Peas are a vegetable that is enriched with fiber and vegetable protein, which is a strong building material for human muscles and bones. At the same time, peas fill the soil with nitrogen, which is necessary for the germination of other plants. And it is easy to grow this crop in open ground in spring.
Favorable time
The time of year and month for sowing are the most important factors when growing peas. The quality of the future product depends on this. Since this vegetable is a cold-resistant crop, it is better to plant it early in the spring, but not earlier than the 20th of April. Peas can withstand frosts down to 4-6 degrees below zero.
It is necessary to take into account the weather conditions of the region. The soil should become dry, and the snow should melt. You can check whether the soil is ready or not like this: you need to dig up the bed and if the soil does not stick to the shovel, you can plant. You also need to check the soil temperature (up to 5 degrees Celsius at a depth of 5 centimeters).
Features of the regions: in the south, it is recommended to plant even in March-April, in the Central zone of Russia, the favorable time is the last week of April, and in the North of the country - the first weeks of May.
Preparing seeds
Since even in specialized stores in bags with seeds you can find defective specimens, you need to sort them manually. If a person collected peas on his own, you need to look at it for damaged seeds. If there is no time for this, you can put peas in cold water: low-quality seeds will float.
When doubts arise about the success of pea germination, in winter you need to make sure of the quality. 10 peas should be placed in water for 5 hours, then folded into damp gauze and stored in a container in a warm place. In this case, it is necessary to monitor the moisture content of the fabric (wet it 2 times a day). Many people have a question: is it necessary to soak peas? This is not recommended, since if there is a cold snap, the sprouted roots will die along with the seeds.
Soil selection
The most successful plot of land for sowing is sunny with no drafts. The soil should be light and nutritious. Speaking about the rules of crop rotation, it is good when cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, pumpkins or potatoes previously grew in this place. And undesirable predecessors are legumes, after which sowing of peas is allowed only after 4 years.
Soil preparation
Careful soil preparation is also a very important factor for planting. It is carried out in several stages: digging up the earth, removing weeds, applying fertilizers, loosening and leveling the soil.
It is forbidden to overdo it with fertilizers, since the plant will begin to build up the earth mass, as a result of which very few pods will sprout. And if this soil was previously fertilized, then nothing else needs to be done with it.
Sowing peas
After watering the soil and absorbing moisture, it is necessary to form grooves, the distance between which should be from 15 to 35 centimeters. Sowing depth - 1 centimeter (if the soil is poor - 2 centimeters). The distance between peas is 4–6 centimeters. After these procedures, you need to cover the rows with soil and press them down with your hand.At the end, it is necessary to cover the beds with something to protect the seeds from birds and create a greenhouse effect.
Sowing and caring for peas is easy work. And if you follow the 5 rules for sowing peas in the spring in the ground under the sun, you can still get a useful result - a lot of green peas.
