Gadenin日本語Get the appTendrils grab thin things, not thick ones
A pea does not twine around a support the way a runner bean does. It sends out tendrils, thin coiling threads at the leaf tips, and those tendrils can only grip something roughly a quarter of an inch (5 mm) across or less. Put in a two inch (5 cm) bamboo pole on its own and the plant will lean against it and slide off. This is the single most common support mistake and it is invisible until the row goes over in the first wind.
So the support needs a mesh, a net, twigs, or strings for the tendrils to find. A stout post is fine as the frame, but something fine has to span between the posts. Peas also climb sideways as readily as upwards, so a flat vertical plane of netting works better than a wigwam, which leaves the middle empty.
| Support type | Suits | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pea netting on posts | Any height, especially tall types | Cheap and effective. Hard to clear of dead haulm at the end |
| Brushwood or twiggy prunings | Dwarf and semi-leafless types | Free, looks good, and composts. Push in deep or it topples |
| Wire mesh panel | Tall types, permanent beds | Lasts years and strips clean. Heavy to move |
| Strings between two rails | Rows in open ground | Quick to put up and cut down. Needs restringing yearly |
Match the height to what you are growing
Pea height varies enormously and it is decided by the type, not by how you feed it. Dwarf and bush types stop at 18 to 30 inches (45 to 75 cm). Semi-leafless and mid-height types run to about four feet (120 cm). Tall shelling and snow pea types will reach six to eight feet (180 to 240 cm) and keep going. Building a three foot support for a six foot pea means the top half of the crop flops over into a tangle you cannot pick.
If you do not know the height, put in a four foot (120 cm) support and be ready to add a second tier of netting above it. The cost of over-building is nothing; the cost of under-building is a collapsed row in mid season, which you cannot fix once the plants are loaded with pods.
| Type | Mature height | Support to build |
|---|---|---|
| Dwarf and bush | 18 to 30 in (45 to 75 cm) | Twigs or a 2 ft (60 cm) net. Do not skip it entirely |
| Semi-leafless, mid height | About 4 ft (120 cm) | 4 ft (120 cm) netting between firm posts |
| Tall shelling and snow types | 6 to 8 ft (180 to 240 cm) | 6 ft (180 cm) minimum, posts driven 18 in (45 cm) deep |
Even dwarf peas crop better off the ground. A bush pea left flat has pods lying in the soil, which slugs find first and which rot after rain.
Put the support in before you need it
The support goes in when the seedlings are three to four inches (8 to 10 cm) tall, and ideally before. Driving posts through an established pea row cuts roots, and a plant that has already fallen over develops a permanent kink at the base that never straightens. Once a row has gone flat you can lift it and tie it, but it will never climb as cleanly as one that met its support on time.
Drive the posts properly. A row of peas in full leaf and pod is a solid sail, and a summer squall will lay the whole thing down if the end posts are shallow. For a six foot support, the end posts want at least 18 inches (45 cm) in the ground, and a diagonal brace or a guy line at each end is not excessive.
- Set the end posts first Drive the two end posts a good 18 inches (45 cm) deep and check they do not rock. Add an intermediate post every six feet (180 cm) along the row.
- Tension the netting top and bottom Run a wire or a taut string along the top and bottom of the posts, and tie the netting to both. Netting fixed only at the top bellies out and sags under the weight of the crop.
- Guide the first tendrils on When the plants are six inches (15 cm) tall, lean the tips gently against the mesh. Once one tendril grips, the plant does the rest on its own.
- Fill the gaps with twigs Where the bottom foot of netting is out of reach of the seedlings, push short twiggy sticks in beside the plants so they can climb up to it.
Keeping the row upright through the season
Walk the row once a week and tuck stray growth back through the mesh. Peas that escape and lean out sideways catch the wind and pull on the plants that are still attached, and the outward lean is what starts a collapse. It takes two minutes and there is no substitute for it.
A row that has already gone over after a storm can usually be saved if you act the same day. Lift it back against the support and run a length of string down each side of the row, tied to the end posts, so the plants are held in a loose corridor. Do not try to tie individual stems, which snaps them. If pods are lying on wet soil, get them off the ground first, because a day is enough for them to start rotting.
- Tuck in stray growth weekly Push any shoot leaning away from the support back through the mesh. Do it while it is soft, before the stem stiffens in that position.
- Run a corridor string after a storm Tie string at chest height along both sides of the row to hold the whole mass upright. It supports the plants without you handling individual stems.
Airflow is part of the support job
How you support the row decides how much mildew you get later. A row on netting, spaced 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) from its neighbor and running with the prevailing wind rather than across it, dries after rain within a couple of hours. A flopped, crowded row stays damp all day and powdery mildew arrives weeks earlier.
Semi-leafless types, where most leaves have been replaced by extra tendrils, are worth knowing about here. They grip each other so firmly that the row stands up as a self-supporting block with only a low net, and the reduced leaf area moves far more air through the crop. On a windy site they are noticeably easier to keep upright than a full-leaved type.
- Run rows with the wind Orient the row so the prevailing wind blows along it, not into the flat face of the netting. It dries faster and takes less strain.
- Note which support held up Record the support height you used, the actual height the plants reached, and whether the row went over. Next season that note saves you rebuilding mid crop.