Get your mind into the gutter-with peas! Wendy Devlin tells you how.
When reading about starting peas in recycled gutters, I thought, 'Would that work?" Twenty years on, starting peas has become a March spring ritual. The biggest advantage in my garden for starting peas this way, is the plants are 4-6 inches high when transplanted. A way to foil the slugs from eating a whole row in a night. Also gutter peas lessen transplant shock. Here's how the technique works:
1) Find a gutter. (We torn down an old house. Plus one day, I noticed some gutters on a lawn, where workers were re-roofing a house. Asked if I could take them away.) Place the gutter(s) in your greenhouse or other sheltered area eg. carport, side of house etc.
2) Pre-sprout peas in container on kitchen counter Normally takes a few days.
3) Fold several layers of newspapers, the width to fit inside the gutters without sticking too much over the edge. Overlap each section and fill the gutter end to end.
4) Half-fill the gutter with compost enriched soil. When the peas sprout, place 'tail end' down into soil and close together. You want peas!
5) Fill with soil and water in.
6) Cover lightly with newspaper, recycled fertilizer back, scrap mesh etc. In my greenhouse, rats can sometimes help themselves to early greens.
Now here's the fun part. Every day, peek under the sheets. For those first green shoots!
7) When the plants are ready to transplant, dig a trench the depth and length where you want the peas to grow. Take the gutter to the row. Start at one end and gently slide each section of newspaper into the trench. A few plants may get dislodged but most will transfer without fuss or muss. Then heel in the row and water.
8) Shade the row and gradually remove cover to 'harden' off the pea plants. Direct sunlight can burn the tender leaves.
9) Watch peas grow. It helps to cover row with with mesh or wire as robins or white-throated sparrows also relish early pea plants.
10) Peas out!
Wendy Devlin
Great idea. Thanks Wendy.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Tracey L.
Mike Nassichuck introduced us Master Gardeners to this nifty idea. Thank you Wendy for printing it out. I needed to be reminded of it. It works great.
ReplyDeleteYes, I heard this idea from Mike Nassichuk too some years ago. And a couple years back, the sliding snow ripped the guttering off our roof at the back. So I had guttering and I finally tried starting peas in my greenhouse. They grew really well and I am very pleased with the method. But when the time came, I did have difficulty sliding the peas into the trench in the garden. Wendy, your hint about lining the guttering with newspapers is brilliant. Thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteGreat info. Can you share a photo or three, of what this looks like?
ReplyDelete