WHAT TO DO IN THE GARDEN THIS WEEK

PEAS

Sweet and tender peas are easy to grow in cooler climates, or over the cooler months in warmer places. Enjoy them in pasta, salads, risottos and stir-fries, as well as eating them straight from the pod. The general rule is to grow 10 plants per person – more if you want a surplus to freeze.

SOW AND GROW

When to sow: April to October in warm areas; September to April in cooler areas. Transplant: April to October in warm areas; September to April in cooler areas.

Position: Full sun. Harvest: 10-12 weeks. Good for beginners.

GET STARTED

Peas prefer cooler weather and will stop producing if it gets too hot, so treat them as a shoulder season crop in warmer places and sow mid-autumn until mid-spring. In cooler regions, you can sow from the start of spring until the middle of autumn.

Birds, rats and mice also find peas delicious and can eat newly sown seed before it gets a chance to strike. But once pea seed has produced its first true leaves, the nutrition in the seed has been exhausted, so if newly planted seed disappears at your place, start peas in punnets or trays, and carefully transplant when the seedlings are about 5cm high.

STEP-BY-STEP

· Sow all pea seed about 2.5cm deep.

· Space climbing peas 5-10cm apart next to a teepee, trellis or climbing frame. Dwarf peas can be spaced about 10cm apart in rows that are about 50cm apart. Dwarf varieties appreciate a bit of support too, so plant in blocks or use a stake to about 40-50cm.

· Germination can take from six days up to a fortnight in winter. Some gardeners like to pre-soak pea seeds for a few hours to hasten germination.