Sweet peas have always captured the hearts of gardeners around the world.
A new generation is loving them anew, thanks to flower farmers like Marryn Mathis, “The Sweet Pea Queen,” owner of The Farmhouse Flower Farm, a 10-acre family-run flower farm located in the Pacific Northwest.
A member of the Slow Flowers Society, let’s just say Marryn was gob smacked by sweet peas at the beginning of her gardening career, and she’s never looked back. She grows twenty thousand sweet pea plants each year, and lucky for us, she shares her knowledge and experience with them in this beautifully photographed book.
This flower farmer knows her sweet peas!
If you need to be convinced to growing these gems, Marryn offers a list of reasons to encourage you to dig in:
Sweet peas are beautiful;
They are fragrant, some much more so than others;
They are easy to grow and tough;
They are great cut flowers;
They are pollinator-friendly;
They bloom from June to September;
Grow them up! and they take up very little space;
The seeds are easy to save for next year.
Discovered in 1695, sweet peas really took off in the late 1800s. There are more than 150 species of Lathyrus sp. and hundreds of varieties, as well as many types: Spencers, old-fashioned, grandifloras, “modern” multifloras, semi-grandifloras, and early multifloras (including the winter series). Did you know, there is a rating system for the amount of fragrance each type carries? Yes, there is, from 1 – 6.
For a successful crop of sweet peas, you will need to understand what they need: climate (not too hot), location, location, location in the garden (pay attention to the sun and shade conditions and be sure to protect plants from wind), plenty of compost, and adequate water. Marryn makes a distinction between growing a few garden sweet peas for yourself on a fence or arbor versus growing them for cut flowers in long, straight rows for ease of harvesting. When growing them commercially market, a longer stem length is considered an asset. She also shares a list of her favorite Spencer varieties, as well as several early multiflora types, ideal for spring wedding floral design.
Timing and sowing strategies are also important considerations. The author outlines detailed instructions for direct sowing versus indoor seed starting, soil preparation, transplant methods, watering techniques, and support and netting options. Pinching, pest management, and companion planting are included in the how-to section. Of course, harvesting, bouquets, and seed production are covered, too.
Then, there is the deep dive into the color choices. Be still my heart/your heart/our hearts! Yes, ‘King’s Ransom’ is included! The sweet pea “color range” is divided into burgundy/maroon/red, orange in all its glory, luscious peach and apricot, creamy whites, blush, pink, moody blue, regal purple, and, of course, the flakes. Those FLAKES!!! Yes, sweet peas come in “flake” form. Let’s just say, when you see ‘em, you are going to NEED some flakes. I might have bought a flaky ‘Nimbus’ (dark purple) and that ol’ flaky ‘Just Jenny’ (purply-blue). Specifically, a flake sweet pea is a “bridge flower” that blends well with a variety of different color palettes, such as ‘Raspberry Flake’, with soft berry-and-creamy-white steaking that creates the petals’ vintage qualities.
My suggestion to you, dear flower lover-farmer-reader, whether you are in love with Lathyrus odoratus on a small scale or planning to corner the cut flower market, grab a copy of this book. Don’t forget the flakes. I recommend ‘Nimbus’.
Sweet Pea School: Growing and Arranging the Garden’s Most Romantic Blooms, by Marryn Mathis
Published by Chronicle Books, February 2025, 240 pages, $27.50
ORDER your copy here
LISTEN: Marryn Mathis on the Slow Flowers Podcast (Episode 704, February 19, 2025)
