How to grow snap peas with the Paperpot Transplanter

Paperpot settings for snap peas

Use 2″ paper chain pots, broadcast soaked peas, about 3 per cell, and transplant 2 rows on a 30″ bed, 15″ apart. Plan on about 4 trays per 100′ bed.

Paper chain pot	2″
In-row spacing	2″
Rows per 30″ bed	2 (15″ apart)
Trays per 100′ bed	4
Kwik Klik top plate	None (broadcast)
Seeds per cell	About 3
Seed per 100′ bed	800 g dry (+/-)
Cultivars	Sugar Snap
Germination	3 days at 75°F
Days to transplant	10 days
Days to maturity	60 days
Harvest window	28 days
Harvest unit	Pound
Yield per 100′ bed	60 lb

Bed figures are for a 100′ x 30″ bed. From the Paperpot Co. Growers Notes, developed with farmers Erich Schultz (Steadfast Farm) and Seth Davis. Adjust for your climate and conditions.

Bed preparation

• Broadfork the bed to aerate and loosen the soil.
• Smooth and shape the bed with a bed prep rake, removing any debris.
• If the previous crop was fertilized, peas will do fine without reapplying. If not, either layer on 1″ of compost (enough to mostly cover the native soil) or sprinkle on alfalfa meal and pelleted chicken manure.
• Peas like fresh compost. If the last crop got compost, use alfalfa meal and pelleted chicken manure instead.
• If you layer compost, don’t tilth it in, so surface weed seed stays smothered. If you add amendments, tilth the top 1-2″ to mix them in.
• Irrigate for 10 to 14 days* to germinate weed seed in the top layer of soil, then flame weed once the weed cotyledons are up.

Seeding

• Soak the peas in a bucket of water for 8-24 hours, then rinse well (a big colander helps).
• Set a germination tray with 2″ paper chain pots and fill with potting mix.
• Spread 400 g of soaked peas (200 g dry) evenly over the tray, about 3 seeds per cell.
• Water and germinate at 75°F. Peas come up in about 3 days.
• Keep trays on greenhouse benches until 10 days old.

Transplanting

• Transplant when seedlings are 3-5″ tall. If roots have matted under the tray, shave them off on the transplanter ramp.
• Water the trays thoroughly before heading to the field.
• Plant two rows of peas with the Paperpot Transplanter: 15″ between rows, 7.5″ from the outer rows to the bed edge.
• New to the transplanter? See the how-to guide and videos.

Bed layout

Irrigation

• Peas do best on two lines of drip. Keeping pods and leaves dry helps avoid disease.

Cultivation & trellising

• 14-18 days after transplanting, cultivate with a collinear hoe and side-dress with alfalfa meal or blood meal.
• Once the peas pass 10″, mulch with straw.
• Drive a 7′ T-post between the rows every 10′. Put a 1.25″ PVC tee on each post and run 1/2″ EMT through them as a top rail, then hang trellis netting from it.
• Run tomato twine along the front of the plants so they don’t flop forward.

Harvest

• Pick every other day once pods are about as thick as your little finger, working from the bottom of the plant up.
• Pinch the pod between two fingers and snap above the cap with your thumb.

Packing

• Don’t wash peas. If they get wet, leave the bins open in the cooler for a couple of hours.
• Store at 35-40°F and sell within 4 days.

Snap peas in paper chain pots: FAQ

Other crops

basil · beets · bunching onions · cabbage · cilantro · dill · fennel · garlic · head lettuce · kohlrabi · leeks · Little Gem lettuce · mesclun mix lettuce · onions · salad turnips · spinach · storage radishes · summer crisp lettuce. All crops in one table: the Paperpot growers notes.