When to sow Pea shoots in the UK
Pea shoots is sown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the window is much the same wherever you garden in the UK.
Sowing and harvest dates by region
Pea shoots is grown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the same dates apply across the whole UK and every region below reads the same. Where a plant’s timings do follow the frost, Plot shifts them from the Midlands and Lowland Wales baseline using Met Office average frost dates.
| Where you are | Sow indoors | Sow outdoors | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| South West Coast and Cornwall | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| South Coast and Channel | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Greater London (Urban Heat Island) | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| South East and Home Counties | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| East Anglia | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Midlands and Lowland Wales | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Wales and West Coast | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Northern England | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Scotland Lowlands and Central Belt | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Scotland Highlands and Islands | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Northern Ireland | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
| Channel Islands and Isle of Man | early January to late December | early April to late August | late February to late November |
Growing notes
Sow dried peas thickly in a shallow tray of compost on a windowsill at any time of year and snip the top two tiers of leaves once shoots are 10-15cm tall. Outdoor sowings need protecting from slugs and mice, which take the seed before it germinates.
At a glance
- Spacing
- 3 cm between plants
- Row spacing
- 10 cm
- Plants per m²
- 400
- Days to maturity
- 21 days
- Yield per plant
- 0.02 kg
- Sun
- Partial
- Frost tender
- No
- Grows in a container
- Yes, 5 litres or more
- Minimum soil depth
- 10 cm
- Balcony rating
- 5 out of 5
Succession sowing
Worth sowing in batches. Sow again every 14 days, up to about 10 sowings in a season, for a longer picking window rather than one glut.
What usually goes wrong
- slugs
- damping off
- mice
Companion planting
Grows well near
Keep away from
Related guides
Timings cross-checked against RHS guidance for pea shoots.