How to Grow Southern Peas

General Information

Scientific Name:

Vigna unguiculata

Common Names:

Southern peas, cow peas, black-eyed peas, purple hull peas, cream peas, crowder peas

Plant Family:

Fabaceae

Vegetable Type:

Warm season legume

Popular Varieties:

Black-eyed peas, purple hull pinkeye peas, cream peas, crowder peas

Know Before You Grow

Growing Zones:

7 to 11

Crops per Year:

1 crop per year, but if you have a really long season, you may get 2 crops with successive plantings.

Plants Per Person:

10 to 15 feet of row per person. If preserving, make that 20 to 30 feet of row per person.

Frost Hardy:

No

Heat Tolerant:

Yes. This is one of southern peas selling points…other than their awesome flavor.

Stratification:

No

Scarification:

No

Resistances:

Their only real resistance is to heat.

Rotation Schedule

Schedule:

3 year rotation

Follow ->:

Corn, brassicas, onions, garlic, root crops, leafy greens

<-Following:

corn, brassicas, leafy greens, cucurbits

Starting from Seed

When:

Direct sow Southern peas.

Garden Bed Prep

Soil:

Loose, well-draining soil

pH:

5.8 to 6.8

Soil Depth:

8 to 10 inches

Trellis:

Not for bush varieties, which most southern peas are.

Fertilizer:

Southern peas are light to moderate feeders. Work 1 to 2 inches of compost into the soil, and if the soil is poor, apply a light balanced fertilizer. Do NOT heavily fertilize with high-nitrogen fertilizer.

Transplanting

When:

Direct sown

Direct Sowing

When:

After all danger of frost has passed and the soil is truly warm.

Depth:

1 to 1 1/2 inches

Spacing:

3 to 4 inches apart. Rows 24 to 36 inches apart.

Water:

Keep soil evenly moist until germination and establishment. Avoid making the soil soggy.

Light:

Full sun

Soil Temperature:

70° to 95°F

# in Sq. Ft. Planting:

9 per square foot

Germination:

5 to 10 days

Growing Care

Soil pH:

5.8 to 6.8

Fertilizer/Feed:

None beyond bed prep

Days to Maturity:

60 to 90 days

Water:

Do not get the soil soggy, but do not let it get dry either. Once established, southern peas can handle dry conditions better than most beans or peas, but they produce better if the soil has steady moisture.

Pruning:

Just remove anything that is dead, diseased or damaged.

Mulching:

1 to 2 inches, then more later if needed to keep moisture in and weeds out.

Pollination:

Self-pollinating

Companions & Antagonists

Plant Family:

Antagonists:

corn

onions

cucumbers

garlic

melons

leeks

radishes and carrots

–

Attracts & Repels

Attracts:

Repels:

bees and other flower visitors

Nothing

Pests & Disease

Pests:

Disease:

aphids

Powdery mildew

stink bugs

root rot

cowpea curculio

fusarium wilt

leafhoppers

mosaic viruses

spider mites

damping off

cutworms

–

Seed Saving

When:

When mature and dry on the vine.

Method:

Pick and shell the dried pea pods before rain damages them. Dry thoroughly if needed.

Storage:

store in a cool, dry place

Harvest Time

When:

Shelling Peas: Harvest when pods are full and peas are developed, but still tender.
Dry Peas: Leave on the plant until they dry down well.
For Snaps: This doesn’t really apply, since southern peas are almost always grown for shelling.

How:

Pick or snip the pea from the vine.

Storing:

Southern peas need to be cooked or preserved within a few days of being harvested.

Preservation Methods:

Canning, freezing, drying

Troubleshooting

Lots of vine and leaves, not many pods:

Usually too much nitrogen or too much shade.

Flowers but poor pod set:

Could be heat stress, drought stress during flowering or general plant stress.

Seeds rot in the ground:

Usually soil was too cold or too wet

Plants are stunted:

Could be poor soil, root problems, crowding, or planting too early into cool ground.

Leaves Yellowing:

Could be poor drainage, root trouble, nutrient imbalance or disease

Pods sparse or poorly filled:

Could be drought stress, low vigor or variety timing

Plants look fine but produce weakly:

Could be overfeeding with nitrogen, not enough sun or poor growing conditions early on.

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