An heirloom shelling pea and superb-tasting old favorite, Progress #9 is a heavy producer for its size. Growing on dwarf 18" vines that do not require staking, it produces large 5" pods with 7 to 9 plump peas per pod. Remember when you were a kid and how fun it was to pop open a pod and eat the fresh peas? This is a great variety to try to recapture the memory of the wonderful taste of fresh peas straight from the garden. Progress #9 is resistant to wilt. (Also called Laxton?s Progress #9. Thomas Laxton was a renowned 19th Century strawberry breeder.) This packet plants: One 10-foot row.
When to plant outside: RECOMMENDED. Sow in early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked. Soil temperatures must be above 40 degrees. A second crop may be planted in mid-summer for fall harvest. In USDA zone 8 or warmer, plant in fall or winter for winter harvest. (In any climate, you can stagger 3 plantings one week apart to spread out the harvest period. You can also plant 2 or 3 varieties at the same time with different maturity dates.)
When to start inside: Not recommended.
Special Sowing & Germination Instructions: Pre-soak seed for 24 hours before planting. Ideally, seedbeds should be prepared in fall; raised beds are recommended, because they will raise the early spring soil temperature and increase drainage. Treating seed with an inoculant (Rhizobia bacteria) may increase yields, since bacteria in the soil may not yet be active during the cool weather of early spring.
