Peas - my first year

[mortality]

I grew 3 types of peas this year (my first year growing anything) Onward, Golden Sweet and Purple podded - Desiree. I didn't cross anything this year because I wanted to learn what the 'normal' peas were like and what to expect.

I just have a small garden and grew these 3 types next to each other. (all started off from seed indoor first )
I planted and harvested the 'Onward' first, a lovely tasty pea which grew to about 3ft in my garden.
I planted the Golden Sweet and Purple podded - Desiree peas at the same and was astonished to see the Golden Sweet seedlings racing ahead in size. Planted out the Golden Sweet got to about 5ft tall and the purple podded only managed 3ft at best.
The Golden Sweet suffered from Pea Moths the most, with Onward being untouched and the Purple podded - Desiree affected slightly.

I love the taste of the Onward Peas, the Golden Sweet Mange tout were lovely (not brilliant as peas though) and I wasn't too impressed with the taste of the Purple Podded - Desiree peas.

However the Purple podded held a surprise for me, a single mottled purple/green pod with two totally green pods growing on the same plant. Can anyone shed light on what might have happened there?



I am saving the seeds from these pods and hopefully will grow them just out of curiosity next year.

[flowerpower]

In the Pea Breeding Tutorial, there is alot of info on dominant and recessive genes in peas.

[robertb]

The anthocyanin gene didn't express over part of the pod. I've no idea why, but I've seen similar things myself.

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

Okay, i had another pea question. Since this is basically my first year growing peas, i figured I'd post in this thread. I've grown peas before, but that was when i thought all peas were the same.

So.. my question is... Is this a snap pea or a shelling pea?

i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af224/keen101/Garden%202011/DSCF0383.jpg
i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af224/keen101/Garden%202011/DSCF0384.jpg

I only planted two peas this year that should have green pods. I planted Dwarf Gray Sugar (snow pea), and Biskopens Graet (Field Pea?). I've ate a few pods from this plant, and they were very sweet, so I'm inclined to think at this point it's dwarf gray sugar, but apparently it's a snap version? Otherwise, it's Biskopens and is very good tasting. from reading on Rebsie's blog again, she claims the snap gene is recessive, so i suppose this could be dwarf gray, but i don't know how to tell a shelling pea from a snap pea at this point in time.

[raymondo]

Well done on the pea front Mortality. I too like Onward. An excellent pea.

Keen101, it's difficult to tell but neither look like any of the snaps I've grown, which all have been very 'full' pods. All the shelling peas I've grown develop fibrous pods sooner or later, usually sooner.

[ianpearson]

Hi Keen101, I'm also growing Biskopens this year, though they are not at the eating stage just yet.
If the pods are fibrous and inedible, its a shelling pea. However, some varieties of shelling pea make a just-passible mangetout (snow pea in US) if harvested early enough. Could it be a snow pea that's gone past its best (edible, but swollen pod)?
You should be able to identify by the plant height. Biskopens is 6' high, Dwarf Gray is 3'. Also, Biskopens has red tinged peas within the pod - something I'm still looking forward to seeing.

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

Jun 29, 2011 12:18:15 GMT -5 ianpearson said:

Hi Keen101, I'm also growing Biskopens this year, though they are not at the eating stage just yet.
If the pods are fibrous and inedible, its a shelling pea. However, some varieties of shelling pea make a just-passible mangetout (snow pea in US) if harvested early enough. Could it be a snow pea that's gone past its best (edible, but swollen pod)?
You should be able to identify by the plant height. Biskopens is 6' high, Dwarf Gray is 3'. Also, Biskopens has red tinged peas within the pod - something I'm still looking forward to seeing.

Well, i made the mistake early in the season of mixing all 5 varieties of seed together. I have two areas with peas. The first area (which these were in) the soil is probably drier, perhaps not the best soil, and the plants are generally much shorter than the other group. I've had a range of sizes which i think is because of the soil, so it's hard to tell a dwarf from a non dwarf.

This particular green one is (41") over 3'. There are at least two others that have this same pod shape (which probably is a shelling pea) and they are less than 2' tall. I've even had a few Golden Sweet plants that were no taller than 1' and produced only one pod (again i think because of the soil). I have a few confirmed dwarf gray sugar because they are showing the constricted pod gene, two of those are 2' high, and a third only 1' high.

I think all or almost all of the ones in the second group regardless of variety are about 3-4' tall. They are next to sunflowers and a trellis, and have a soaker hose nearby so they get plenty of water. I have to assume that it is Biskopens at this point because of the other green podded ones showing the constricted snow pea trait, but i could be wrong. I may have to wait and see if the seed indeed turn red. That may be the only way to know for sure.