Harvesting the Peas
Peas are the first thing that I plant in my garden every spring in late March. They thrive in the cool weather and can tolerate a light frost. By late May and early June, the first peas are ready for harvest. I grow English peas, classified as peas which you do not eat the pod, just the luscious peas inside. I also grow sugar snap peas, the ones where you eat the entire sweet pods.
How do you know when the peas are ready to be picked?
There is a small window between the time of the appearance of the pods and when they are ready to be harvested. The pods pictured above are starting to produce the peas inside. The pods are thin and not yet ready. If you pick the peas too soon there will only be tiny peas inside the pods, and they will not be sweet. This applies to either variety. If you wait too long the peas become too large and the sugars turn to starch and are no longer sweet.
The Peas above have gone past the harvesting stage. This information is especially important with the English peas. The sugar snap peas are more forgiving and can be picked in the bloated state but may not have the smooth texture that a perfectly ripe sugar snap pod will have but may still have the sweet taste.
Use your hands and eyes to determine harvesting
Feel the pods with your hands. If the pods feel full then they are ready to be picked. They should be a nice bright green color. If they are turning yellow green or the pods start to look wrinkled, then they are past their peak. I usually taste the pods to see if they are still sweet and edible. By the end of June the pea plants will die. They do not like the heat. I am always sad to see the plants go, but excited to plant something new in their space in my garden as late June is not too late to plant other summer vegetable crops. This year I just planted green beans in one of the pea beds and watermelon plants in the other. The pea harvest season is short, maybe 2-3 weeks. I think it is so worth taking up the real estate in the garden with these green gems. Home grown peas are so good you will eat them instead of candy!
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