Sweet summer! (Sweet Pea)

Member Name: anwar7

Product:	Sweet Pea
Date:	23/04/09 (255 review reads)
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Now that the sun has started to shine I am spending a lot more time in my garden. I love strongly scented, colourful plants and for me the sweet pea is one of the best! Sweet peas are easy to grow, provide lots of colour and have the most gorgeous fragrant flowers imaginable.

How to grow.
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It is possible to buy established plants but I always grow sweet peas from seed, as it is very easy to do. Seeds are widely available and can be sown from late autumn onwards. I usually sow my sweet pea seeds in about February. My children really enjoy helping to sow the seeds too. I use several deep plastic pots filled with a good potting compost, available form any plant nursery. Sweet peas have long root so will need fairly deep pots. I keep my pots in my laundry room so the seeds are kept nice and cosy! Once the seeds are about an inch high I pinch out the top to encourage god growth. I should point out that sweet pea seeds are poisonous to both animals and humans, so don't let young children put the seeds in their mouths!

In the late spring I move my seedlings outside really for planting. I tend to leave them in the pots for a few weeks to get them accustomed to being outside. I plant sweet peas both in a large pot, and I mean large, on my patio and also in a separate bed in the garden. Sweet peas will need support, as they are a climbing plant. I use bamboo canes to form a wigwam for my pot and single canes joined with gardening wire for the sweet peas I grow in the garden.

Sweet peas like full sun, the more the better. They are in fact native to the Eastern Mediterranean. They are quite hardy and will tolerate the cold however. Sweet peas like well-drained soil, although should be watered if the weather is dry. Sweet peas grow to about 1-2 metres in height although there are dwarf varieties available that don't need any support.

Once the flowers start to appear you will need to remove any dead heads to encourage new growth. The flowers should start to appear from July onwards. This is when your labours are truly rewarded! The scent of sweet peas is gorgeous! I love to have vases of sweet peas around my house as well as in the garden. They are also wonderful for attracting our struggling bees and butterflies. Sweet peas come in amazing colours too, from pastel shades to vibrant reds and purples.

Sweet peas are an annual plant, but they are well worth the small outlay every year in my opinion.

Summary: climbing ,scented plant