Sweet Peas - Thursday, 1th May 2018

Kevin Preston is a man who absolutely loves Sweet Peas. He is the largest amateur Sweet Pea grower in this country and is a National Champion winner. He lives near Carnforth and gave an inspiring presentation which included a slide show and lots of plants with which to illustrate his talk (and sell afterwards).

The scale of his growing and dedication to showing perfect specimens of these lovely blooms was awesome. Kevin is a professional gardener but his hobby is sweet pea growing. During spring and early summer he is often out on his large plot from 4am until 10pm, especially when 'tying in' and snipping unwanted growth such as tendrils are the specific requirements for dedicated sweet pea growing. Kevin also plants 5000 annuals for cut flower production!

To begin his talk, Kevin discussed commercial compost and stated that generally, the more you pay, the better the quality will be. However, there is an increasing tendency now for compost providers to include recycled waste within their product. If someone, somewhere, puts garden waste into their green bins which includes weedkiller or other chemicals, the ongoing contamination of the recycled end product will affect the future success of seeds and plants grown in it! Kevin buys 300 bags of commercial compost, mainly from Ireland, each year. He also uses 200 barrow loads of horse manure each season and to produce at least 7000 perfect Sweet Pea plants annually. An interesting point he made about spring sown sweet peas (his preferred planting time), is that in February, the compost is too cold to successfully germinate seed. Therefore he piles the bags of compost inside his home to warm it up first....he has a very understanding wife!

Kevin is rigorous in his growing hygiene, always washing recycled pots before use. He puts a small amount of vermiculite / perlite and grit sand into the compost, before sowing seeds from the second week in February. His seeds are not 'chitted' or soaked.

All of his 7000 seeds are germinated in his conservatory before putting out into cold frames or unheated greenhouses. Sowing continues until the second or third week in April. Planting outside is not started until the beginning of May. He never plants them out before May.

The prodigious root growth of Sweet Peas was demonstrated and suggestions were given about pinching out the growing tips to produce side shoots which always make for better flowers. With the Spencer variety of Sweet Pea, a 24-inch long stem with four flowers on each stem is the goal.

Sweet Peas grow about a foot each week, and as they are susceptible to blowing over, must be tied weekly to their canes. 5-6 hours are spent each evening on this task!

Sweet peas prefer a moist growing medium but suffer if waterlogged. Bees cannot access these flowers, as the keels on the petals are too tight. Breeders have to pollinate hybrids by opening up the flower heads, and this aspect of Sweet Peas means their self-pollinated seed is always true to that plant variety.

Introduced into this country 150 years ago, all original flowers were pastel shades. Now there is a huge array of colours available but no one has managed to produce a yellow bloom....yet.

With his other talent as an award winning flower arranger, Kevin Preston is a man who has dedicates his life to growing flowers, but his overriding passion is for Sweet Peas.

The 'original' Sweet Pea, Cupani was first cultivated by a Sicilian monk, Father Francis Cupani, who found this intensely scented wild sweet pea growing near his monastery in 1695. 

“Behind every successful man, there is a woman”

(Mark Twain)

Kevin is ably assisted and encouraged by his wife, Viv - who is a lecturer in horticulture.
 

Written by Jude Jansen + Pictures courtesy of Viv Preston

Various reference sources used

 

Summary of Kevin's Advice
Compost : Price usually ensures quality : Mix vermiculite/perlite with sand : Warm compost before sowing e.g. house temperature
Good nutrients in soil usually means that plants are less susceptible to pests & diseases ( viral or fungal). Use manure & fertiliser such as fish, blood & bone
Seeds don't need to be chitted or soaked. Sow in deep compost 1cm apart. (Kevin uses 2 litre pot for 50 seeds). Germination is in 10days. The root system is very long. Kevin advises that seedlings be grown on in 1 litre pots with 2 seedlings
The difference to flowering between autumn & spring sown sweet peas is 2 weeks. Kevin starts to sow in the 2nd week in February
Pinch out axial shoot to encourage side shoots, where best flowers come from
Never plant out before May. If there is significant temperature variation then bud drop occurs
Bees can't pollinate flowers so seeds collected come true from parent plant
SPENCER VARIETIES	OLD FASHIONED VARIETIES Grandifloia
Only type for showing where form & Shape are essential 24” stems	Great for scent
- Have frame of vertical canes up by June - Tie shoots in with twine, as more gentle on the plant - Remove excess growth side shoots & tendrils, so aim is for show standard blooms - Once axial shoot is at the top of the cane, the whole shoot is untied, lain on the ground for 2'. Then stem is retrained vertically	Look lovely on wigwams. Once growth is at top of wigwam, wind the axial shoots back down the frame to encourage flowering to continue
Show Standard. 12 vases of different colour 15 stems per vase 24”straight stem Perfect flower formation Peak flowering 2nd /3rd week July