How to Grow Sweet Peas In the Garden

In the Victorian language of flowers, sweet peas symbolized delicate and blissful pleasures. How very apt for this delicate flower with a blissfully pleasurable fragrance. Whether you intend to send someone a secret message with your bouquet, or just enjoy the color and scent as you pass by a trellis full of sweet peas, this heirloom bloom is a perfect addition to every garden.
The classic annual garden sweet pea, Lathyrus odoratus is originally from Italy, where local wild flowers were collected and bred for new colors, sweeter scent, stronger stalks, and other desirable traits. Many cultivars now available were bred in England, where the sweet pea has been a garden favorite for centuries. Lathyrus odoratus is what is most commonly thought of as the sweet pea. They come in a wide range of colors, from pastels to deep shades such as pink, purple, blue, and cream. Some are climbing vines for trellises and arbors, and some are low growing plants suitable for containers or garden borders. They all have in common a heavenly fragrance, which make them such excellent cut flowers. Another uncommon and beautiful species of annual sweet pea is Lathyrus sativus azureus, which comes from Asia and is sometimes called the Indian Pea. It has distinctive grassy foliage with vibrant blue flowers.
So Many Colors to Sow!
Sweet peas are native to many parts of the world, including Peaceful Valley’s own hometown Grass Valley, California, where Lathyrus latifolius, also called the everlasting pea, sends beautiful sprawling vines across the hillsides in early summer. A perennial unscented sweet pea that is native to many parts of the U.S., it was much loved by Thomas Jefferson who cultivated it in his own garden.
Planting Your Peas
Sweet peas are a cool weather plant that should be planted early enough to allow it time to grow and bloom before the heat of summer sets in. For regions with warm winters, this means planting it in the fall after Labor Day. For regions with cold winters, plant it as soon as the ground is workable and at least a month before the last frost. Sweet pea shoots tolerate frost, and should be planted directly outdoors. Before planting, soak the seeds overnight to improve germination. Scarify the seed by gently filing or nicking the seed coat can also help the seed to germinate. Select an area to plant your seeds that gets full sun. If you live in an area with especially hot summers, your sweet peas will appreciate some afternoon shade. Planting low growing plants on the south side of sweet peas will help to keep the soil shaded and cool while allowing the climbing sweet pea to receive full sun on its leaves. Plant your seeds 1” deep and 2 to 3” apart, thinning to 4 to 6” once the seedlings are a few inches tall. Seedlings should be protected from birds, slugs and snails right away, as they can quickly decimate a young patch of sweet peas. For climbing sweet peas, install your trellis or lattice at planting time, as they will want to climb soon after sprouting. They are happy to climb on nearly every vertical support; this versatility makes them perfect for creative landscape designs.
Siacri6, sow bugs or pill bugs, do mostly eat decaying material, but they can also eat other living plants. You can use something like Sluggo Plus that is labelled to control pill bugs. It will also kill slugs which can be a problem for sweet peas.
i was seeing my peas sprout then they would vanish leaving just the stripped pea seed lying there, rootless and leafless..everybody told me to ignore the pill bugs, “they only eat dead and dying plant matter,..focus on finding the slugs..” So i did..and i found a slug here and another there…tiny whitish slugs…and a couple days ago i noticed a pea seed emerging from the ground with its first leaves as if it were alive..i watched as the harmless little rolly polly hugged the pea and chewed the stem severing the leaves..then he rolled on his back hugging the seed and turned it roots up. crawled around and ate the roots off.. Since then ive observed this 6 more times.. so how do i dispose of these harmless little guys that are in such numbers they erupt from the softer ground like fluid if i disturb the areas where they dwell.. More damage than any aphid infestation has ever caused me.. help!!