Sweet peas, from soaking to picking

Sweet peas reward attention more than almost anything else we sell, and most of that attention is needed in the first six weeks.

Soaking and chitting

Modern seed does not need soaking, and soaked seed can rot in cold compost. If you want to hurry things along, sow into deep pots or root trainers and give them somewhere frost-free and bright.

Autumn or spring

An October sowing overwintered in a cold frame flowers weeks earlier and longer. A February or March sowing catches up eventually and is far less trouble. Both work; the autumn one wins on stem length.

Pinch, then keep cutting

Pinch out the growing tip above the second or third pair of leaves to force side shoots. Then cut hard and often. The moment a plant is allowed to set a seed pod it decides its job is done and stops flowering.