Capucijner pea

Image via WikipediaUp Plants A-Z


Here's first some general information about this little-known pea:
"During the late Middle Ages, Capuchin monks in Holland and northern Germany devoted considerable energy to the improvement of field peas for agricultural purposes. This has resulted in a group of large-seeded gray peas referred to as Capuchin, especially those from the Netherlands where the breeding of new pea varieties became a national pastime by the early 1600s. One of the classic peas from this group and one which dates from the 1500s is the handsome blue pod Capucijner, a soup pea growing on six-foot (two m) vines." - source





Articles

• Kapucijner - (Dutch Wikipedia article, use Google translate to read it, there is no information in the English Wikipedia)
  
• Pisum sativum (Blue Pod Capucijner Pea)
  

Diary

• March 18, 2011

This type of pea is rather rare, but I got some of these peas to try them out.

This photo i took from the package

First i loosened the soil and added 30 l/m2 worked-out compost to the top layer (peas don't like fresh manure).

I sowed the peas in lines, 2 seeds together and on a distance of 10 cm.

Because these plants grow 2 meter high, i put up fences of iron wire netting of the same height.

I know that these peas can be dried and kept well and used like kidney beans, but they are much more delicious when harvested fresh and then cooked.

I am a little worried about birds going to eat the peas, as they like the sweet peas and there are loads of birds around my garden.

Because my garden is new and on a poor sand soil, and formerly was grassland that hadn't received any fertilizers for many years, i apply many nitrogen-fixing plants for the first year. These plants are capable to produce a portion of their own nitrogen with the help of symbiotic bacteria that grow on their roots.

Here a quote from a Wikipedia article:

Plants that contribute to nitrogen fixation include the legume family – Fabaceae – with taxa such as clover, soybeans, alfalfa, lupines, peanuts, and rooibos. They contain symbiotic bacteria called Rhizobia within nodules in their root systems, producing nitrogen compounds that help the plant to grow and compete with other plants. When the plant dies, the fixed nitrogen is released, making it available to other plants and this helps to fertilize the soil.

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