The truth about the tradition of sowing sweet pea seeds on St Patrick's Day

While some celebrate St Patrick's Day by wearing green and enjoying the craic and a Guinness at the pub, gardeners will be getting dirty sowing one specific bloom.

Tradition states that sowing sweet pea seeds by sunrise on March 17 you'll end up with bigger and more fragrant flowers.

This has turned St Patrick's Day into a key date on the gardening calendar for growing this delightful plant.

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But in Australia it doesn't mean you have to sow sweet pea seeds on this day or that you've missed the boat if you sow them after.

In fact, with hot temperatures still lingering during the first month of autumn, waiting for the weather to cool a bit more can be beneficial.

"While St Patrick's Day may not be the perfect timing for sweet pea sowing in all areas of Australia, it is still a useful reminder that sweet peas can be sown in autumn and spring," Marcelle Swanson, The Diggers Club product marketing manager, tells 9honey Living.

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Sweet peas can be directly sown into the ground or containers, but Swanson recommends sowing seeds in punnets first if you're sowing the seeds in autumn.

"This is because the ideal soil germination temperature is between 13 to 18 degrees, and seed can take from 10 to 21 days to germinate.

"In warmer soils they will germinate sooner, but can become too leggy. Colder temperatures may fail to see them germinate at all. When sown in punnets it is easy to control ambient temperatures and soil moisture," Swanson explains.

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Some gardeners, including Swanson, advise soaking the seeds in water before sowing to kickstart the germination process, but you can also pop them straight in.

Once your seedlings have grown and spring has arrived (wait until after the last frost if your region gets frost) you can transplant the seedlings into prepared soil.

Generally, sweet pea seedlings are ready to transplant when they have three to four leaves. This is also when you can pinch the seedling by removing the top pair of leaves to encourage bushier growth and more flowers.

As sweet peas are one of those plants that requires support to grow on you'll need some sort of trellis for them to climb up, and it's important to consider when you will do this.

"Sweet Peas attach readily to any open structure that they can get their tendrils around, from simple wire fencing to cane tepees and elaborate arbours and latticework. It is essential to set up any support before sowing or transplanting to avoid damaging the young seedlings as they establish," Swanson says.

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Sweet peas look beautiful growing in the garden or in a posy popped in a vase. Colours include purple, pink, white and red, while some varieties have a marbled look or petals in more than one colour.

So sow them today or later this season if you want them to be flowering in spring, otherwise you can wait until spring and enjoy these beauties in summer.

Or, for anyone who really adores this bloom, why not do both?

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