Sweet pea seeds grown too tall! Help! (With photos)

[AlexaWhatsMyUsername]

I managed, after a couple of attempts, to grow sweet peas from seed last spring. Thought I would have a go at planting in Autumn this time. They germinated in the kitchen really well and so I moved them to cold garage as per advice but they have just kept growing. They are now really tall with no leaves lower down so I can’t pinch them out to make them shorter. Are they a write off?

They are looking for light. I would move them outside, as it's so mild now. Not sure what to do when it gets cold again though - I move mine to a cold frame, not sure what others do?

They need much more light. You can try moving them to a bright window or a cold frame outside, but i suspect they are a write off.

Please update if I am wrong though!

If you've got some really deep pots (like clematis pots) try transplanting them into that but much deeper so that only an inch is showing then as soon as they get another pair of leaves pinch out the tops.

They need much more light - they're really hardy, so they'll be fine outside in a greenhouse or cold frame. Mine were in a plastic zippy greenhouse covered in horticultural fleece during the recent cold spell (-8 for us) and they're absolutely fine.

If you have spare seeds I would probably just re-sow, but leave them outside. You could keep these ones if you really want to but they'll never be as strong as ones that grew properly.

Thank all. I possibly kept them in the kitchen too long where it was warm as I was waiting for them all to come through before I moved them to the cooler (and darker) garage.

Then had them on a table directly in front of a garage window - but it’s not a sunny one. That’s the only cold/cool place I had.

I do have an unused tiny greenhouse/coldframe thing (like the one in this pic) round the side of the house. I could use that but the instructions I was following said keep them at around 5 degrees once germinated, whereas that would go to well below freezing over winter. Even the garage went to 2 degrees last week!

Would that be ok? I could buy more seeds and have another go I can just pull these out and reuse the root trainers and same compost that is already in them couldn’t I?

or maybe I just do them next Spring instead? 🤔

could use that but the instructions I was following said keep them at around 5 degrees once germinated, whereas that would go to well below freezing over winter. I keep mine in an unheated greenhouse. Bit warmer than outside but itdoes go below freezing some nights.

You can pinch sweet peas out to above the first leaf node but it doesn't look as if there are any lower leaves on yours.

Personally, for the time and space and effort I never sow sweet peas in the autumn, I just sow in spring. Those are too etoliated, and the stems are too weak to support themselves so when they do get taller they will fall over and you will have to resow again anyway.

They will be fine outside, I autumn sow but outside and they just shrug off frost and snow. I would plant them deeply where we you were going to plant them in spring. They'll probably be fine but if not a 2nd sowing in spring will often catch up.

Sweet peas are really tough. Mine have been out in the recent cold snap of -8 with just an upturned plastic storage container over them.

Sweet peas are as hardy AF.

Its not too late to sow some more if you have seeds left.