Peas (Cover Crops) - Key Growing Information
Uses: A quick spring or fall green manure, alone or in mixes. Peas grow strongly in cool weather, shield the soil from erosion and crowd out weeds. They can also be grown for small yellow dry soup peas or for pea tendrils in salad mix, and their showy flowers draw pollinators.
Culture: For green manure, sow in early to mid-spring or in late summer to early fall. Treat the seed with a pea-type inoculant and plant 1½–3" deep in moist soil. Drilling works best; if you broadcast, use a higher rate and harrow or rake the seed in for good germination. Peas are often sown with spring grains for more organic matter and less weed competition. For fresh or dry peas, sow as early in spring as you can, 1½–3" deep in 3" bands at about 25 seeds per foot.
Seeding Rate: Alone: 5 lb. per 1,000 sq. ft. or 200 lb. per acre. In a mix: 3 lb. per 1,000 sq. ft. or 120 lb. per acre.
Light Requirements: Full sun to part shade.
Soil Requirements: Peas like well-drained soil near neutral pH with moderate fertility. Their shallow roots make them prone to drought stress.
Height: 24–36"
Harvest: For seed, harvest once pods are mature, 20–30 days after bloom or 52–75 days after planting. Pull the vines when about half dry and pile them, under cover if you can, to finish drying. Thresh, winnow to clean, and store the peas somewhere cool and dry.
Termination: Peas can be turned under at any stage, but waiting until after flowering gives the most nitrogen. Because they grow tall, mowing first makes them easier to work in. On a small scale, tarping for 2–3 weeks works well. Peas don't survive hard frost, which makes them a good winter-killed cover when sown in fall.
