Growing Hydroponic Peas

It’s easy to forget how amazing fresh peas taste.  As soon as they’re picked, peas begin converting their sugar to starch. Your homegrown peas will be surprisingly sweet, full of flavor and grow prolifically with hydroponics.  Even the pea shoots (aka young vines) and tendrils are flavorful, healthy and fun to eat.

Nutritionally speaking, peas (and their shoots) are low in calories, high in vitamin A and K, and have good amounts of vitamin C.  They are also a terrific source of fiber and plant-based protein, which happens to make them quite filling. 

One more note…kids LOVE growing peas.  They grow quickly and have interesting tendrils that wrap around the trellis to hang on, making them fun to watch grow.  They also have flowers that turn into delicious peas, making them a fun learning experience that ends with a sweet treat.  

Fresh peas are a incredibly sweet and tender.  Add them to salads, soups and side dishes, or enjoy them right off the vine! 

Germination:

Peas are not difficult to grow from seed. Starting them directly in the iHarvest^® is fine.  If you want to have a higher success rate, you can also use our Seedling Starter Kit, or the paper towel method for even better results. You can make your own seedling starter kit by using Tupperware covered with plastic wrap that you poke a few holes in.

Light:

Peas like healthy amounts of light to flower and produce fruit.  16 hours of artificial light is best for them and most of your other plants.  With this, your peas will flower frequently, and produce lots of pea pods.

EC Range:

Peas are ok at lower EC ranges, similar to lettuce, strawberries and a variety of herbs.  Keep your EC range between 0.8 and 1.9 for optimal growth.  Here are some other plants that grow well in these EC ranges. 

pH Range:

Your iHarvest® comes with a pH tester.  Adjusting your pH allows your plants to absorb the nutrients they need, as efficiently as possible.  Keep your pH between 5.8-6.5 for optimal growth.

Nutrients:

Peas are a flowering/fruiting plant.  When they begin to flower, consider switching from using only the IGWorks’ Green Machine Nutrients to adding 50% Flower Power Nutrients to the mix. 

If the leaves on your pea vine begin to turn brown, consider adding extra Potassium (K) to your nutrient mix.  ¼ teaspoon of a 0-0-50 nutrient mix for every 10 gallons of water in your system should do the trick!  Keep your EC range between 0.8 and 1.9.

Pollinating:

Fortunately, peas are self-fertile, so not much work is required.  Little shakes of the vine, taps on the flowers, or a fan in front of the iHarvest will pollinate them quite well. We have a whole article dedicated to pollinating your plants here, if you’d like to review in more detail.

Pruning:

Tipping (snipping) your pea plant vines will encourage them to branch out and grow more densely.  You can start this when the first vine is only 8-12 inches long, by snipping the section with the last few leaves off the end.  Remove and branches or leaves that turn brown.  You can train your plant by trimming the vines that are reaching where you don’t want them to grow, and positioning young vines to grow where you’d like them to (sometimes they’ll even cooperate). 

Harvesting:

Peas mature quickly and will produce more when they are harvested often, so check them every day or so once they begin to produce fruit. Harvest your peas just as the peas inside the pods begin to touch each other.  The pods should be crunchy when you eat them.

Don’t forget to harvest and consume the shoots and tendrils.  The younger the shoots and tendrils of your pea vine, they better they will typically taste.  They are popular in stir-fry but can be eaten in other ways as well.

Time to Harvest:

Peas grow, fruit and flower relatively quickly.  You can expect flowers within 2 months, and peas are likely to be mature within about 3 weeks from then.

Conclusion:

Remember, you don’t require a green thumb to grow in the iHarvest®.  In fact, it’s easier than growing in soil.  The more closely you follow the directions, the more peas you will have.  And don’t forget, IGWorks® and the Indoor Garden Works Group on Facebook are always here to help.

Check Out Our Peas Recipes!

• Stir Fried Pea Shoots
• Stir Fried Sesame Beef and Peas
• Delicious Veggie Wraps

Let's grow together!