Topic: peas or sweet peas?

[vjm63]

Hi,

I have a really silly question: do garden edible peas ever have non white flowers?  I ask because last year I saved some sweet pea seeds, and some normal pea seeds - and I think I mixed them up when I was sowing this year! I have some definite sweet pea plants, with purple or red flowers, and the stems are striated/ridged up/down the stem, and there is only a tiny hollowness to it. I have also got some that have a smooth almost fleshier stem - the hollow is wider and you can gently squeeze it slightly. One example at least has a pink/mauve flower - hence my confusion because I thought peas had only white flowers.

Have I got a cross between the two, or is it a coloured flowered edible pea? I am assuming the different stem type suggests it is not a sweet pea - but is that correct? 

Sorry for the inane question - I do try to always label things but sometimes chaos happens!  I do not want to poison the family, oddly enough...

[Jayb]

do garden edible peas ever have non white flowers?  I ask because last year I saved some sweet pea seeds, and some normal pea seeds - and I think I mixed them up when I was sowing this year! I have some definite sweet pea plants, with purple or red flowers, and the stems are striated/ridged up/down the stem, and there is only a tiny hollowness to it. I have also got some that have a smooth almost fleshier stem - the hollow is wider and you can gently squeeze it slightly. One example at least has a pink/mauve flower - hence my confusion because I thought peas had only white flowers.

Yes edible peas can have different coloured flowers the most commonly seen ones are purple/magenta in colour like these. Sweet peas have less fleshy stems and smaller leaves than peas, the flowers will also have that delightful scent they are famous for. Sweet pea pods are hairy too.

[Jayb]

I'm pretty sure edible peas will not cross with Sweet peas.
If you have purple flowered edible peas growing you will need to have sown a variety that is purple flowering or a hybrid cross of a white x purple, although peas very rarely cross with other peas without help.

[Jayb]

Just spotted this picture of sweet peas, stems do look a bit wiry http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php?action=gallery;sa=view;id=1172

[Silverleaf]

I'm sure peas can't cross with sweet peas, they in the same family but aren't that closely related.

But as Jayb says, garden peas can definitely have coloured flowers - I have quite a few different colours in my garden right now! Here's a list of all the possible colours I know about:

Purple/maroon
Violet
Pink
Begonia pink
Pale rose pink (older flowers fade to cream)
Antique rose
Mauve
Crimson
Brick/rose red
Salmon
Greenish-cream
Cerise

And of course, white!

[vjm63]

Thanks for all the information - and reassurance!  I do not remember whether the peas I planted mentioned flower colour, but then again, I had a nightmare even getting germination  - at least three sowings in most of the rows, of different types, because they just never came up or got consumed immediately if they did get above ground. I think the stem appearance could be worth me checking up on more - just to get in clear in my brain if nothing else.

Thanks again!

[vjm63]

I just thought I'd come back to this - with a slightly embarrassed look on my face and a thank you!

The mystery of the peas is solved - because I saw that they were starting to produce purple pods. So I checked in my seed box and found a white envelope labelled Lancashire Lad that someone from here had really generously sent me ages ago - it was labelled saved 2010, and said they grew tall. Whoever it was, thank you very much - very much indeed. 

At least I now know what they are, and have proved to myself 2010 seed can germinate successfully (for peas at least) despite me keeping it in less than optimum conditions!

I will now shuffle off looking sheepish for bad labelling, bad planning, ... and probably go out and pick some raspberries to console myself!

[Silverleaf]

Yay! I think purple pods are really pretty. :)

And pea seeds do seem to last a while. Some of mine this year were saved in 2008 and while I didn't get perfect germination I'm willing to blame that on my tendency to overwater seeds...

[Jayb]

Lol, glad the mystery is solved! It might have been me that sent them, I shared a selection of heritage peas and beans with anyone who wanted some a few years back. Lancashire Lad peas are lovely, but apparently they were miss labelled by HSL and are indeed an unknown purple podded variety. I've been labelling mine as Lancashire Lad Purple since I found out, good to know they are germinating, I still have a few from that batch.
Happy pea and sweet pea growing