But, peas are really easy to grow, aren't they?
Well, in theory, yes. But they have a number of nasty little tricks up their sleeves, so read on.

Peas enjoy cool damp conditions, so fior the last couple of years most gardeners in Kent will have had an easy ride. But a classic Kentish season, with cold dry winds in March and a hot dry May, can mean a very different picture. There are also other chaps to take into account - mice, sparrows and pigeons, all of which like peas just as much as you do.

Get an early start with peas. That way you'll have a good crop before the weather turns hot and dry. Quite a large number of pea varieties can be sown in the autumn to overwinter. The books say sow them on October, but with our mild autumns this can be too early; the seedlings are tall enough by January to get clobbered by snowy weather. In fact you can get away with sowing autumn peas right up till Christmas.

If your soil is heavy, it is better to plant your winter peas on a slight ridge. Where you grew your courgettes in summer is ideal. It wants to be a few inches high and about 18" broad at the top. Prepare the soil and cover it with polythene while the weather is still kind. Then, when you want to sow, you can just whip off the polythene and the soil is all lovely.

A tried and tested variety for early sowing is "Douce Provence". It doesn't sound hardy but is better than several of the traditional British varieties.

Nothing is more annoying than a beautiful row of veg with a big gap in it where something went wrong. This looks especially scruffy when it's peas in that row. Fill some little pot with compost and sow the tail end of the packet, 5 seeds to a pot, and pop the tray somewhere sheltered. These "gappers" can be used to restore your row to its proper glory.

These perky young peas were sown in
late December in a cold frame and photographed in late January

Of course, winter is a tough time for small mammals and birds. Mice will dig up your peas and pigeons and sparrows will gobble up the emerging seedlings. Protect your seed against mice by dipping them in paraffin. About 20mins is quite long enough - a plant saucer makes a handy container. The paraffin won't harm the seeds, it just sits on the surface. But the smell puts the mice right off!

Protect the emerging seedlings from birds with lengths of chicken wire, folded over like a mini tunnel. You need a small-gauge wire to keep the sparrows out, and make sure it is high enough above the seedlings as they grow. Sparrows will happily perch on the wire and nibble any leaves they can reach.

Pigeons will walk up to the row and peck at leaves at head height, so once the peas have grown up in spring the tops will be safe from them. Not so with sparrows! They just love tender young peas and will strip any leaf they can reach. Obviously, though, you have to take the wire off some time!

In the past, sparrows didn't seem to be such a problem and the gardener could use traditional pea sticks. Sadly, these provide the ideal platform for sparrows to perch on. After watching every plot on the site, and seeing what worked and what didn't, the best solutions were pea netting, stretched between the fewest possible number of stakes, or alternately a framework of string holding the peas stems up and supported by pairs of stakes at intervals.

          RIGHT: the string and canes technique.

Click on the pic to go to Tucker's catalogue. Ta for the photo!

Late sowings of peas rarely do well in Kent - the last couple of years were an exception. The general guideline is, don't bother to sow after the end of April. You may be able to wing it, especially if you have well-drained soil and put a lot of humus in, and are prepared to water daily in hot weather. But often the plants get mildew and perform poorly. For the best chance, choose a tall variety like Alderman or the exotic-looking but useful Purple Podded Pea (right).

When you're clearing a row of peas at the end of its usefulness, don't throw away the old and dry pea pods you find. Old, floury peas can be frozen to make winter soups like Pea and Ham. Fully dry peas can be kept to sow for winter shoots for salads. Just pop them in a tray full of compost in the autumn and the young emerging shoots are exactly what you pay a fortune for in the supermarket!