Some plants have delicate flowers. Some flowers have a gorgeous perfume. Some plants seem to bloom for ever. Some flowers look almost as nice in a bunch in a vase as they do on the plant. Some plants are easy to grow from seed. And there is one plant which has delicate flowers with a gorgeous perfume which seem to last for ever and which benefit from having the flowers picked and picked and picked. The Sweet Pea. Grown among shrubs and perennials (and even in the vegetable garden) it clambers over canes and poles and wire supports or anything else it can find to climb, producing blooms for months on end. And, what is more, it is quite easy to grow from seed provided you follow some simple rules (there is always a catch, isn't there).
Now is a good time to start: seeds should be sown as soon as possible, and definitely before the middle of the month. They will have to be started off indoors or in a warm greenhouse. Sow the seeds in pots - four to a 9cm. pot, or if your window sills are wide enough, a dozen or so in a 13cm. pot. To help the seeds germinate remove a small bit of the seed coat opposite the eye, especially on the darker ones. This breaking of the hard seed cover will help to give a more even germination. If you feel like it, you can give the seeds a spray with a fungicidal seed dressing as this will guard against the seeds going mouldy before they germinate. Fill the pots with moist compost and firm it gently so that there is a space of about a fingers width between the top of the soil and the top of the pot to give a bit of room for watering. Now make a hole about 2cm. deep (that's about ¾in. if you are still into that sort of measurement), pop in the seed and cover gently but firmly, and put the pots on a windowsill away from draughts and direct sunlight and cover them with a few layers of newspaper so as to keep out most of the light. Check the pots twice a day, especially during the warmer days, and spray the top of the soil if it looks as if it is getting dry. Rain water is best, but tap water will do if it doesn't rain. As soon as the first green shoots appear, usually somewhere between five days and a fortnight, remove the paper and place the pots in lighter but cooler spot.
Now is the time to go outside, leaving the young plants inside. You have to decide where you are going to plant them when they are ready. It may be climbing up a trellis or over a cane pyramid, or clambering at will through some tree. Wherever it is to be, the soil has to be prepared and given a chance to settle. The soil should be well dug and given a dose of slow release fertiliser. The sweet pea is a fairly tolerant plant, but for the best results they do need a well-drained soil rich in humus.
Keep an eye on the plants as they develop, and when two pairs of leaves have appeared carefully pinch out the growing tip just above the top pair of leaves. This will make the plants branch outwards and give you more flowers. But before you plant them out they have to be hardened off. Take them outside during the day and bring them in again at night for at least five days; even longer if the nights are still cold. When the plants are about 5cm. (or 2ins. whichever is the greater) high, planting out can begin, but not if the soil is soggy. In this case postpone the planting until the weather improves and the soil has dried out a bit. Remove the plants from the pots without disturbing the roots too much. An easy way of getting them out of the pots is to hold the pot upside down with the plants hanging down between your fingers and give the edge of the pot a sharp tap on its rim. Gently tease the plants apart, keeping as much soil on the roots as possible. This is easier if the soil is fairly moist, which can be achieved by watering them a couple of hours before. Make a hole in the soil a bit bigger than the root ball, put the plant in and gently fill in with soil, pressing down carefully around the base of the plant. Use your fingers for this. Thumbs are not so sensitive as fingers and you may press a bit too hard without realising it. When finished, the soil should come to just under the bottom pair of leaves with most of the base of the stem under soil level. Put them in about 25cms. apart, or 12ins. if that is easier. Preferably any stakes should be put in before you plant as then there is no chance of damaging the roots as you push the stake in. You could make a wigwam out of canes, or put some canes in upright a few feet apart and put some string or garden netting in between. No matter what you do, the plants will eventually grow up and hide whatever it is you use. Now you can sit back and watch them grow, provided you remember to water them if the soil gets dry through lack of rain. And don't forget to pick the flowers so that you can enjoy them indoors. Picking stops them from going to seed, for if this happens the flowering season will be a short one. After all, once a plant produces seed for the next generation, its job for the year is done.
Happy Gardening
Garden Gossip written by Bill Hutchings
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page last updated 26 FEBRUARY 1997