Garden Pea

I have been growing my own peas for about 30 years, originally because I accidentally destroyed my then three year old daughter's sunflower and I remembered from my own childhood how quickly peas grow. It seemed a fair replacement. She took such an interest that it rubbed off on me and eventually I went from just growing a few for fun to really nurturing the plants and helping to feed the family with these wonderfully sweet and natural peas. It really is very easy to get a crop of peas, takes very little effort and is rather fun. Seeds are available from garden centres and supermarkets, or have a look on Ebay as I recently paid just £1.79 for 200 seeds. I ...  Read the complete review

In my view there is nothing to beat fresh veggies picked straight from the plant at the time you prepare your meal, then cooked and eaten within an hour or so. This way nothing is lost either in goodness or in taste, frozen veg no matter how expertly frozen can never match the taste or quality of freshly grown and harvested. This in my mind makes the small amount of work involved well worth the effort. One of my favourites for my small garden is the humble pea, useful in so many meals from the tasty stir fry to the glorious Sunday roast. The garden pea has been a favourite for centuries and has a good food value, among other things it ...  Read the complete review

I tried to resist the pun, really I did..... I'm stil fairly new to gardening, but am elarning on my feet. The first eyar I tried to grow peas, I got about three, the slugs got the rest - largely by dint of eating the pea plants as soon as they poked their heads out of the soil. I have learned to be more cunning. Why grow peas? Well for a start, fresh peas are infinitely better than frozen ones and there's soemthing very satisfying about havign fresh produce from your own gaden. Secondly, epas will improve your soil - msot plants take nitrogen out of the soil, peas will put it back in, effectively making it more fertile. They look quite good ...  Read the complete review

Well, it’s been a long time. I can’t believe I last wrote an op on 31st May. But I'm still here. I haven't gone to the great compost heap in the sky. Nor, indeed to the great garden bonfire tended by auldmac - sorry, Auld Nick. Time flies in the high-tech, state-of-the-art world of horticulture. (Digging and mowing, OK?) And the biggest problem I’ve had with this one, is – a plethora of potential pea puns for a title. On the strength of which, I nearly called it “Alliteration”. Although obviously, onomato–pea–eia would have been smarter, if I could have worked it out with a pencil. Or ...  Read the complete review

Isn't it wonderful this time of year to taste freshly podded peas, straight from the plant, or lightly steamed mange tout with a swirl of butter. Yes I know that we can trolley down to the grocers or supermarket to buy a pack of commercially grown pea pods, but there is nothing so tasty as a few Kelvedon Wonder peas, grown on a pot. I bought mine from Lidl in April, sowed a dozen peas 2 inches (5cms) deep in 10 inch (25cm) pots in compost the same day, added a pinch of Growmore fertiliser to each pot, watered them and put them in a cold greenhouse. When the first shoots came up a week later, I put six 90cm canes around the inner edge of the pot and tied ...  Read the complete review