Sandy, I usually plant my snap and snow peas in late January or early Feb here (Zone 7b SC). I like to pre-germinate them inside and then plant outside. This usually takes just 2-3 days inside, and then they get a head start in the cold soil. Germination rate is 100% compared to maybe the 50% I got before. If I plant much later than this, then a week of hot weather in May will almost kill the plants. When peas first germinate, growth is mostly root...so just because they haven't broken through the soil doesn;t mean they're not growing yet. The deep snow cover should help them survive the teens and low-20's. They are pretty tough anyway.

If your ground was not frozen or excessively wet, you should be fine. Snow is good for them, frozen ground is not. Most of the places I have lived in Virginia (spent 60 years there) Northern Neck, Charlottesville area, Radford the ground was frozen solid in February.

I was very late as usual getting mine in the ground...but I nearly always am ...but I always get peas even though it gets hot here pretty fast...My zone above says 8 but I think it is really 7...

GS

I plant according to soil temperature, and the optimal soil temp needed for peas to germinate is anywhere from 65 to 75 degrees. This is one reason people like to start peas inside instead of direct-sowing them. A lot more will germinate and more quickly. They seem to do fine in cooler ground temps transplanted outside after they've germinated. Maybe this is also why many people direct-sow peas as a fall crop. They germinate well in warm weather and grow well in cooler weather!

Here is a link that might be useful: Germination Tables

I hear you! We got 4+ inches Saturday in GA and we were amazed. Not quite the "light dusting" that was predicted. We laughed because we'd never seen it snow during daylight hours before. It was so beautiful I almost didn't care about my veggies...almost. I put some straw over mine Friday night and peeked under the sopping wet mess today. Things look fine so far.

I planted mine in Jan per instructions. Most rotted and I pregerminated inside and replanted Feb 15 and some are sprouting now. Whatever has sprouted has grown incredibly slowly and without merit. I'm waiting to see how they do with the mid week thaw. I have some snap peas in pots that I've been moving in and out at night, but those haven't grown much faster.

Follow up question...

For those of you who pre germinate your peas, do you space them further apart once you plant them out?

How do you pre germinate peas?

I like the idea of pregerminating them to get a higher percentage of success. Seeds aren't the most expensive thing that goes into the garden but it sure helps to not waste them.

I wanted to get them off to an early start since we have that hot week in late April or early May, too, and they always seem to die out before I think they should. Plus, I want to plant something else in their space when they're fizzled out and the earlier they produce, the earlier I can plant a warm weather crop there.

Thanks for all the good tips and information. I'll check them later this week but it sounds like they may be ok. I hadn't thought about the snow cover protecting them since we so seldom have it anymore.

I planted some last wed. and they are swelled many with 1/2 in sprouts. BUT....... I also put clear poly over them and they are in a south facing sheltered spot next to the house.

K

I've been experimenting with pre-sprouting peas this year too. First I put the peas in a plastic container and then fill the container with warm water. I let the peas soak for about 12 hours. During this time they absorb lots of water and come out of dormancy. Then I drain off all the water and cover the container with plastic that has a few small holes poked in it. This allows some transpiration but keeps the seeds from drying out too fast. (I have a wood stove in my house so my humidity is very low and everything dries out rapidly.) Next I place the container somewhere warm. (In the room with the wood stove for me.) Given these conditions the seeds will visibly start to sprout in as little as 24 hours and can then be planted outside in the soil. If you need to hold them for several days just rinse and drain them twice a day to keep them hydrated. The following picture, taken 48 hours after the 12 hour soak, shows some peas I am presprouting.

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The next pictures show some leftover peas from a batch I started pre-sprouting on February 8th. (22 days ago) I planted most of this first batch on February 15th but once my raised bed was full I still had these left over. I still haven't gotten around to planting them but they look pretty healthy and are about to unfurl their first leaves. I think I'll plant them on Wednesday, after the current cold spell breaks, and treat them like seedling transplants (plant with leaves above ground) rather than mere pre-sprouted seeds.

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I never intended to sprout these leftovers for so long out of the soil but now that I have I kind of like the idea. It's kind of like raising seedlings for transplants but without all the mess of soil and pots. I keep rinsing them every day with tap water and they just keep growing apparently satisfied for now with the nutrients remaining in the seed. What do you think of that?

Sandy, I find the easiest way to pre-sprout peas is to just roll them up in moist paper towels and place in a big ziploc bag (partially open). They'll be ready to plant in 1-2 days if you just leave them on your countertop. All you want is for them to germinate, just the tiniest amount of growth after they swell up. Check them after 1 day, maybe that's all they'll need. If they start putting out too much of the radicle then they're very difficult to handle. It's definitely a mistake to wait until the soil warms up too much. They'll grow just fine in cold soil temps once pre-sprouted. I think there's more danger from hot weather shutting down the plants in spring. They need to be planted out by early March at the very latest in my area. Maybe some northern gardeners can afford to wait until around their last frost date, but not here in SC. I've also tried pea plantings in the fall here, and it's next to impossible to get a decent crop. If we don;t have a hard freeze until Nov it may work. They need to be planted in early Sept here. All the peas I ever planted in Aug were killed by the heat. Maybe a really short-season variety would work better.

I'm trying peas for the first time this year and I think I will pre-germinate them after reading about that here. Even after the snow earlier this week, our garden plot was nicely workable today. I'm planting a small garden with my folks at their retirement community and the garden plots are now nicely tilled - woo hoo! that we did not have to do the tilling!

Do any gardeners here use a legume inoculant with peas? I bought some with my Pine Tree order.

Steve, those pictures are so cool. I gave up on peas because most of them would always rot. Someone sent me extras in a trade, so this year I'm going to give indoor germination a try. Jen

Teresa, I use the innoculant with any peas or beans I'm planting where they have not been grown before. Once they've been grown in a certain area, the rhizobia should be present in the soil, so you don't need the innoculant.

I think it helps, but there are so many variable in any given year that it's hard to say if it was just luck, or something I did...

I'm glad I read this thread and was reminded to soak my peas. I've done the paper towel/baggie method in the past, but not in the last few years. I just now discovered that the sugar snap pea seed I saved from last year's crop had holes in about 1/4 of the seed, and a few of those still had little bugs occupying the holes. So this saved me from sowing a bunch of infested, and probably infertile seed!

Thanks, lantana! The package says to add the inoculant to the soil in the row, but some on here have said to sprinkle it directly on the peas and toss well, then put the seed in the ground. Does it matter how you add the inoculant?

Too bad about the bugs in your seeds. I found some bugs in a bag of barley yesterday....:o(.

The peas I planted on 2/11 did not make it. I dug up a section Saturday and there's nothing there. So I've soaked another batch to presprout and will plant them today. We're only a few days away from the traditional planting date so they should do fine. The early planting was an experiment and I learned a lot from it. They may have been ok if presprouted. Next year I'll try them that way if the weather looks favorable in early February.

Thanks for all the input from you pea growers out there! Always something to learn when you garden.

Sandy