Wealden Times | WT168 | February 2016 | Wedding supplement inside

absolutely astounding, with companies like Matthewman’s of
Yorkshire demonstrating the magnificent results of 40 years of
plant-breeding.
For us lesser mortals, some preparation of the site is useful,
if not essential, as sweet peas are greedy eaters and well-rotted
organic material added to a planting trench along with some
torn-up newspaper (if your soil is free-draining) is going to
give your plants a good start. Shredded comfrey leaves in the
trench help too and, later on, as the plants take off, feeding
them with comfrey pellets will help development. As they
grow on, use a potash-rich feed to encourage flower growth.
Before this, and unless you are buying-in seedlings, you
will need to plant your seeds. Pop a couple of seeds in each
growing tube: root-trainers are great for sweet peas as they
can accommodate the long root system they develop – as
can cardboard loo rolls, although these are sometimes not
long enough. Push the seeds in about an inch below the
surface, two to a tube. Use a good multipurpose compost and
don’t think about planting them out until their roots fill the
growing tube. Pinch out the plants, removing the growing tip,
once they reach about six inches high, so that they don’t waste
valuable time growing straight on up but have a chance to
plump out a bit. Sweet pea seeds are quite slow to germinate
and need checking regularly but they should show signs of
life within a week or two. Mice love these plump little seeds
so you may have to resort to the dreaded poison, traps or
some other means of deterrent. Cover your seed trays with
newspaper to keep the moisture in but the light out. Once
you have planted your seedlings out, you now have to think
about slugs. A thick layer of sharp sand is a good idea, as are
a few slug pellets. Once your plants start flowering, pick the
flowers every other day to keep them producing fresh blooms.
If all this sounds like hard work, it isn’t really – and what
can be more gorgeous than a bowlful of sweet peas on that
kitchen table?
Sue Whigham can be contacted on 07810 457948 for
gardening advice and the sourcing and supplying of
interesting garden plants.
Garden Perfection
City Escapes provide domestic & commercial garden solutions
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Tel: 01435 868211 | M: 07831 302107 | E: damian@cityescapes.co.uk
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