How to sow beautifully fragrant sweet peas...

Today I've been out in my greenhouse planting sweet peas.

Before I had a greenhouse I filled every windowsill in the house with the tomato plants or sweet peas. I'm so very lucky to have a greenhouse now to house them all!

I've got various different varieties that I'm planting this year. I just love the smell and look of sweet peas, and January/February is the perfect time to sow them.

Start with a few trays of root trainers. Sweet Peas tend to have really long roots, and if you plant them in a shallow seed tray all the roots get tangled up. I find it so much easier to plant in the slightly deeper pots to avoid this tangle and give the roots a chance to really grow to their full potential. They are a great little investment, I've had my root trainers for a few years and they have lasted pretty well.

Pop some compost into your root trainers, making sure to fill up all the holes.

One of the sweet peas I chose to sow this year is called Fragrant Skies, so you can really imagine how beautiful they are going to look and smell.

Pour some of the seeds into the palm of your hand and just poke them into the soil. I went for 8 little sections of Fragrant Skies.

Then take a Sharpie and some little markers so you can identify the plant as it grows!

Don't forget to turn the tops of your seed packets over, then pop them into a tupperware pot to secure them. I've had a few unfortunate problems with slugs, possibly mice, breaking in and eating my leftover seeds!

Next up, I chose Distant Horizon Mix - a climbing variety.

Again, I sow eight of these. If I'm lucky, all eight will be good and strong plants - however I'd be more than happy with 5 or 6.

As before, label your seeds so you know what you've got in there!

It also helps to know what you have when it comes to moving your germinated plants to a bigger pot so you can keep all the same together or plan your mix of plants.

Next up I planted some Blue Velvet that were left over from last year and are from a company called Mole Seeds that I purchased online. They tend to be much bigger quantities than the seeds that you can purchase in the garden centre.

I sowed two rows of the Blue Velvet, as always labeling as I went.

It's worth mentioning that some people say you need to soak sweet pea seeds, but I never have and have always had great success with them!

So there we are, it really is so easy to sow sweet pea seeds! I shall keep you posted as they germinate, so we can all watch them grow ready to replant out in the garden. Then when it comes to the Summer we can pick them and enjoy their beautiful smells.

I love being up in the greenhouse just tinkering away. What are you most looking forward to blooming in your garden when the warmer weather arrives?

Love,