Just sown my first guttering of early peas after soaking in water and pre sprouting (as recommended on this forum) and had a few spare. So i have planted these in a seed tray to try tasting the pea shoots recommended elsewhere.
How long should the shoots be before harvesting? Is there a way of harvesting them so to increase the chances of the shoot coming back again?
Depending on variety and growing conditions, 4" plus tall. Let them grow a few real leaves then harvest by snipping just above first leaves so they re-shoot from the leaf joint. You will get a second crop in another 7-10 days. Here's the pic of ready-to-harvest pea shoots again, note Mr Bean at bottom right, he got et too :D
(http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/6205/dscn08391ah.jpg)
Would love to hear what you think of them, they are a mainstay for me in winter salads :P
A wee bit bigger than the ones I posted?
Aaaahh ... now I know why you are called super sprout ;D
That's what the lady told us - nothing to do with Brussels!
Supersprout,
OH has just got into sprouting seeds to eat - he would love these!
What varieties do you use and where do you get your peas from? oh, and do you soak them before potting into seed trays?
thanks
sl
Do they need full sun? Rapidly running out of space!
Thanks all
SS the pic looks to have a higher proportion of seedling in than my seed tray, but wll test with mine and if it goes down well will go for it big time!
Any peas will do for pea shoots, and they don't need full sun. Tall varieties will have more stem, short will have more leaf, but it's all delicious chopped up in a salad. And taste of FRESH PEAS! even in Winter ::)
Try this:
Take a seed tray, fill with compost.
I don't soak the peas beforehand for
shoots (but do for
sprouts).
Put an unfeasible quantity of peas into the seed tray, 1 pea thick. They should be mostly touching, all you should see is a sea of pea with the compost showing through the gaps.
Cover with compost (about 1 cm), water and watch them sprout 10-14 days.
Then cut and eat :D
Leftover compost goes into the compost bin, nice and fibrous.
Quote from: glow777 on March 30, 2006, 12:55:26
SS the pic looks to have a higher proportion of seedling in than my seed tray
Glow, I am just Greedy :-[ ;)
Mine took a lot longer than that - but I'm a patient chap!
And to finish off the best accompanying veg/recipe for the salad would be?
A friend of mine invented 50/50 Cos lettuce and pea shoot as a base, which works very well. To which you add the other things you might enjoy in salad - cherry toms, avocado, red/yellow pepper, olives for me. Dressed or not ;)
I have steamed them, which was lovely but after all that snipping (a trayful) I'd want more than 1 tbs which is what you end up with :-\ So now I eat them uncooked.