Growing Sweet Peas - Page 10

I do wish mine looked like yours David, mine are much thinner.

How many should I put in  pot about 24inch diameter- last year I planted only about 2cm apart and I think they were too crowded

Well to be honest, Bev, I don't usually grow mine in containers as they are very deep rooted and do much better in deeply dug soil in the garden. However, sometimes needs must. I have grown wigwams in he past of similar  dimensions, for that I have spaced the canes about 30cm apart & two plants per cane....this should give some basis to work it out.

Don't worry worry about them being on the thin side, they will soon bulk up when they are planted out & start growing properly.

I nipped out the stems right back on the ones that were looking sickly in the last few pics and they seem to be growing again so maybe they have survived, ive planted somemore incase.

Good news cairnsie, I'm sure they will be ok. The great thing about these plants is that you can sow them from Autumn through to late Spring and you still get flowers

Hi all, I have started my sweet peas in loo rolls .Should I put them in darkness for them to germinate Thanks Debra

debra kazalski wrote (see)

Hi all, I have started my sweet peas in loo rolls .Should I put them in darkness for them to germinate Thanks Debra

You  could cover them with a sheet of glass & a sheet of cardboard/newspaper over the top (just until the first few poke through) then remove it. But for an easy life, they will be just fine anywhere in temps of around 10C.

Hi David, I was hoping you would answer my post ,you know so much about sweet peas and I am trying not to mess up . so far so good.Thanks Debra

debra kazalski wrote (see)

Hi David, I was hoping you would answer my post ,you know so much about sweet peas and I am trying not to mess up . so far so good.Thanks Debra

You'e very welcome, Debra.

It seems when people start out on sweet pea growing , they want to lavish care & attention on them and this is exactly the wrong thing to do. If subjected to warmth in the early stages they will become weak & drawn.

They are extremely hardy and will produce robust strong plants if they are not mollycoddled.

Yes I  will treat them mean! Ta Debra

Hello.  I'm also new to Sweet Peas.  I sowed mine on New Year's Day.  They germinated quickly (which I now realise was not good), and are now about 6 inches tall, but with only two pairs of leaves (almost at the top).  I sowed 5 in a 6 inch pot, and assume that I should now pot them on.  I keep them in an unheated indoor side passage in the house, which gets loads of sun in the day, but is cold at night.  I think that perhaps this location was still too warm, and I have inadvertently mollycoddled them.  Is it worth continuing with this batch and, if so, should I pot them on and leave where they are, or do they need to be somewhere colder?

Hello, Moby.

I wouln't be concerned about those sweet peas. Certainly don't pot them on, the root disturbance will do more harm than good.

Just nip out the growing tips & plant them outdoors in a couple of weeks time...try to make sure we have a few frst-free nights immediately after planting out.

Ok, thanks for the advice David K. 

Hi David, My sweet peas have sprouted! Its 10c in the garage .I moved them under grow lights, how long should I keep them inside ,they have no leaves yet. It is cold here and would like to know what temp it should be to put them in a cold frame. thanks   Debra         

Hi, Debs.....it's rather important not to subject them to too much artificial heat & light at this stage and I would suggest you put them into your coldframe now.

You say 'It is cold here', what kind of night time temps are we talking?

Hi David The temps at night are approx -1 and daytime approx 5  Thanks Deb

debra kazalski wrote (see)

Hi David The temps at night are approx -1 and daytime approx 5  Thanks Deb

They'll be quite happy with that, Debs.

thank you soooooooo much . will let you know how it goes. I ordered 2 more sweet peas varieties yesterday prince of orange and black knight can not wait to see how lovely they will be. Wishful thinking. Ta deb

Hi David,

I have always sown two seeds to a cell (like you have in your photos) - if they both germinate should I  pull one out, or are they ok to grow as a pair that close ?  I use old loo rolls and plant the whole thing out in the garden come April/May.

Thanks

Hi, Chicky.....I plant the whole rootball complete with the two plants. That's for just for cut flowers, if they were for showing, that would be a different matter.

Perfect - cut flowers will do me fine !  Many thanks for responding