One of my favorite times of year is when I get to plant my peas in the ground. It's the favorite garden veggie of choice at this household. The kids can't get enough for those candy-like peas picked fresh from the garden. When I was looking up some information on peas this past winter I came across the ideas of growing oats with the peas. The oats are planted at the same time as the peas. The peas can then climb up the oats as they grow providing a trellis that not only is a lot cheaper than buying fencing but also add nutrients to the soil. I am excited to give this a try. I will keep you on the progress as the plants grow.
Related link: See my post on Cheap Pea Trellis Options
The varieties of peas that I am growing this year are: Super Sugar Snap, Green Arrow Shelling Peas, Mammoth Melting Snow Peas, Oregon Snow Peas, Wando Shelling Peas.
When planting the peas and oats I made sure I had enough room to walk in between each row so I could get in to access the peas when they are ready. I marked each row with a brick and made sure I could fit both my feet between each row. The pea plants themselves can be planted close together as they have shallow rows and I find thrive when competing with their neighboring plants.
I planted my peas right at the end of March. The weather has been back and forth with a lot of cool, below freezing nights. While peas and oats can withstand these frosty nights it took the seeds a while to germinate - over 2 weeks. By the end of April the peas started to establish themselves with their leaves unfolded and signs of the tendrils being formed.
I have never grown oats before so I am interested in seeing how they take off. The variety I choose was Cayuse Oats. Right now the are both the same height as the pea, depending on the individual plant. All I need is for the oats to get tall enough for the peas to have something to grab onto.
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