One of the 2014 garden experiments was to do the first planting of peas in the high tunnel. I began with 2 rows in the west bed, planning to add tomatoes down the middle (on the cattle panel fence) as the ground warmed up and those starts were ready to set out. However, Merlin reminded me that we usually plant a double row which means ~300 feet of pea plants. Well, those first 2 rows only added up to ~90 feet. So, he planted the next bed over with 3 more rows. This variety is called Sugar Ann and is a sugar snap pea which will fill out its edible pod. It will also (mostly) support itself by making a mass of intertwined stems, so we don't put it on a trellis. That makes it fairly simple to clean up when it stops producing. Here is the 3-row bed from a couple different angles (note the leaf lettuce heads for size reference).
The second planting of Sugar Ann peas went into the main garden on May 3 along with a double row of Mammoth Snow peas. Many years, we get these weeded, but they grow quicker than we expect and they never get any trellis to support their growth. Harvesting is definitely easier if they're on a trellis and it gives the plants strength on our windy days, so we're trying a couple different methods of trellising this year. The second plantings should be ready to harvest when the first plants run out of strength (or we remove them to grow something else)! Photos show the two varieties 3 weeks after planting at 6"-8" tall.
The peas in the high tunnel were seeded at the end of March and beginning of April. The first harvest was last Tuesday, May 20. One one-gallon ice cream bucket full was simply NOT enough to spread out to all our Tuesday CSA shares! By Friday, though, we harvested 2 buckets which matched that day's CSA share needs. Today, I found 2 buckets on the first two rows and will pick the remaining three rows tomorrow because I ran out of storage space in my refrigerator!
Seasonal bounty is always fun to see! Both varieties are delicious when eaten raw, steamed, or in a stir-fry.
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