A Detailed Guide to Pea Shoot Cultivation Methods and Seed Selection Techniques
Pea shoots are a type of vegetable, consisting of the tender stems and leaves of the pea plant, also known as dragon-beard sprouts, dragon-beard greens, pea tips and so on. They are rich in nutrients and contain a variety of amino acids essential to the human body. So what are the cultivation methods for pea shoots? How do you select seeds?
1. How to select seeds for pea shoot cultivation?
1. Seed selection
For producing pea shoots, do not choose large-seeded peas with yellow or green seed coats; such peas are prone to seed and seedling rot during production. You should choose small-seeded green peas or mottled peas with thick seed coats, as the pea shoots produced from these have thick, large stems and leaves, grow quickly and have strong disease resistance. In principle, the seeds should be plump, of high purity and cleanliness, with a germination rate above 95%.
2. Treatment
First wash the seeds 2-3 times with warm water at 20-30°C to remove impurities and broken beans
3. Soaking the beans
First blanch the peas in warm water at 55°C for 5 minutes, taking care to stir. Then soak them in clean water at 25-28°C using 2-3 times the weight of the seeds, for about 18-24 hours (shorter in summer and autumn, longer in winter and early spring). Wait until the seeds are fully swollen, the wrinkles have disappeared, and the sprouting roots can be clearly seen inside the transparent seed coat after soaking.
2. What are the cultivation methods for pea shoots?
1. Planting season
March to April (in the north, spring sowing should be done early, as soon as the ground thaws; in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and areas to the south, sowing can be done in all four seasons, but autumn and winter are best, mostly sown from late September to early November).
2. Sowing
After soaking the seeds, rub off the mucilage on the seed coats and drain off the excess water, then spread the seeds evenly in a plastic tray (the plastic tray should first be disinfected and sterilized with rot fungus clearing agent, and lined with newspaper or toilet paper). Stack six trays as one pile, and spray water twice a day (spray just enough to moisten without water remaining in the tray). While spraying, rotate the trays' positions from top to bottom, front to back, and left to right. After 48 hours, the pea shoots will have grown to 2-3 cm tall; at this point the seedling trays can be arranged on the ground or moved onto cultivation racks for production management.
3. Daily management
(1) Light
During the growth of the pea shoots, take care that the light is not too strong, so as to prevent cellulose from forming too early and affecting quality. But the light should not be too weak either, lest the pea shoots grow thin and weak.
(2) Watering
During the growth period, spray water 2-3 times a day; spray less on cloudy, rainy or foggy days or when the indoor temperature is low, and spray more when it is hot or the indoor humidity is low. Also pay attention to necessary ventilation to prevent seedling rot.
(3) Temperature
The optimum temperature for growth during the seedling stage is 14-22°C; it can endure low temperatures of -4 to -5°C; it is somewhat drought-tolerant, so if the leaves are not wilting in the morning and evening, no watering is needed.
(4) Fertilizing
About 10 days after germination, apply diluted decomposed organic fertilizer once. Two weeks after germination, when 1-2 pairs of true leaves have grown, transplant and set them out, 3-5 plants per pot, with sufficient decomposed organic fertilizer applied in the soil as a base fertilizer.
4. Harvesting
When harvesting pea shoots, be sure not to pull them up by the roots; leave 2 to 3 cm of the roots, then spray these roots with clean water 2 to 3 times a day, and after waiting 3 to 5 days you can harvest fresh pea shoots again. Generally, you can harvest 2 to 3 times in this way.