Garden Doctors: Which peas work best in Sonoma County gardens?

Can you tell me the differences between the different types of peas we could grow here? Some you can eat the shell, and some you can't. - Kathy R. of Santa Rosa

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Peas are the legume of the cool weather, and just like all the other vegetables you grow, they don't get any tastier than when they're picked right from the vine. There are several pea categories to choose from, and all are delicious.

The traditional garden, shelling or English pea varieties taste best when the peas are removed from the shells or pods before cooking. You can certainly eat these fresh, too. Look for Green Arrow and Laxtons Progress.

The sugar peas, snow peas or Chinese peas are the small ones you find in Asian or Chinese dishes. Unlike shelling peas, they don't split open when they're mature, and you harvest them when they are quite young. They are known for their tender pods. The sugar pea varieties are the ones that are terrific to snap off the vine and enjoy right there in the garden. Look for Dwarf Grey Sugar, Mammoth Melting and Oregon Sugar Pod.

Southern peas also are called cowpeas, black-eyed peas or field peas, depending on where you live. They can be canned, cooked or dried. These peas grow at their best in climates where they have 60-90 days of warm weather, which is why they do better in the south. When picked small and tender, they can be snapped and eaten like green beans. Fresh cowpeas in the pods can be shelled and cooked like a fresh bean. Or they can be dried and saved for winter meals. Look for Pinkeye Purple Hill and Whippoorwill.

Peas come in bush or runner varieties just like beans, so keep that in mind before planting. They like to grow in well-drained soil that's high in organic matter, so add a lot of compost. While peas are legumes and legumes rather efficiently make their own nitrogen from bacteria, they don't need any additional fertilizer (especially nitrogen). Peas are usually sown directly into the soil about 1 to 2 inches deep. If you're planting a bush variety, planting them in double rows 6 to 8 inches apart will make it possible for the 2- to 4-foot plants to support each other. If you're planting the pole type, sow or plant the peas 2 inches apart at the base of a trellis or any other supportive frame, as they'll climb 6 to 8 feet.

Netting works well for the pole peas because peas climb with little curling tendrils and need vertical as well as horizontal support. Make sure that you have whatever support you decide on, put into place at the same time you plant your peas, because there's no untangling the tendrils later if you should forget.

Depending on the varieties you're growing, you'll have your first pea pods anywhere from 2 to 4 months after planting. Be sure to harvest them as soon as you see them because it encourages more pods to set on the vines.

You want to harvest garden peas when the pods are full, but not bulging. Harvest any overgrown ones too or the plant will be signaled to stop producing. Pick the sugar peas when both the pod and the peas are a bit full, and the snow peas when they reach their mature length but aren't fully developed inside. Peas like regular watering, especially the seeds, as they need enough water to germinate.

Beware of slugs and snails because they are a mortal enemy of the tender pea plants. One way to control them is to grow the peas under a floating row cover until they reach 6 to 8 inches tall and have become established. Then hand pick any slugs or snails you spot.

Dana Lozano and Gwen Kilchherr are garden consultants. Send your gardening questions to them at pdgardendoctor@gmail.com. The Garden Doctors can answer questions only through their column, which appears twice a month in Sonoma Home and pressdemocrat.com.