Peas of all sorts are easy to grow. They are also one of the earliest vegetables to plant in the garden.
Jump to:
- Plant Peas Early, In Cool Spring Weather
- If There Is One Drawback to Peas…
- 6+ Easy Growing Short Pea Varieties for the Home Garden
- 1. Premium
- 2. Little Marvel
- 3. Bistro
- 4. Oregon Trail
- 5. Dwarf Grey Sugar Snap Pea
- 6. Sugar Ann
- Bonus: Tom Thumb for Container Planting
- Simple Support Options for Short Pea Varieties
Plant Peas Early, In Cool Spring Weather
Peas do not do well in hot weather, so they need to be planted early. They can tolerate light to moderate frost and, in most areas, are planted a month or more ahead of most other vegetables.
Peas like cool and damp conditions. They should be planted when the soil is workable (it doesn’t clump together when you make a ball) and when the soil temperature is registering a steady 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7.22 Celsius).
You will get the absolute best harvest from peas that you plant early in the spring, grow in cool weather, and harvest before the higher heat of summer sets in.
All of this makes peas a good crop to grow. You can start them before weeds grow and before other frost-sensitive plants are demanding your time. Peas don’t require a lot of extra fertilization and don’t need (or prefer) high nitrogen inputs. And they’re delicious and nutritious, too!
If There Is One Drawback to Peas…
If there is one drawback to garden peas, it is that they are climbing vines that need a solid infrastructure to climb upon.
Or do they?
Not all pea varieties need a tall, strong, expensive fence or trellis system. There are several smaller varieties of peas and dwarf varieties that can either be grown without extra support or on a simple small fence, basic trellis, or even on “pea brush” that you just stick in the ground.
6+ Easy Growing Short Pea Varieties for the Home Garden
For easy-to-grow, short varieties of peas that need little to no support, look for dwarf varieties or varieties of peas that grow shorter than 36 inches (shorter than three feet tall). The reputable Johnny’s Seed Company says that peas under three feet can be grown without support in rows spaced between 12 and 18 inches apart.
Grown this way, the vines will stand somewhat on their own and grow leaning and twisted together. They may trail along the ground, too, though, which can result in dirtier pods, so some light support can be beneficial, too. (See below for some easy ideas!)
And so, for the easiest peas you can grow, look for short varieties of peas that grow under 36 inches tall.
Here are seven of the best we’ve found!
1. Premium
Premium is a short shelling pea that tops out around 30 inches tall (about two and a half feet). It grows plump peas in pods that are three to three and a half (3 to 3 ½) inches long. Each pod has seven or eight standard peas inside.
Premium is an early variety that is ready to harvest in under 60 days. It is also resistant to Fusarium wilt. The seeds are open-pollinated, so they can be saved for future planting, too. (To save seeds, you’ll need to let the pods get very mature, yellowed, and dried down.)
2. Little Marvel
Little Marvel is a proven garden favorite. It is an heirloom variety, so again, the seeds can be saved.
Little Marvel, as its name suggests, doesn’t take up a lot of space. It grows to be only one and a half to two feet tall (18 to 24 inches). Supports are not required, but light support like pea brush can be beneficial and helps to keep plants off the ground to achieve better airflow, better health, and keeps cleaner pods.
Little Marvel grows six to nine peas in three-inch pods. The peas are primarily shelling peas. These are excellent for fresh eating but freeze very well, too.
3. Bistro
Bistro pea plants top out at about two feet tall (24 inches) but have a sturdy, upright growth habit. The plants grow two pods per node, each pod measuring 2 ¾ to 3 inches long and each containing eight peas on average.
This is a low-growing shelling pea that doesn’t have to have support.
Bistro is said to be an excellent all-around performer with good disease resistance and resistance to a few different types of Fusarium Wilt.
Bistro is open-pollinated and matures for harvest at just about two months, at around 63 days.
4. Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail is a shelling pea that grows to 24 to 30 inches (about two to two and a half feet tall). Pods are about three and a half (3 ½) inches long, with 9 peas per pod, on average.
The plants are on the higher side of short/dwarf peas, which means less stooping but still with the benefit of low to no support needed. It grows two pods per node and some plants can grow as many as eight nodes.
One nice feature of Oregon Trail peas is that the pods are usually concentrated close to the top of the plant, so they are easier to pick with less bending.
This variety is also disease-resistant to mosaic virus and powdery mildew. It was developed in the moist conditions of Oregon and Washington state in the U.S., in part to specifically avoid these diseases.
Oregon Trail takes about 70 days (a little over two months) to reach maturity.
5. Dwarf Grey Sugar Snap Pea
Victory Seeds says that although this pea is considered primarily a sugar snap pea, it is really multipurpose and gives you a lot of bang for your buck and your small space.
Dwarf Grey Sugar Pod peas can be harvested at an immature stage with underdeveloped peas for use as a snow pea, as a more formed sugar snap/edible pod pea, as a shelling pea, or you can leave them to dry on the vine for use as a storing dry pea that can be used for soup and other dishes you’d use dry peas for. The pods are said to stay sweet tasting even as they mature beyond the edible pod stages. It is also an heirloom variety, so those mature dried peas could be saved for planting, too.
This plant grows only between 18 and 24 inches tall and has a bush-like nature that does not have to be trellised but benefits from some simple support. (Victory recommends pea brush.)
As a bonus, the blossoms on these peas are an attractive bi-colored flower.
Dwarf Grey Sugar matures in 60 to 70 days.
6. Sugar Ann
Sugar Ann is an edible pod snap pea variety. It is an award winner that requires no staking and is a top choice for small spaces and urban gardens.
As the name suggests, Sugar Ann is sweet, with tender edible pods that are good for steaming, sauteing, and fresh eating.
What’s even better is that this variety matures very early, at just 56 days. It’s a top-producing short, bushy plant that needs no support and grows only between 10 and 24 inches tall.
Bonus: Tom Thumb for Container Planting
Peas can actually be grown as container plants, and in very small spaces!
The Tom Thumb variety is a miniature dwarf pea that is considered to be among the best for container growing. Grow it indoors, on a patio table, or in boxes and containers in your container garden.
Tom Thumb only grows to be about 9 inches tall. It is intended mostly as a shelling pea, but if you pick the pods young and underdeveloped, it makes a fine, sweet pod pea, too. It’s so short it never needs staking.
Tom Thumb is a very frost-tolerant variety. If you want a super early pea harvest, grow it in a cold frame before you can plant it in the ground.
This is an heirloom that originated in England, and the seeds can be saved. It may not be well known, but the seeds have actually been grown since at least the 1800’s!
Simple Support Options for Short Pea Varieties
Although it is not required of these pea varieties, staking or supporting these vines will keep them happier, healthier, cleaner, and easier to pick. It will also help to keep your rows more tidy and in their place.
Supporting peas that are under three feet tall does not have to be expensive or complicated. Here are a few simple ways to easily support these low-growing, bushier pea varieties:
- Pea Brush (literally twigs and brush two or three feet tall just stuck in the ground along the seed row or in a raised bed or container)
- Garden stakes
- Low fencing, including lightweight plastic fencing
- Garden trellis sections
- Garden Teepees
- Overturned, upside-down tomato cages
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