What Is a Sweet Pea Vine?

Cultural Requirements

• Sweet peas require full sunlight and good air circulation, as well as moist, well-drained soil rich in organic material. They grow best in soils with a pH of 7 to 7.5, neutral or slightly alkaline. Mulch sweet peas heavily to extend the blooming season and protect from heat. They can be sown outdoors once soil temperature reaches 55 degrees F and danger of frost is past, or started indoors. Sweet Peas are a spring flower, thriving in the cooler seasons before summer. Most varieties will begin to wilt and die back once temperatures consistently top 85 F. Sweat Peas are nitrogen-fixing plants, and thus do not require fertilizers high in nitrogen. Blends high in phosphorous, such as a 10-20-10 formulation, should be used to promote flower growth.

Common Pests

• Although sweet peas are relatively easy to grow, they are subject to occasional damage from a number of pests. Young seedlings are especially vulnerable to slugs and snails, although these pests can also damage mature plants. Aphids feed on sweet peas as well, and can be a vector for the spread of disease, such as pea enation virus, which has the potential to damage sweet pea plants. It's presence is indicated by yellowing leaves, fewer flowers and eventual plant death. Avoiding cultivars with a late-blooming habit can help control the virus, since the disease is more prevalent in hot weather.

Suggested Uses

• Sweet peas can be grown up fences, trellises, arbors, tripods or poles. Their climbing habit means they can grow through upright, shrubby plants, for a dense, intermingled look. They adapt well to almost any landscape, from informal cottage gardens to manicured park-like settings. The flowers keep well in vases, which make them one of the more popular choices for cut-flower gardens. Sweet peas bloom in one of the widest color ranges of any flower, and their fragrance is a sweet blend of orange blossoms and honey, which makes them excellent for bouquets, vases or other indoor displays.

History

• Considerable disagreement exists regarding the wild origin of sweet peas, but written records indicate humans first cultivated them in the 17th century. They were available in limited colors until the 19th century, when their popularity skyrocketed. They were especially well regarded in Victorian England, where several new varieties were developed, with larger blooms and a wider range of colors. They became especially popular in the United States in the early 1900s, and many varieties developed in this time period remain widely planted today.