Growing Bush Peas

Latest update 4th May 2020.

Bush Peas.

• Greanfeast peas have a dense low growing habit.  They cover and enrich the soil with their mutualistic relationship with nitrogen fixing bacteria.
• Their yield may be relatively low, but grown organically, they are just as nutritious and tasty as their taller cousins and well worth the effort.
• Legumes grow well in Ecobeds and are not usually affected by fungal diseases like powdery mildew because their foliage stays dry most of the time. 

Details.

• Variety:                                                    Greenfeast. 
• Family group:                                           Fabaceae.   
• Crop rotation group:                                  Legumes.  
• Garden bed type:                                      Garden Ecobed.  
• Minimum sun per day:                              5 hours.   
• Plant spacings (centres x rows):                80 x 80 mm.
• Weeks to harvest:                                     9 - 11 weeks.
• Good companions:                                    Potato. radish. carrot. turnip.  
• Climate:                                                   Warm temperate. 
• Geography:                                              Southern hemisphere.

Nutrition.

• This food is very low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium.   
• It is a good source of protein, vitamin A, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, phosphorus and copper, and a very good source of dietary fibre, vitamin C, vitamin K, thiamin and manganese.  
• More from nutrition data.self.com.

Maintain Healthy Plants

• This blogpage explains how I maintain healthy plants.  It describes how soil is prepared prior to planting, how to regulate the sun's intensity and how to help protect and feed plants through their leaves.

Propagate Plants Efficiently

•  This blogpage explains how I propagate seeds in a purpose built propagator.

Propagation Plan 2020.

• This blogpage tells you when to sow seeds.

Services Plan 2020.

• This blogpage tells you when to make compost and plan other garden/household related activities.

Growing Instructions. 

• Clear the prepared bed of mulch and level the soil.  Sow 40 dwarf peas in drills 20mm deep spaced 80mm apart in rows set 80mm apart. 
• Water them in well with captured rainwater.

Harvesting and storage

• Harvest the peas in October/November. 
• Pick them as soon as they fill their pod.  
• Use a pair of scissors to snip the pods off the vine to avoid damaging it.
• Pick when you are ready to use them as they start to lose their sweetness as soon as they are separated from the plant.
• They retain most of their sweetness if podded, blanched and stored in the freezer right away.  I use re-sealable plastic bags so I can use a few at a time and return the rest to the freezer.
• Alternatively you can leave them on the vine to fully mature.  When the pods have dried outremove the vines from the bed and recover the dried peas.
• Store them in sealed containers until you want to use them.  Use them in soups and stews after soaking them in water overnight. 

Organic Pest Control. 

• Dwarf peas, like most vegetables, are vulnerable to attack from certain pests in my garden.  My blog Controlling Garden Pests explains a little about these pests and what to do to protect plants from them.  For details click on the appropriate link below.
• Slugs and snails.
• Greenhouse whitefly.
• Powdery mildew.