Peas are among the vegetables of open ground and grown in our country almost everywhere. The plant is completely not demanding on the composition of the soil, and is cold-resistant. Grow it for the sake of delicious beans or juicy shoulder blades. In addition, peas are an excellent precursor to many other garden plants. Further, in the article, we will deal with the technology of such an operation as planting peas in spring (timing, seed layout, methods of preparing the garden, etc.) in all details.
Varieties
Of course, in order to get a good harvest of this crop, you should know about some of its features. There are only two main types of peas:
- Shelling. This vegetable crop is grown to produce seeds (mostly green).
- Sugar. This variety is grown to produce juicy shoulder blades. Such peas can be seen less often in the gardens of our country.
The cultivation technology of both varieties are similar. Only the landing methods are somewhat different.
How to choose a place
Planting peas in spring should be done correctly. First of all, you need to choose a suitable place for this culture. It must be, firstly, well lit by the sun, and secondly, protected from the wind. Plants planted in the shade bloom and bear fruit much worse. In addition, in this case, the taste of seeds and scapulae is also deteriorating.
This vegetable can be grown in the same place with a frequency of no more than once every 4 years. Very often it is planted on a potato field (just like some other beans). Planting in the spring with peas or, for example, beans allows you to save this crop from wireworms. This method of growing two crops at the same time has both its supporters and opponents. In any case, peas are not particularly competitive with the roots of potatoes. When planted in this way, its seeds are simply thrown into the holes along with the tubers.
Proper planting of peas in spring: soil preparation
Regarding soil nutrition, this crop is not too demanding. However, the soil should still be quite loose. Peas do not like acidic soils. Such land must be made known before planting. During the growth of peas, organic fertilizers do not contribute to it. This leads to a sharp increase in the growth rate of green mass. The number of flowers on plants is reduced. Therefore, peas should be planted where cultures had grown before, under which a lot of organic matter was introduced.
You can also just prepare beds for peas in the fall. In this case, the land is dug up and fertilized with rotted manure or garden compost (0.5 buckets per 1 sq. M). It is also advisable to add complex mineral fertilizer to the garden. Dig a bed to a depth in the bayonet of a shovel.
Seed preparation
Planting material is preferably pre-sorted. To do this, the beans are immersed in a 3% solution of sodium chloride (30 g per liter). Surfaced peas are removed, and those remaining at the bottom are washed and dried. Planting peas in spring is usually done with soaked seeds. You can use dry. But in the case of soaking, they will germinate, and therefore, yield crops, plants earlier. Seed preparation can be done in two ways:
- Soaking on a saucer. Seeds are placed in it and poured with warm water so that they are completely covered. Soaking is carried out in this case for about 6-10 hours. The water in the saucer must be changed every 2 hours. It is impossible to overexposure planting material in water. If bubbles come from the seeds, then the sprouts in some of them died. The easiest way is to soak the seeds in the evening - at night. Then in the morning they can already be planted.
- Warming up in a thermos. Water is poured into it at a temperature of about 45 degrees. Next, seeds are put in a thermos. They are heated in this way for 3 hours. During this time, they will have time to swell, saturated with water.
Planted material treated in this way usually emerges 2–3 days earlier.
Soaking of seeds using special preparations containing bioactive substances has recently become very popular. It can be, for example, "Epin" or "Humate".
Pea planting dates
Digging and leveling the bed for this crop should be done immediately after the melt waters come off. The planting time of peas in spring is from late April to early May. But in any case, the soil must first warm up in the sun. Therefore, the garden bed should also be covered with a film. In cold and wet soil, seeds can simply rot. Air temperature during landing can be quite low, but always positive.
Peas are not afraid of frost. Absolutely without harm to themselves, this culture can tolerate a short-term decrease in temperature to -6 degrees. In order to be able to harvest all summer, peas are planted in several stages. In this case, the planting time of peas in spring can be extended until the end of May.
Landing pattern
So, the bed is dug up and leveled. Now you can start planting peas. The layout of the seeds depends on the variety of this plant. Most often, landing is carried out in two lines. At the same time, the distance between the rows is 20 cm. Between the lines leave 50 cm for shelling varieties and 40 cm for sugar. The necessary distance between the plants themselves in a row for all varieties is usually 4-5 cm.
The depth of incorporation of pea seeds into the soil depends on the degree of soil looseness. On light soils, it is usually 5-6 cm, on heavy, dense - 3-4 cm. In any case, it is not recommended to deepen pea seeds by less than 3 cm. Otherwise, they can simply be pecked by birds.
Another way
Planting peas in the spring, the timing of which was discussed above, can be done using a slightly different technology. The considered method is usually used in the cultivation of tall varieties. In this case, supports are placed in the garden under the plants and for them it is necessary to leave a little space. Dwarf varieties are planted in a slightly different pattern. It allows you to use the area of the beds as rationally as possible. Low-growing varieties of peas are planted in small blocks. The distance between the latter in this case is usually not more than 13 cm. The seeds are buried in the ground by about 5 cm.
Landing technology
In a bed dug up and leveled by a rake, grooves of the appropriate depth and at the required distance are made under the peas. Pre-watered them, and then lay the seeds on the bottom. Planting peas in spring on poor soils can be carried out with simultaneous top dressing. In this case, at the bottom of each groove, a granular complex mineral fertilizer is preliminarily laid out. Sprinkling planting material on top, the soil is slightly compacted.
What varieties of peas should be used
To get a good crop of this crop, you should know not only how to plant the seeds, but also which ones to choose. The most popular pea varieties include:
- Delikata. This pea grows very high and bears fruit abundantly.
- Sugar Ann. A variety giving very juicy sweet pods.
- Waverex Short and very fragrant peas.
- Feltham First. The main advantage of this variety is endurance.
- Early onward High grade, giving a very good harvest.
Crop rotation rules
So, we have found out what is the technology for performing such an operation as planting peas in the spring. The precursors of peas (since it is undesirable to feed it during growth) should be well fertilized during the summer. A lot of rotted manure and compost is usually brought under tomatoes. Therefore, it will be very good to plant peas in the place of this crop. Also, pumpkin and potatoes are considered good predecessors for this plant.
How to care
Planting peas in spring (photos confirm this) - the procedure is quite simple. Regarding the care, the plant is also not too demanding. The only thing that peas cannot tolerate is drought and heat. Therefore, it should be watered abundantly in the summer. For one square meter of planting, you need to spend about 9-10 liters of water. Transfuse peas also should not be, otherwise the stems will begin to rot near the ground. Therefore, in rainy weather, watering this plant is optional. Pegs with cords stretched between them are usually used as supports under the stems. Peas will cling to them with antennae and grow better. After each watering, the soil under the plants should be loosened.
In the event that the garden bed was prepared correctly during a procedure such as planting peas in the spring, it is not necessary to feed the plants during the summer. If desired, you can pour peas with a solution of mullein (1x10) at the very beginning of flowering and during the mass formation of beans.