sweet Peas advise till your stain and remove any weeds before you plant out your Lathyrus in the choose emplacement for the best results .
Both type can also be maturate in containers .
Plugs or crapper ( with three seedlings in each ) should be spaced around 20 cm aside , through exact spacing is not hugely important and you do not need to worry about too much about severalize the individual plants from one another .
engraft them to the same depth that they were in their previous container .
Caring For Lathyrus
Most mellisonant peas are not only incredibly prosperous to grow , but also very easy and straightforward to care for over clock time .
Most angelic pea plant want some form of financial backing , whether that is other plants , a trellis or other support social system .
Make trusted you take a support marvellous enough to support the particular variety or motley that you bid to get .
But remember that you might be able-bodied to use natural or reclaimed materials and do not need to bribe anything novel .
Most fresh peas are self - cling climbers , which have tendrils which latch onto supports .
However , there are some sweet peas that will involve to be tied into support structures .
Some perennial types have a different growth habit and do n’t need backup at all .
All sweet pea plant can cope with a little light shade , but most will do best in an candid position in full sunlight .
“ I ’ve always seek to grow angelic peas in my garden , but I ’ve eventually given up as they just do n’t produce in my fully shaded garden , ” shares the creator of Our Plant Stories Sally Flatman .
unfermented peas take a wet retentive yet free drain ground or potting commixture .
They will fly high in loam or sand but can cope with a kitchen range of filth types and are unfussy about pH.
They will not particularly like a heavy soil , and can rot in very heavy and very wet conditions , and a very dry and low - nutrient soil can also increase the chance of issues like powdery mildew setting in .
But in most situations , sweet peas will remain largely hassle - free .
“ Water , water , and water again to ensure your angelical pea do not dry out out but make trusted they are not waterlogged : complimentary drain is essential , ” says Carole .
proceed to water regularly when arise in pots or containers , through additional watering will only be require during very juiceless geological period when sweet peas are growing in the ground .
yearly honeyed peas are typically H3 hardy , meaning that they are hardy only in soft and coastal areas of the UK ( down to -5 to 1 ° C . ) .
They will however , fly high in the temperatures give in most UK gardens during the summer months .
peculiarly with annual sweet pea , it is a good idea to feed plant life with an organic , atomic number 19 - rich plant provender once a week or so after the flowers lead off to shape , to raise strong and respectable flowering .
This is especially beneficial when plant are acquire in less fertile , light soils , or in pot .
Perennial character can gain from a mulch ( such as comfrey leaves ) around the base , though take care not to mound mulch around the stems .
Larger , mature perennial peas can often be divided in spring or autumn , and the divisions can be carefully make a motion to Modern positioning in your garden .
When annual sweet pea flora sown in spring are around 10 cm tall , you should crimp off the maturate tips to encourage shaggy-coated growth .
Autumn sown plants will usually ramify course on their own .
If you desire the ripe prime with retentive , straight stems , growing one-year dulcet peas as cordon will bid the best results .
Select the solid shoot and train it up a cane or tall stakes , and pinch out all the other side shoots and tendrils when they appear .
Perennial peas can be reduce back to the ground in the autumn .
But for the rice beer of garden wildlife , it is best to wait until February before perennial are cut back .
The stagnant foliage and staunch forget tax shelter for a kitchen range of beast .
Picking Flowers
Sweet pea make great cut flowers .
Flowers should be peck oft , as this will encourage more to form and prolong the florescence time of year , Carole explains .
“ If they go to seed , they will stop flowering . ”
Common Pests & Diseases
“ If constitute too close together , Sweet Peas can hurt from mildew and can also draw in greenflies , ” Carole from the National Sweet Pea Society explains .
“ I will the greenflies on my sweet peas and let the ladybirds sort out them out . ”
Sweet peas are not generally very difficult to raise successfully , but they can be very prone to laze price , especially when young .
“ I surround my sweet pea beds with hosta leaves to amuse any slugs and snail , ” says Carole .
Aphids can also be a problem for immature plant .
Powdery mold can set in , especially if plants are under - watered .
Viruses can also attack sweet pea , though this is not specially common .
Saving Lathyrus Seeds
If you are growing one-year sweet pea , saving the seeds is a dependable way to check that you do not have to buy more seeds to savor these plant in your garden again the following year .
merely leave seed pods on the plants until they get dry and papery , then collect them on a wry twenty-four hours in autumn , shell them from the pods , and store them in a paper udder in a ironical smirch until you are quick to use them .
