On the scent of sweetpeas
Nothing says summer like sweet peas. But you need to start them early to ensure masses of scented blooms later in the year. For our June wedding, my mother timed it perfectly, so we had jam jars of sweet peas on every table.
If you didn’t get round to it in the autumn, now is a good time to sow them under cover. You can either plant three seeds in 9cm pots or individually in modules filled with peat-free compost, and place in a frost-free environment.
Some people nick the seeds with a knife to aid germination, avoiding the ‘eye’, but i never bother with this. When the seedlings reach 10cm, pinch out the tops to encourage bushier growth. Plant in May when the risk of frost has passed, in a sunny spot where you will catch a waft of their delicious scent as you walk by.
You can easily construct a wigwam support using bamboo canes and twine.
There are many different varieties and colours of sweet pea, Lathyrus odoratus. Spencer Mix are classic, with large blooms and long stems perfect for cutting. Cupani is an old- fashioned variety, brought to Britain in 1699 by a monk called Brother Cupani, with reddish-purple flowers.
Charlie’s Angel has delicate lavender petals and was the first Spencer-type to win an RHS Award of garden Merit.