planting peas

Yesterday I planted peas. Today it snowed. I could have planted snow peas, but I planted Sugar Ann peas. The packet was about ten years old, but I planted them close. We will have to see what comes up. I was actually glad for the snow. The ground was drier than I expected. I will plant more on St. Patricks Day, my usual day to plant peas.

Many of you live in places where you could plant even earlier. That would include onions, lettuce, spinach. Actually you could have planted those last fall and they would be coming up right now.

Here is my interpretation of what I learned Tuesday night. Soil is made of sand, silt, and clay in various proportions. Our yard has a lot of clay. Adding sand would make cement. Sand is easier to grow things in but doesn't have nutrients in it and doesn't hold water.

Organic matter needs to be added every year, because it breaks down. Two inches is about the most that can be tilled in at a time and 80% of what you till in stays in the top three inches. If you add undigested organic matter you have to add nitrogen to help break it down, or it will take up nitrogen that the plants need. Most home gardeners have way more phosphorus and potash than they need, so the cheapest way to fertilize is with ammonium sulfate, 26-0-0. You don't need a lot of potash unless you are growing potatoes. The phosphorus just stays in the soil where you put it and doesn't move around. Organic matter has a range of from peat moss on the small end to bark on the large end. It is best to add organic matter on the small half of the range. Peat moss in a pot hold a lot of water.

The easiest way to grow things in pots is to use potting soil and replace it every year. I should have asked what to do about house plants and perennials that are being grown in pots, like chives and mint.