The ideal time to plant peas is 4-6 weeks before your last spring frost while the soil sits at or above 40°F (4°C). Peas love cold weather and can handle frost, so planting them early gives you a head start on one of the easiest spring crops in the garden.
I put my first pea seeds in the ground during late February when the garden still felt cold and gray. Friends thought I was crazy, but those peas sprouted strong and I was picking pods by early May. That early start made all the difference. Knowing when to plant peas spring begins is one of the best tricks for getting food from your garden before summer even hits.
Soil temperature controls how fast your seeds wake up and start growing. At 40°F (4°C), pea seeds take about 36 days to sprout. Bump that soil up to 60°F (16°C) and they push through in about 9 days. At 75°F (24°C), germination drops to just 5-7 days. The catch is that warmer air means your harvest window shrinks because peas stop producing once temperatures climb too high.
Grab a soil thermometer and stick it 2 inches (5 cm) deep in your garden bed first thing in the morning. That reading tells you more than the air temperature ever can. If the soil reads 40°F (4°C) or above for three mornings in a row, go ahead and plant. Your seeds won't rot at that temperature and they can handle a surprise frost after they sprout. A cheap probe thermometer from any garden store costs about $8 and takes the guesswork out of your planting date.
Plan succession plantings every 2-3 weeks to stretch your pea planting season as long as the cool weather holds. Each batch gives you a new wave of pods just as the last one winds down. Stop sowing new seeds once daytime highs pass 80°F (27°C). Heat causes pea flowers to drop off and pods to turn bitter and tough.
I plant three rounds each spring and get about 8 weeks of fresh peas from the whole run. The first batch comes in strong. The second batch overlaps with it. The third batch carries me into early summer before the heat shuts everything down. This approach works well in most climates and keeps your kitchen stocked with peas far longer than a single planting ever can.
Fall planting is another smart move if you live in zones 7 or warmer. Count back 8-10 weeks from your first expected frost and get those seeds in the ground. Shorter days and cooler temps bring the pea planting season back around. You can grab a second harvest before winter sets in.
I tried a fall crop for the first time two years ago after reading about it in a gardening forum. The peas grew slower than my spring batch but the flavor was even sweeter from the cool nights. Give it a shot if your climate allows it. You might end up liking your fall peas more than the spring ones. Just watch the frost dates and cover your plants if a hard freeze threatens to end the season too soon.
Read the full article: Growing Peas: The Full Guide
