Hi, John!

I love southern peas cooked with ham and grow the Pinkeye Purple Hulls. Southern peas THRIVE in the heat. I'd wait to direct-sow them until your garden soil is at least 70 degrees. You can test it with a cheap probe meat thermometer.

A lot of people add small southern pea snaps to their shelled peas. When cooked the requisite 40 or so minutes, they're all delicious and the same degree of doneness.

However, I don't think I'd like southern peas if I had to treat them like green beans (pick them small and snap them all). If you're aiming for something that tastes like green snap beans, southern peas don't, so take a look at the GW discussion below. Maybe you'll find a variety of green bean that works for you. Fortex and Rattlesnake beans are mentioned as being heat-tolerant.

Here is a link that might be useful: Your most heat-tolerant bean

Agree with Anney, They are not a green bean substitute. Different flavor and texture. If you like the Yardlong/Asparagus beans they are very similar, but the yardlongs are more fleshy and tender. Southern peas are best as green shellies, but many of them can sub for when young before the seeds form. Best in stirfies or oriental dishes, but also good as snaps in a pot of green shellies. Here I can grow green beans either bush or pole early or late, forget summer. They just will not perform in July and August. I plant in early April and again in late August. July and August here is pretty much restricted to the harvest of southern peans, lima beans and okra. Black Crowder with snaps {{gwi:28153}} Lazy Wife pole bean {{gwi:28154}}

Thanks annney and farmerdilla (great picture) for the info. I did plant the green beans on the late side last year(may) so I think start a small patch of green beans early this year and use the rest of the area for peas. I also just found out that peas come in runner and bush varieties. Does runner mean they climb? and if so should I set up a trellis? I've got the following peas seeds from southern seeds exchange and have no idea if they are runners or bush and likewise have no idea what kind of spacing they require. I Imagine it would be different depending on the variety. Can anyone assign runner/bush and spacing to the following list?

pinkeye
white acre
calico crowder
red ripper

Thanks again

Red Ripper my fav! Saturday got several acres of Black Crowders, Red Rippers, Pinkeyes & Mississippi Creams (my first time with them.) Got a few Foot Long Peas trying out for the first time too.

I wasn't able to plant, but supervised son #1... a computer geek. Now it it just a waiting game.

Shot

John

Half-runner southern peas are almost always grown the same as bush beans. IOW, they don't need a trellis, though they do tend to spread out a bit more than the more compact bush habit. I've never found that to be a problem.

I believe the link below gives some information about variety spacing. For varieties that aren't mentioned, a Google of their name + "southern pea" ought to lead you to sites that will let you know if the variety is bush or runner and you can space accordingly.

Good luck! I suspect May is a good time to plant southern peas in your area, if you're wondering.

Here is a link that might be useful: Southern pea production

Hi, Shot! I wondered if you were still around!

Johnny if you are in Austin, TX then we are dealing with the same weather situation because I live in Kerrville. If you get your beans in nice and early ...as soon as it warms up, you shouldn't have any problems growing green beans. I am a bean lover and I get tons of beans. I tried one bean last year that I got a late start on and I had the same heat problem but never before and I grow tons of beans. Just get them in the ground in a couple of weeks and you'll have them coming out your ears. I've grown many different varieties and continue to do so but I swear Rattlesnake out produces them all.

This site is fantastic as are the people who post here. Maybe one day I'll be on the other side dispensing such great experience/knowledge. Followig Anney's advice I think I found was I was looking for, calico/red ripper were runners (said 6' vines) and the other were more bush like. The site I looked at had the same spacing for all varieties (2-3" space 12-36" row). Guess I'll just thin if the spacing is too tight. Ruthieg, plan on getting the green bean out today or tomorrow. Off topic but Austin's temps suppose to dip into the 40s this weekend. Should I be concerned for my peppers/toms I already have them in ground?

Not unless we get a frost and I don't see that in the forcast....If you local forcast warns of a freeze, go out and cover them with something...even sheets offer some protection. I tell you Johnny in this area we do occasionally get a frost even up to the first or second week of April ...usually around Easter is a good time to start thinking about the warm weather stuff...I know we all like to get a head start but the warm weather stuff usually just sits there waiting for some heat anyway...

Farmerdilla I have never seen black crowders...interesting but I sure do love crowders....define the taste of black crowders for me...I might have to grow some...never met a bean or pea that I didn't like..

A shade stronger flavor than a cream pea, but less strong than a brown crowder. They make a thick black soup even as a green shellie. I gave some to one of my neighbors and she came back asking for some more of those peas that make thier own gravy.

Hi Anney,

Yep, still around with my oxygen bottle...

The black crowder..... you either love then or hate them. My sister & niece both don't like them as my wife loves them.

On Red Rippers. I found out that if you skip a row in between makes them much easier to handle. One year I planted every row and they were so thick that I had the dogs go first... next year I just put peas in one side of the planter.

If we could just get some of this rain that has been dodging us........

Have a wonderful day all.

Shot (in middle Georgia)

Black Crowders are a great tasting field pea. I like the peas that make a dark 'gravy'. I plan puttin'in more Black Crowders this year than last.

Farmerdilla, I notice in the picture that one of the pods is 'stung'. What do y'all do to control cowpea curculios. I had a time with them last year and sprayed with Sevin to keep them down.

Shot, Hope y'all are gettin' some of this rain. It's been rainin' here in Southeast Alabama since midnight last night. Still rainin' now.

Bamagrit. Most of the time I just tolerate them. I plant 5- 10 lbs of cowpeas so I can afford to lose a few to the curculios. When the infestation is really heavy, I have used Malathion or Carbaryl. Malathion gives a little better results for me.

Farmerdilla, Thanks for the reply. Last year was the worst infestation I've ever had.