Posted by cutting Matt

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gardening peas Answered

My pea plants are just keeling over and dying. I am growing them in a container, and most just flop down. i have seven varieties, and they are all suffering, to some degree. Any suggestions on how i can save themÃ© it might be that it doesn't drain properly.

Tags:peas problem

17 Replies

caitlinsdad2009-02-12

If pea plants are vine-like, maybe you can set up some sort of trellis fence to help support the plants by spreading them out and tying them to the trellis. Maybe it is time to get a bigger container for them to grow in. The roots may be compacted and all of nutrients sucked out for a mature plant. In the new container add some holes and gravel at the bottom of the container to help it drain. I'm not an expert with peas but do you have to adjust soil acidity, sunlight, or watering patterns? Maybe give it a shot of liquid fertilizer. Good luck.

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Goodhart2009-02-12

Yes, I suspect the need for both a support system and the lack of nitrogen in the soil.....legumes need fixed Nitrogen to thrive

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cutting Matt2009-02-13

i thought that legumes could fix nitrogen from the air

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Goodhart2009-02-13

If you go to http://academic.reed.edu/biology/Nitrogen/Nfix1(legumes).html you will see that they fix nitrogen through nodules in the root system BUT, some legumes have nodules on their stems and can do so from the air (these stem nodules can also photosynthesize)

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tech-king2009-02-15

cool! respect for the pea plant lol. have you considered the container is too shallow?

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cutting Matt2009-02-18

ya i think so. i had built it with a false bottom ~ 1 cm up, and i guess it collapsed

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cutting Matt2009-02-13

I dont think it is the watering pattern, because my dad used it for years for all sorts of plants. i used fresh potting soil, and even a plant all on it's own is suffering. plenty of light (4 flourescent grow lites) I'll give it a shot of fertilizer, but i think it might also have been the design. i built it with a bottom, and about one centimeter above had a bottom with slits to allow drainage into the bottom. i guess with the earth it sagged and the water was with the root system. Thanks

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caitlinsdad2009-02-13

I've always made it a habit if planting with vases, pottery, window boxes, that you put some gravel, broken clay pottery in the bottom so that mud doesn't collect and clog up the pores and allow for good drainage. Good tip I learned from going to the nursery on a school trip when I was a wee kid.

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cutting Matt2009-02-14

next year ill try that they are horribly behind scedule. i planted some dec. 14, and they need ~ 60 days, so they should have been ready today. I dont see any flowers and most are less than one foot tall. could you help me figure out what went wrong?

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caitlinsdad2009-02-14

If you've followed all the tips, maybe you could post a picture to see what they look like and someone could figure it out. Overcrowding, late bloomers?

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cutting Matt2009-02-15

it cant be late bloomers. they have passed the date marked on the package, and they dont even have flowers. overcrowding isn't it, because i have one all by itself (nothing for about 4 inches), and it's suffering as much as the largest one 1.5 in. appart. i cant find my camera, but they are shriveled up, thin the leaves are dry like dead ones, and they would be on the ground if it weren't for the support. i hope thet helps

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Tool Using Animal2009-02-13

How far are the lights from the top of the plants?

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cutting Matt2009-02-14

about 5 feet from the ground, 4.5 from the earth and between 4.5 feet to 2.5 feet from the top of the plants.

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Tool Using Animal2009-02-14

That is much too far, using fluorescent, the lights should be no more than 4 INCHES from the top of the plants. The intensity difference between 4 inches and 2.5 feet is greater than a factor of fifty.

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cutting Matt2009-02-15

i have 4 grow bulbs, and they didn't suffer at all when the lights were 2 feet away, or when i raised them. it was only in the last few week that this has happened.

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Tool Using Animal2009-02-15

post a pic or three, we can nail this down much faster.

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Goodhart2009-02-12

Here is some advice that should be helpful. . . How to Grow Peas (indoors)

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