How To Grow Peas: A Complete Organic Growing Guide

Peas are one of my favorite veggies to grow! Each year, I plant different types of peas in my garden, such as snow peas, sugar snap peas, and sweet gem peas. 

They're easy, delicious, and whimsically beautiful! And did you know that every part of a pea plant is edible? You can even grow microgreens from pea seeds.

I want you to know how to grow peas so you can get the most out of them this gardening season. From choosing pea seeds to the best green pea trellis, I’m going to tell you what most gardeners get wrong about planting peas, so that you don’t make the same mistakes as most gardeners! 

Peas in a Pod

Gardening can bring people closer together, whether it's family members harvesting, neighbors sharing seeds, or the larger gardening community of people teaching and supporting each other. Like peas in a pod, we can thrive and grow bigger together! 

I hope you’ll use MIgardener’s growing guides to learn how to grow green beans, how to grow corn, how to grow basil, how to grow radishes, how to grow cabbage, and how to grow cucumbers and share them with others. 

When to Plant Peas

Peas are a cold-weather crop! They can germinate as low as 40°F, but the optimal daytime temperature for planting peas is 55° to 65°F. 

That means, in most climates, if you want a good harvest, you need to get your pea plants growing and producing well before June. If you wait until the weather is too warm, the stems will dry out, and you end up with really brown bottoms on pea plants that will not produce much.

If you are planting peas late, there is one saving grace. Plant densely to shade the soil and add a little bit of mulch to protect them from the heat. 

Inoculating Legumes

I have recently started inoculating our legume seeds when planting them. Things like peas and beans can really benefit from an inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi.

I often add Trifecta+ to my soil, which contains a mycorrhizal inoculant in it, but I don’t want to over-fertilize beans and peas, so I tend to just use an inoculant on them, and it works really well!

There are tons of brands out there, but I prefer Mykos mycorrhizal inoculant (not a sponsor). I like to throw it onto my peas and beans right when I plant them to help fix the nitrogen into the roots of the legumes.

How to Plant Peas

Peas are one of the easiest things to start from seed! They will acclimate to their environment better if they are directly sown in the same place where you want them to grow. 

1. Sunlight - Peas don’t like it too hot. Keep them out of full sun to avoid burning your plants. Give them a maximum of 5-6 hours of sunlight. Planting densely with high-intensity spacing is recommended to shade the bottom of the plants from the hot sun and keep the ground cool at the same time.

2. Soil - Peas like a neutral pH of 7.0. Pea plants have small stems, so make sure that your soil is loose and well-draining. You can amend with pure compost and sand for perfectly loose soil.

3. Pre-Soak Seeds - It’s super important to pre-soak pea seeds, especially before early-season planting for good germination! Only soak them for 4 to 6 hours. They should take on water and get a little bit soft, but they should not be mushy.

4. Plant Spacing - Plant pea seed densely, only about 1 inch apart in a row along the bottom of your trellis (if trellising). A lot of people give their peas way too much space, leading to sub-optimal yields!

5. Planting Depth - Plant peas about 1 inch deep. 

6. Add Inoculant - Sprinkle Mykos mycorrhizal inoculant over the peas and cover them with soil. Two to three tablespoons of inoculant per every 4 feet of row is sufficient. Pro-Tip: Mykos has a really good CFU (colony forming units) count, so you don’t need much inoculant. The amount may change depending on how many CFUs are in the inoculant you choose. If you have lower CFUs, you’ll want to apply more.

7. Mulch - A thin layer of mulch can be used to cover the soil and protect peas from the heat. 

8. Water - Peas need approximately 1 inch of water per week. Peas do well with regular watering to keep the soil evenly moist. If mulched, peas rarely need that much water in early spring. In the hotter months, remember to water generously to prevent your plant from drying out.

How to Grow Peas on a Trellis

Not providing adequate trellising for peas is a really common mistake! If you are growing a variety of non-self-supporting peas, you need to provide ample trellising space, like 5 to 6 feet of trellising height, because many trellising peas will continue to climb. 

Peas will gladly climb any available trellis, but a dinky little trellis that only provides a tiny bit of support just won’t cut it for those varieties. I highly recommend reading “Different Types of Peas” to help determine whether or not you need to build a green pea trellis or cattle panel trellis. 

Protecting From Pests

It is important to protect your peas from pest animals in the garden. I hear from gardeners all the time who say they can’t keep the squirrels, crows, or mice out of their peas!

To protect the seeds until the plants sprout, you can simply get some chicken wire or wire mesh to cover your rows of peas. I use a staple gun to secure that to the wood of my raised beds or weigh it down with some rocks if I’m growing in-ground. 

Once the plants have sprouted, deer or rabbits may nibble on your peas. If that’s the case, read these blog posts on how to keep deer out of the garden and how to keep rabbits out of the garden. 

Harvesting Peas

It takes 50-80 days until most peas are ready to harvest. Harvest shelling peas when the peas have filled the pod, but before it starts to deteriorate, usually about three weeks after they blossom. 

Harvest snap pea pods when they are full-sized and contain large peas. Pick snow peas when the pods have formed, but the peas are just beginning to form little bumps.