Legume
How to grow peas
Pisum sativum
Garden peas for shelling are a cool-season crop: sow them direct from March to June in sun and moisture-holding soil, and they are ready 12 to 16 weeks later. Sow a first early in March and a maincrop in April and May to spread the harvest. Put supports in at sowing, water well once the flowers open, and pick every two days. They fix their own nitrogen, so the usual mistake is feeding them.
- Hardiness
- Hardy; round-seeded types overwinter
- Position
- Full sun to light shade
- Soil
- Fertile, moisture-retentive, free-draining
- Ideal pH
- 6.0 to 7.5
- Water
- Moderate, water at flowering and pod swell
- Feeding
- Light feeder
Sowing and planting peas
WhenSow Mar to Jun in succession (Oct to Nov for round-seeded); harvest May to Sep
Starting off
Direct sow from March (under fleece) to June every 3 weeks, germinating in 7 to 14 days at 5 to 15 °C: first earlies in March, maincrops April to May, and round-seeded hardy types in October to November for a May crop. In a cold spring sow in guttering under cover and slide the row into a drill at 8 cm tall.
Spacing and planting
Sow 4 to 5 cm deep in a flat-bottomed drill 15 to 20 cm wide, seeds 5 to 7 cm apart in three staggered lines; rows as far apart as the variety's final height, 60 cm for dwarf types, 1.5 m for tall 'Alderman'. Dwarf types such as 'Kelvedon Wonder' crop in a 30 cm pot or 20 cm deep trough with twiggy sticks.
Varieties worth growing
- Meteor
- Round-seeded first early only 45 cm tall, hardy enough for October and November sowing or the first sowing in late February under cloches.
- Kelvedon Wonder
- Wrinkle-seeded early with good mildew resistance, which makes it the one to use for the last sowing in June as well as the first in March.
- Hurst Green Shaft
- Second early to maincrop with long pods of nine to eleven peas held at the top of the plant for easy picking. Heavy cropping and very sweet.
- Onward
- The standard maincrop: plump, blunt pods, reliable in most soils and good for freezing.
- Alderman
- Tall heritage maincrop reaching 1.5 m or more that crops over a long period where you can give it proper netting.
Peas month by month
Timings are for central England. Allow two weeks later in the north and on cold, heavy soil.
- January
Nothing to do. Check cloches over autumn sowings.
- February
Sow a first early in guttering under cover late in the month. Put cloches out to warm the soil.
- March
Sow first earlies outdoors under fleece. Push in pea sticks or netting at sowing.
- April
Sow second earlies and maincrops. Plant out guttering sowings.
- May
Sow maincrops. Pick overwintered peas. Water once flowers open if it is dry.
- June
Last sowing by the end of the month, using an early variety. Pick early sowings every two days.
- July
Pick maincrops. Water well as pods swell. Mulch.
- August
Finish picking. Cut finished plants off at ground level and leave the roots in.
- September
Last pods from June sowings. Clear supports.
- October
Sow Meteor on well-drained soil in a sheltered spot late in the month.
- November
Finish autumn sowing by mid month and cover with cloches.
- December
Nothing to do.
Feeding peas
A light feeder. Peas make their own nitrogen, and on soil that has had compost in the last year or two they need nothing at all. Feed only poor, light or new ground, and never with nitrogen.
Avoid high-nitrogen feeds; phosphorus and potassium support the roots and pods.
Feeding plan
Autumn or winter before sowing
Garden compost
A 3 to 5 cm layer on poor or sandy soil, for moisture as much as food. Skip it on ground composted last year.
Sowing, poor or new beds only
100 g/m², the label maintenance rate, raked into the strip: about 30 g per metre of row for a 30 cm wide strip (100 x 0.3). On fertile soil, none.
First flowers to pod fill, light soils
1 g per litre of water as a drench or foliar spray every 2 to 3 weeks: 10 g in a 10 litre can. It supplies trace elements, including manganese, without nitrogen.
At any time
Nothing with nitrogen
Nitrogen feeds give tall leafy plants and few pods.
Signs to watch
Brown hollow spots in the centre of the pea
Manganese short (marsh spot) on over-limed or peaty soil
Avoid lime and give a manganese sulphate or seaweed spray at flowering
Pale, yellowing plants on cold, wet soil
Waterlogged roots stalling nodules, not nitrogen
Improve drainage, never feed nitrogen
Lush haulm and few pods
Excess nitrogen
High-potash only
Pests, diseases and problems
Small caterpillars with dark heads inside the pods, eating the peas
Pea moth, which lays eggs on plants in flower from early June to mid August
Sow early or late so the crop flowers outside that window: March sowings of an early variety and sowings made in late June mostly escape. Otherwise cover the row with insect mesh from first flower.
Seeds dug up or missing before they emerge
Mice, mainly on autumn and early spring sowings
Start seed in guttering or root-trainers under cover and plant out at 8 cm tall, or cover the drill with fine wire mesh until shoots show.
Seedlings and shoot tips stripped
Pigeons
Net the row from sowing. Twiggy pea sticks pushed in closely give some protection.
U-shaped notches round the leaf edges on young plants
Pea and bean weevil
Ignore it on established plants, which outgrow the damage. Fleece seedlings in a cold spring so they grow past the vulnerable stage quickly.
White powdery coating on leaves and pods from July
Powdery mildew, worst on late crops with dry roots
Water the soil thoroughly and mulch, and use a resistant variety such as Kelvedon Wonder for sowings after May.
Green aphids crowding shoot tips and flowers; pods distorted
Pea aphid
Squash colonies or knock them off with a jet of water; ladybirds and hoverflies usually catch up within a fortnight.
Harvest and rotation
Harvest and storage
Pick when the pods are well filled but still bright green, 12 to 14 weeks from sowing for earlies, 16 for maincrops; hold the vine with one hand and pull with the other, from the bottom up every 2 days. A 3 m row yields 2 to 3 kg of shelled peas. Sugar turns to starch fast, so eat or freeze within hours.
Rotation and companions
Rotation: legume group with beans, 3-year gap; brassicas follow to use the fixed nitrogen, and the roots stay in the ground. Sow between rows of carrots, turnips and lettuce, which enjoy the dappled shade; sweetcorn or sunflowers can serve as living supports. Keep away from onions, garlic and leeks, which inhibit peas.
Good to knowProvide twiggy supports or netting and keep well watered at flowering for full pods.
Growing peas in pots
Dwarf peas crop usefully in a pot at least 30 cm wide and deep. Sow about ten seeds 5 cm apart in peat-free multipurpose compost, push in twiggy sticks 60 cm tall, and keep the pot in sun but out of the hottest spot on the patio, as peas dislike warm roots. Water daily once flowering begins. Do not add fertiliser to fresh compost. For the quickest return, sow any pea thickly in a seed tray and cut the shoots at 10 cm for salads after three weeks.
Peas: common questions
Do peas need feeding?
No, not on reasonable garden soil. Peas fix their own nitrogen through nodules on the roots, so nitrogen fertiliser only produces leaf. On poor, sandy or new ground a phosphorus and potassium dressing at sowing helps, and watering at flowering matters far more than any feed.
Can I sow peas in autumn?
Yes, in mild areas on well-drained soil, using a round-seeded variety such as Meteor in late October or early November. Cover with cloches and protect the seed from mice. The crop is ready in May, three to four weeks ahead of spring sowings, but losses over a wet winter can be high.
How do I stop maggots in my peas?
Time the crop so it is not in flower between early June and mid August, when the pea moth lays its eggs. Sowings made in March and in late June mostly escape. For crops that flower in midsummer, cover the row with fine insect mesh from the first flowers.
Sources
Growing information on this page was checked against these references in November 2026. Feeding rates are Dr Forest label rates.
- How to grow peasRHS
- Pea moth: how to prevent damageRHS
- How to grow peasBBC Gardeners' World