🌱Doc's Pantry Garden Almanac

The Garden Almanac

First to sow, it feeds the soil as it grows

🧺 Doc's Pantry·℞ Apothecary· 🌱 Garden·🎨 Artisan Hub
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Garden Pea (Pisum sativum)

First to sow, it feeds the soil as it grows

🔍 How to identify it

Climbing vine with grey-green compound leaves ending in curling tendrils, leaf-like stipules at the stem, white (or purple) pea flowers, then green pods. Fixes nitrogen at its roots.

☠️ Look-alike & safety

⚠️ Sweet pea (Lathyrus) looks similar but is TOXIC — never eat ornamental sweet-pea pods.

🤝 Companion planting

Plant near:
Carrotcucumbercornradish
Keep apart:
oniongarlic
FamilyFabaceae (legume family)
Hardiness zone2-11 (annual)
SunFull sun to light shade
WaterEven moisture at flowering/podding
SoilWell-drained, near-neutral; needs little nitrogen (it makes its own)
Spacing5 cm, double rows on a trellis
Sowing / startingDirect-sow as soon as soil is workable — tolerates frost; a true cool-season crop
Harvest60-70 days; pick often to keep pods coming. Leave roots in soil to release nitrogen.
Common pestsPowdery mildew late; pea moth. Aphids on tips.

🧺 What it's good for

Sweet raw or cooked; dried for soup. A green-manure that enriches the bed for the next crop.

Plant identification here is educational — never eat, forage, or medicate with a wild plant on the basis of a website alone. Many edible plants have toxic look-alikes. When in doubt, grow from known seed, or confirm with an expert before you harvest.