Sweet pea "Old Spice Henry Eckford"

Sweet pea "Old Spice Henry Eckford" - Lathyrus odoratus.
An annual plant of the Legume family with climbing stems up to 250 cm high. It blooms from July to September.
The flowers are large, apricot-colored, collected in graceful clusters, and have a pleasant, subtle aroma. Photophilous, moisture-loving and cold-resistant, prefers fertile loamy and sandy loam soils.
Grown by seedlings and without seedlings. In open ground, sowing is carried out in the first ten days of May. Seeds for seedlings are sown in late March-early April in pots.
Seedlings are planted in mid-May at a distance of 30 cm. It is advisable to germinate the seeds before sowing. 1.0 g = 10-12 seeds.
Used for vertical gardening. Cut flowers retain freshness well in water and are used in bouquets.

Growing.
Under Estonian conditions, sweet pea seeds ripen in early September. The formation of seeds inhibits flowering, so it is better to leave 1-2 plants specifically for propagation, without cutting off their flower stalks. The seeds are quite large, with a hard shell. Before planting, soak them in warm (+60 °C) water and germinate in a humid environment. You can specifically carefully cut the shell for quick germination.
Since flowering occurs 2-3 months after germination, plant the seeds at the end of March - beginning of April in peat pots with a nutritious earthen mixture, one or two or three seeds per hole. For better branching, pinch young plants above the third leaf. The growing period of seedlings lasts about 40 days.
Peas can be planted in open ground already in the first ten days of May with a distance of 20-25 cm between plants. The root system of sweet peas is sensitive to damage, and growth begins only after two weeks. Therefore, it is better to plant plants with a clod of earth.
Germinated seeds can be planted in the ground in early May, but in this case flowering will occur two weeks later. To get the most spectacular inflorescences, leave 1-2 of the strongest stems on the plant and remove the rest. Regularly pinch out the side shoots and some of the tendrils so that the plant spends nutrients on the formation of buds.
Sweet peas are fed twice: the first feeding is carried out at the beginning of stem growth with complex organic-mineral fertilizer, the second - when buds appear, with phosphorus-potassium fertilizer.