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Flowers · annual climber
Sweet pea from seed
Lathyrus odoratus · also searched as sweet peas
- Germination temperature
- 55 to 65°F (13 to 18°C)
- Sowing depth
- ¼ to ½ in (6 to 12 mm)
- Days to germinate
- 14 to 21 days
- Light
- Cover the seed; darkness helps
- Before sowing
- Nothing needed
- Start indoors
- 4 to 5 weeks before planting out
- Plant out
- 2 to 0 weeks before the last frost
- Spacing
- 4 to 8 in (10 to 20 cm)
Your dates from your last frost Seed not coming up?
Sowing
Johnny's: darkness is needed for germination; sow ¼ to ½ in deep in deep pots 4 to 5 weeks before planting out, or direct, 2 to 3 seeds every 6 in. Seedlings tolerate a light frost.
Care and transplanting
Pinch at 6 to 8 in tall for more stems, tie to a trellis and pick often to keep flowers coming.
Problems
Seed that never appears has often rotted in wet soil. Plants stall in heat.
Saving seed
Leave pods to dry on the vine; self-pollinating varieties come true.