Mangetout can be grown not only outdoors, but also on the balcony. However, you have to consider a few special features here.
Sugar snap peas, also known as snow peas or snow peas, are not only fresh and crunchy, they also taste, as the name suggests, a little sweet. But that's not the only special feature: mangetout can also be eaten whole, i.e. with the shell.
So if snow peas are supposed to be on the table, then many people are shocked when they go shopping. After all, sugar snap peas are not exactly cheap. That's why it can be worthwhile to grow the small pods yourself. You don't even need a garden for this. You can also easily grow mangetout on the balcony.
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How to grow sweet peas on the balcony
Since sugar snap peas are quite sensitive to cold, sowing from mid-April is advisable.
Step 1: Fill the planter
Fill sufficiently large clay pots or a flower box with deep soil consisting of sand and clay at the bottom. This ensures that excess water can drain off easily. A little bit of lime in the soil doesn't hurt either.
Then place the pots on the sunny side of the balcony, as they need sunlight and warmth to thrive.
Step 2: Prepare substrate
Before you start sowing, loosen the soil in the pots or flower box and make deep grooves in it.
Step 3: Sow the snow peas
In contrast to outdoor cultivation, mangetout can be planted in a flower box at a distance of five centimeters. More plants fit next to each other in a flower box than in a flower pot. Plant the seeds at least five centimeters deep.
Tip: Sugar snap peas will grow faster if you soak the seeds in water for a day. This promotes germination.
Step 4: Caring for Sugar Peas
After sowing, it is important that you water the sweet peas daily. If the plants sprout, then it is sufficient if you only water them whenthe earth is dry.
Important: Sugar snap peas grow 60 to 90 cm high depending on the variety and want to climb up on their own. Therefore, a climbing aid is very important. This can consist of small wooden posts or branches. It is also advisable to stretch wire cords between the individual posts in the flower box.
Step 5: Harvest the mangetout
After about three and a half months, the harvest can begin. The right time has been reached when the small peas appear behind the pods. However, it is important that you process the pods right away, as they can take on a bitter taste over time. How about a delicious sugar pea soup?