Want to get started growing sweet peas but perhaps you don’t have any room left in your garden? No worries, Growing sweet peas in containers is super easy and can be done in only a couple minutes.
Picking a container to grow sweet peas in
Container size is very important for growing sweet peas, As a pea’s root system is rather large. The volume should be at the very smallest 20 litres of space, And depending on the species of sweet pea you’ve chosen to grown, it may need larger.
The container and growth medium should be able to maintain a lot of drainage so the plants don’t drown or become moldy. The reason? Peas need to be watered every day, aside from when it rains and you decide to toss it out on the deck for a bit.
But here is the silly bit, these need so much water that once it’s fully grown, You will need to add extra water even if it is raining. Why? Because their large canopy of foliage will prevent the rain water from seeping in.
In other words, Sweet peas are Thicc.
You will also need to choose a good, strong, nutritious medium to grow your sweet peas in. Don’t worry tho, I’m going to go over choosing one in this article. I want to make this as easy for you to get started as possible!
Sowing sweet peas
Now, these instructions depend on weather you plan on keeping it inside the house completly, Like in a grow room or sun room, Or if you intend to have them outside at all.
If you intend to never take them outside, it doesn’t matter what time of year you sow the seeds. This assumes you have the required lighting and temperature maintained in the growing room.
If you intend to keep them mostly out doors, You should sow around the end of march.
You can plant the seed directly into the soil and wait for it to sprout, Or you can sprout them in a nursery outside the soil, Either is fine. I personally prefer growing all my seeds in a nursery before they are planted, and only choose from the best healthiest specimens to plant.
Once the seeds have started sprouting and slowing down their growth, it’s time to add a trellis or other support structure that allows your plant to stand up straight with out sagging over. Remember, our girl is THICC right?
Trimming the flowers
I know, the flowers are beautiful on our thicc sweet pea aren’t they? Oh well, time to cut em off. Yup, if you want your plant to continue producing beautiful flowers you unironicly need to cut them off.
Keep away from animals
Sweet peas are beautiful but they certainly aren’t food, At least not in the normal sense. The fruit sweet peas produce is fairly toxic for humans and animals, This is especially true for dogs and cats.
Sweet peas contain a toxin called aminoproprionitrite which when consumed will cause musculoskeletal difficulties such as tremors, seizures, weakness etc.
Don’t be too concerned, It’s very unlikely Fido and Mrs. fluffers are going to be trying to eat your flowers. Especially in the quantities needed to cause these terrible side effects.
Letting your flower fruit
If you stop topping your plant your flower will begin to fruit peas, which you shouldn’t eat honestly. Depending on the species of course. Most people who refer to sweet peas as being delicious are actually talking about the English pea, Pisum sativum. It’s actually a completely different none toxic plant.
Growing medium for sweet peas
You want a rich, loamy soil to grow these plants in. Quiet deep as well. It should have a PH of around 7.0 to 7.5. A lot of this is gong to depend on the species of sweet pea you endeavor to grow in your garden of course so do bare in mind the instructions for that species in particular.
I hope you enjoyed this article on Growing Sweet Peas in Containers
Check out this Sweet Pea Sprouting Time Lapse by Floratimelapse
