Vegetables · Legume

Growing peas

Pisum sativum · also called MatarA cool season legume sown straight into the bed for its sweet green pods. It likes mild days, takes light frost while young and fixes its own nitrogen.

Where are you growing?

Temperate Himalaya: Kashmir valley, Shimla, Kullu, Uttarakhand hills

Includes AI suggestions where no published guide covers a detail

Green pea pods hanging on a pea plant among its leaves — Photo: Андрей Перцев · CC0

At a glance

Peas in the Temperate Himalaya

Season
Autumn sowing for the main crop, or spring to early summer sowing in the high hills³
Sowing to last picking
Early varieties take 65 to 80 days, medium ones 90 to 100 days and main season ones 110 to 120 days.³
Sow
October to November^3,5

Across India

When to sow it

Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.

Sow now

The window here is October to November.

Sowing now in:Sub-tropical foothills North-west plains Gangetic plains North-east hills and valleys Arid west Central plateau Deccan plateau South interior East coast

Sow
Harvest
Today
Not suited here

Temperate HimalayaKashmir valley, Shimla, Kullu Sub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, Dehradun Cold desertLadakh, Lahaul and Spiti

Compare all 12 regions

Cold desertLadakh, Lahaul and Spiti Sub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, Dehradun North-west plainsPunjab, Haryana, Delhi Gangetic plainseastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plains North-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, Sikkim Arid westRajasthan, Kutch, north Gujarat Central plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Vidarbha Deccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north Karnataka South interiorBengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil Nadu West coastKerala, Goa, KonkanNot suited here East coastcoastal Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal Andhra

Today

See the dates as a table

Region	Sow	Harvest
Temperate Himalaya	October to NovemberMarch to June	September to October
Cold desert	April to May	September to October
Sub-tropical foothills	Last week of OctoberMid-October to mid-November
North-west plains	Mid-October to mid-November
Gangetic plains	October to November
North-east hills and valleys	October to mid-November
Arid west	Mid-October to mid-November
Central plateau	Mid-October to November
Deccan plateau	Mid-October to November
South interior	October to NovemberFebruary to March
West coast	Not suited here
East coast	October to November

From seed to harvest

One season, day by day

Days from sowing

Day 0
Sow
Farmyard manure³
20 tonnes per hectare · Apply the full dose at sowing
Day 7 to 14
Seeds come up^2,3,6

Water before sowing so the seed germinates well. Water again before flowering, during flowering and at pod formation. Peas can be grown rainfed only if the soil is moist at sowing.³

What it needs

Soil, sun and warmth

Soil pH^2,3,1,6
6 to 7.5
Well drained, fertile loam. Light soils suit an early crop and heavier soils a main season crop. It does poorly on acid soils below pH 5.5.
Sunlight
At least 6 hours a day
Full sun. Pick an open bed away from tall shade.
Temperature^1,3,6
Grows best at 10 to 18 °C
Takes light frost.
Monthly temperatures for the Temperate Himalaya aren't in the library yet.

Water and feeding

Watering³

Water before sowing so the seed germinates well. Water again before flowering, during flowering and at pod formation. Peas can be grown rainfed only if the soil is moist at sowing.

Weeding³

Hoe and earth up two to three weeks after sowing, and again when flowers start to form.

When	What	How much	How
at sowing	Farmyard manure	20 tonnes per hectare	Apply the full dose at sowing

Sources³

Varieties and yield

Typical range³

100 to 150 quintals a hectare

Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.

Varieties grown here^3,6

Arkel
Early
Matar Ageta 6
Early
VL Ageti Matar 7
Early
Palam Triloki
Early
Bonneville
Main season
Lincoln
Main season
Azad P-1
Main season
Punjab 89
Main season
Palam Priya
Main season; resistant to powdery mildew
Solan Nirog
Main season
Kashi Nandini
Early; ICAR-IIVR lists it for Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand

Good neighbours

Grows well with

Keep it away from

Pests and diseases^3,2

Organic and cultural controls only.

Pest
Pea aphid
Signs
Green insects suck sap from the shoots, so leaves turn pale, curl and dry.
What to do
- Remove weeds on bunds, waste land and channels, where aphids build up
- Do not overfeed with nitrogen
Pest
Pea leaf miner
Signs
Larvae make winding tunnels in the leaves; badly mined leaves dry up.
What to do
- Remove weeds in and around the field
- Keep plants healthy with balanced feeding
Pest
Pea stem fly
Signs
Damages young plants at the seedling stage.
What to do
- Avoid sowing too early in hot weather
Pest
Pea thrips
Signs
Tiny insects suck sap from the young crop.
What to do
- Remove weeds in and around the field
Disease
Powdery mildew
Signs
Small pale spots on the upper leaf grow into white powdery patches on leaves, stems and pods.
What to do
- Grow a resistant variety such as Palam Priya
Disease
Fusarium wilt and root rot
Signs
Young plants yellow, the lower stem shows red or orange discolouration inside, and plants wilt.
Prevention
- Follow a long crop rotation
Disease
Ascochyta blight
Signs
Small purple spots on leaves, stems and pods.
Prevention
- Rotate for three to four years
- Remove and dispose of diseased plants

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed^1,2

Grow the seed crop with the same seed rate and spacing as the table crop. Keep 5 m between two varieties.

When the seed is ready

Leave the pods on the plant until they turn dry and papery and the seeds rattle.

Cleaning the seed

Pick the dry pods, shell them by hand and dry the seed in the shade for a few days.

Store fully dry seed in a sealed tin or jar in a cool, dry place.

After the last picking

Pull or cut the vines after the last picking and compost them, or dig them in to feed the next crop.

After the last picking, chop the vines and dig them in or compost them. Remove plants that died of wilt or rot.

Rotation

Follow a three year rotation with cereals where wilt is a problem. Do not grow peas straight after brinjal, cauliflower, carrot or peas; tomato or chilli is a better crop before them.

Sources

Where this comes from

Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.

These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.

3Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers (VSF-231), Part I: Vegetable production (Garden pea)CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur (Department of Vegetable Science and Floriculture)Read the source
4Horticulture: Vegetables: PeasTNAU Agritech Portal, Tamil Nadu Agricultural UniversityRead the source
5Economic potential of pea farming in Himachal Pradesh (Indian Farming 74(12): 15-17, December 2024)ICAR (Indian Farming); authors at Dr Y S Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, SolanRead the source

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Growing peas

Peas in the Temperate Himalaya

When to sow it

One season, day by day

Soil, sun and warmth

Soil pH2,3,1,6

SunlightAI suggestionNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Temperature1,3,6

Water and feeding

Watering3

Weeding3

Varieties and yield

Good neighboursAI suggestionNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Pests and diseases3,2

Pea aphid

Pea leaf miner

Pea stem fly

Pea thrips

Powdery mildew

Fusarium wilt and root rot

Ascochyta blight

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed1,2Includes AI suggestionsPart of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

After the last pickingAI suggestionNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.