As everything winds down in the garden, I almost forgot about sowing sweet peas this month. Here’s a reminder about why autumn sown sweet peas are such a good idea.
Sweet pea Cupani
It may appear that it’s all slowing down out there, but the temperature is relatively mild & although daylight is shrinking fast, there’s enough for certain seeds to germinate.
Sown now, sweet peas grow a good supply of roots. Come the summer they’ll be off to a head start, flowering much earlier than spring sown ones.
Sow 2 seeds per small pot of multi-purpose compost. Discard the weakest if they both germinate. Don’t bother planting directly into the soil, it’ll be too cold & wet for them.
I sow mine into root trainers, those long pots that have a little side hinge so small plants can be easily released. The depth of them allows for nice long roots, so they’re well worth having & can be re-used each year.
Water the pots, stick in a label & place them somewhere sheltered, out in the garden or in a cold-frame. Pinch out the tips of each plant round about the end of January to encourage side-shoots & bushier plants, which means more flowers. Plant them out in March.
It’s a doddle, but October is a good time for this, so we need to get a move on.
Here’s a reminder about what else you can do in the garden this month.
I’ll post next week about planting trees.
Jill
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