- As easy as shelling peas. Well, that's how the saying goes. But is growing snow peas that easy? Good day, I'm Mark from
Self Sufficient Me. Well, growing snow peas can be pretty easy if you follow my five top tips on how to grow a ton of snow peas. Let's snap into it. (soft music) Speaking about shelling peas, you technically don't
grow snow peas to shell, but you can. More about that intriguing point later. That was pretty easy. Snow peas are usually grown to eat whole and are remarkably similar
to sugar snap peas. In fact, sugar snap peas are a
cross between these snow peas and regular peas. And that is the business. Tip number one, soil preparation and sowing. Soil preparation is one of the big keys to growing a good crop of peas. I prepared this bed with
some more soil, compost, and animal manures to
make the soil structure free draining enough, but
also water-holding and rich. Peas are fairly resistant
to drought conditions, but they still do best with regular water. And whilst I can handle
sandy or heavy soils, you'll get better results
if the soil is 'goldilocks,' not too heavy, not too
light, but just right. Peas are best solen
where they are to grow. In other words, you're
best just sowing them straight into the prepared garden bed. Root disturbance is always a thing when you're transplanting vegetables, and if they can establish
their own root system right from the get go all
over, they grow better. Sow the seeds close together
about an inch or two apart max to allow for a loss of crop from insects or rodents gnawing them off. Because even if half make it, you will still have a good crop. But if they all make it and
that's what's happened here, well then all the better, because they don't mind
growing close together. And the more you get in there, the bigger harvest you gonna get. Don't over-water at the start, but then start watering regularly once the peas have germinated. This is a lush crop and you don't wanna stress the plants out through under watering,
because all that will happen is the plants won't grow as well for a start, but the actual fruit
or the pods themselves won't be as crunchy and tasty to eat. On the other hand, you don't
wanna over-water either. Otherwise you could rot the roots. It's easy to know if your
snow peas need a little water because the foliage will start to wilt, especially in the heat of the day. So if you notice any slight wilting, the crop probably needs water. But the best way is the old finger test. I've done this many
times in lots of videos, where you stick the finger into the soil at about the second knuckle,
and if it comes up totally dry, well, then you now that the
plants need a bit of a drink. Try to water pea plants at the base. And this will help to limit
the spread of fungal diseases that like a moist
environment or rely on spores spreading through water droplets. This variety of snow pea
is called an Oregon Dwarf. Not because of the size of the pods, but because of the size of the vine. It can get between one to
one and a half meters tall, whereas other types of snow pea varieties can get up to two meters. This particular variety
is well-suited to our raised tunnel trellis. And also because we're
growing some other plants in the middle here, they still have an opportunity
to catch the morning and afternoon sun as it passes over. Tip number two, where and when to grow. I reckon a trellis like
this is the perfect place for snow peas to grow. Not only can you get access to both sides for easy pod picking, but this type of structure,
being a strong metallic frame allows the peas to secure
themselves, weave in and out and attach to the trellis
with their tendrils. Also growing snow peas this
way allows for better aeration or airflow through the vines. And this helps to limit the
humidity and moisture buildup, which in turn dramatically
reduces common leaf diseases, such as powdery mildew. Peas are fickle plants and are
susceptible to wind damage. Especially at this time a
year here in our winter time, when we get lots of windy and dusty dyes. Growing them on a strong
trellis like this is helpful. But I also like to use some
twine and secure the plants. Flash against the trellis
and what this does is prevents any strong wind or gusts from bending the plants over
and causing crop damage. Peas grow quite well in pots
too if space is a problem. Lock on a balcony. Snow peas hate the heat and humidity. Some people say the name snow peas was derived from the fact that it can withstand some lot snow and frost, making them a good early crop
to grow in cooler climates before it gets too hot. Then in autumn, as the
humidity and heat fades, you can possibly get another
crop in before winter hits. In warmer climates like mine, and the sun has just
come out appropriately, we like to sow in mid to late autumn. And that's because the heat and humidity has somewhat dissipated. Then we can sow all winter,
timing the last crop to mature at about mid spring when it
starts to get too hot and humid for them again. Tip number three,
nutrition and fertilizer. People often have the misconception that because peas can
manufacture their own nitrogen, they can be grown in fairly
poor soils without a problem. This is not true at all. Peas love a good quality medium
with lots of nutrients gain through organic matter like
manures, composts and marshes. Yes, it is true that snow peas make their own nitrogen fertilizer practically out of thin air, which is pretty on pea-leavable, and growing snow peas with leafy grains like this beetroot here, and
the celeriac in the middle is beneficial for these crops
because what happens is, the peas use a bacteria that
helps it to fix nitrogen into the soil at the root zone, which these plants can then access. So not only can the peas
help a successive crop that is grown in the same bed after them, but they can also even feed
plants that are inter cropped at the same time. And the last point about nutrition is fading pea plants throughout
the growing season, say a mid season fade as
you would with other crops. Isn't usually necessary, especially if you've
prepared the bed properly in the first place. Tip number four, pest and disease. Now I've already mentioned
quite a few tips and points on pest and disease in this video. But here just a few more tonight, try not to spray peas ever
and at all if you can help it. Because you can see here it's
flowering, and it's got fruit, and this is perpetual, it
just keeps on producing. So there's no real window of opportunity where you can spray and then not hurt bees and other pollinating or good insects. The benefits you think you
get out of regular spraying as a preventative are
nowhere near the damage that it causes to the eco system and your plant in the longterm. Peas will naturally die back
towards the end of life. So don't be concerned if your flourishing and producing plants begin to wither with leaf diseases towards the end of the season or after the peak of pea pod production. Because that's normal and
that's a lot of peas in a row, but seriously, you shouldn't
really need to use a fungicide. And if you believe you've
done everything right, and the healthy plants are
getting hit prematurely with fungal diseases, try the old milk mixed
with water remedy first. Half water, half milk, mix them together, spray them on the plants. And that usually helps
against fungal diseases like powdery mildew. Having said that there are viruses that can usually be spread
by insects, such as aphids, that can quickly disseminate a pea crop. So if you find your crops
suddenly dying back, literally within days, then it might be prudent
to cut your losses, rip them out and start again, especially if it's early in the season. And I would advise to keep
an eye out for aphids. Because aphids are one of the key insects that spread those viruses and they will target the new
young shoots of pea plants. So if you see them, spray them
with a bee friendly pest oil at a time when the bees
aren't flying around and you should be able to get
on top of them quick smart. Tip number five, harvesting. How long to harvest? Well, we started harvesting our first pods at around the nine week mark. But they've started pumping
now at the 11th week mark, full of pods as you can see, and also heaps of flowers. So let's get into harvesting this crop and see how many we can get. I've got my bowl and my scissors. And the reason why I like
using a scissors is because what you can do, is you just cut it off
at the flower in there. And it's nice and easy, rather
than pulling on the vine, because what that can do is
damage those fickle stems. And you don't wanna do that, because you can see
there's plenty more flowers and more smaller ones to come after this. (cutting) Well, that's one. So I'd nearly done, with
the hall in side to go yet, and it looks like I'm
gonna need another bowl. That took a lot longer than I expected. And I'm sure I've missed
quite a few peas too here. Wow. What a pea hole. Here's the thumbnail there. Few more points on harvesting. Harvest regularly to produce
more flowers and fruit. I expect we should get
several more big harvest out of our crop yet over the coming weeks. Leave some to mature. Yes snow peas are best eaten
immature, and as a pod, because if you leave them mature, they get stringy and not as nice to eat. However, the peas inside
certainly are good eating. So shelling them like regular
peas is totally fine to do. And although a packet of snow peas, isn't gonna break the bank. You can let your crop mature totally, dry out, and get those pods and reuse those seeds
for sowing next season. And speaking of, white and
peas and packets and price, something like this, I'm guessing, 'cause my arm is getting sore
and I'm a fairly big fella. I reckon this weighs about
two, probably two kgs, maybe two and a half at the going rate, at about $26 a kilo for snow peas. You get what I'm saying? I've well, and truly got
back my $3 packet of seeds and that's just one harvest. That's what I'm talking about. Snow peas in the pods
don't keep very well. They will last a few weeks in the crisper, no problems at all. Nice cold crisper, eat them there, they'll keep the nutrition,
they'll keep that crunch and they'll slowly get a
bit rubbery and no good. You can blanch them also
in boiling hot water for a few minutes and then
freeze them individually before packing them away. They'll last a couple of
months in the freezer, but they still won't be as
nice, as eating fresh like this. There is one other way that is the best way I reckon to preserve them. And that is through lacto fermentation. What you can do is you can
ferment them in a brine on their own like this, so you can mix the main with
other types of vegetables like broccoli, kale, cabbage, and make like a mixed fermented
sauerkraut type of thing out of them. But the beauty of lacto
fermentation means, it doesn't just preserve
them, preserve the crunch, preserve the nutrition, it actually enhances the
nutrition by inoculating it with those lactobacilli are bacteria, which is so good for our body,
in particular, our stomachs. So that's why I love fermenting them, and that is my preferred
way to preserve snow peas. Well, I hope you enjoyed my five top tips on how to grow a ton of snow peas. If you did make sure you give
it a big grain pod snow peas thumbs up and share the video around, subscribe if you haven't already. If you've got any questions or comments, welcome down in the comment section below so that we can all read
them and learn from them as our YouTube gardening community grows. Thanks a lot for watching, bye for now. (crunching) Oh no, that sounded crunch. Wow. Just the bad old days.
