Sweet Memories: Sweet Peas

If you've never grown sweet peas - the flowers, not the vegetable - then you've missed out. Simply put, sweet peas are among my favorite flowers. Not only are they fall and winter bloomers in California, but sweet peas bloom their sweet fragrant flowers precisely when your garden usually isn't at its best. What better way to brighten both the inside and outside of your home?

My memories of sweet peas go back to when I was a child. Every year my mother would plant a bunch of sweet peas along our back fence. They would twist and climb up chicken wire, and we almost always had a fresh bouquet inside. I still remember the fragrance and can feel the velvety silkiness of the flowers. To be sure, the prime benefit with growing your own sweet peas is being able to bring them indoors for use as your own natural roo air freshener!

Sweet peas (Lahyrus odoratus) are easily started by seed this time of year. Seeds most often are sold as mixtures, so you won't be able to choose from the separate colors of reds, pinks, purples, lavenders and whites. Be aware that there are several different heights.

The traditional climbing types like "Early Mammoth" and "Royal Family Mix" will grow 6 to 9 feet tall. They'll need the support of a fence, wall, trellis or chicken wire. The bush types like "Knee-Hi" and "Supersnoop" will grow about 3 feet high - compact plants that won't necessarily need staking. Dwarf types stay 6 to 18 inches high, and can be grown as groundcover carpets and in pots, hanging baskets or window boxes. Try "Little Sweetheart," "Patio Mixed" or "Bijou Mixed," to name a few.

Before planting, soak seeds a few hours to soften their coats. Please note that sweet pea seeds are poisonous, so keep them out of reach of children or pets. Seeds should be sown an inch deep and 2 inches apart. Soil should be moist, but not soggy. Amendments like peat moss or ground bark should be worked into hard soils. Sweet peas do best in alkaline soil conditions, which shouldn't be a problem for most of California.

Sweet peas are usually trouble-free. If aphids become a problem, spray with insecticidal soap or an all-purpose insecticide. Avoid root rot by making sure you don't plant in straight garden dirt. You'll almost be assured of good results simply by planting during the cool part of the year. This time of year, plant sweet peas in full sun or partial sun. In spring and summer, they need some shade in order to thrive.

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