There’s no need to wait months to enjoy the delicious flavor of homegrown peas as you can grow pea sprouts and shoots year-round inside your home. These nutrient dense foods are quick and easy to grow and you don’t need fancy equipment to produce a bumper crop of sweet, tender pea sprouts and shoots. In this article you’ll learn the difference between sprouts and shoots, discover how to plant each type, get growing tips, and find out when to harvest.

Pea sprouts and pea shoots

You may have noticed there are a lot of terms used for describing immature pea plants: sprouts, microgreens, pea tips, and shoots among others. However there is some overlap and I divide them into two main groups: sprouts and shoots.

• Pea sprouts – Sprouts are the first stage in the lifecycle of a plant and are harvested when the root tip begins to grow. This is just a few days after planting and entire seed and young root are consumed.
• Pea shoots – Shoots are immature plants that are grown in soil. The stems and leaves are clipped after the true leaves have emerged and the plants are several inches tall, about two to three weeks from seeding.

Three reasons to grow pea sprouts and shoots:

1. They’re fast and easy to grow with sprouts ready in two to three days and shoots in a few weeks. 
2. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to grow pea sprouts and shoots indoors. Sprouts can be grown in jars on the kitchen counter and shoots in pots or trays in a sunny windowsill or under grow lights. 
3. They’re nutrient dense and add crunch and delicious flavor to raw and cooked dishes.

Watch this video for step by step instructions for growing shoots and microgreens.

Types of peas for sprouts and shoots

I recommend buying organic pea seeds intended for sprouting or microgreens. There are many types to try and you’ll find packages of seeds at garden centres, health food stores, and online. 

• Dwarf Gray Sugar pea – This popular pea yields very sweet shoots, which are tender and never stringy. 
• Green pea – Green peas are a sprouting standard and have rounded green seeds that make excellent sprouts and shoots. 
• Speckled pea – When grown as a shoot, speckled peas have slender stems and leaves.
• Yellow pea – Like green and speckled peas, these have a bright fresh flavor reminiscent of the spring garden. The seeds are light yellow but deepen in color when soaked. 
• Tendril pea – Tendril peas produce leafy shoots but also lacy leafy tendrils that add crunch to salads and sandwiches. 

Equipment for growing pea sprouts

For sprouting, I like to keep it simple and use mason jars with sprouting lids. If you’ve got serious sprouting in mind you may wish to pick up an inexpensive seed sprouting system. Here are some of the common supplies for growing pea sprouts. 

• Jars – You can buy dedicated sprouting jars or use mason jars. Sprouting jars typically come with a mesh lid to make it easy to rinse and drain the seeds. 
• Sprouting jar lids – Sprouting lids are widely available and cost just a few dollars. They’re made from plastic or metal and some are for standard jars, while others fit wide-mouthed jars.
• Cheesecloth – Cheesecloth or another loosely woven fabric can be cut into small pieces and secured around the top of a jar with a rubber band, twine, or string. It can be re-used, but must be washed and dried between each batch of sprouts.
• Seed sprouters – Seed sprouters can be round or square and often have several levels so you can sprout different types of seeds at the same time. They allow water to flow down through the layers for easy rinsing and draining. 

Equipment for growing pea shoots

You also don’t need to shell out a lot of money to grow pea shoots and likely already have items that you can use.

• Containers – You can use any shallow container, but my go-to is a 1020 seeding tray. They’re 10 by 20 by 3 inches and are an efficient use of space, fitting perfectly under grow lights. You can also use plastic pots, old salad containers, or any type of container that holds soil. Just be sure the container you use has drainage holes. 
• Growing medium – I use a high-quality soil-less potting mix or compost to grow pea shoots. 
• Watering can or mister – The growing medium needs to be kept evenly damp as the shoots grow. Initially, I use a hand mister, but once the seeds sprout, I switch to a watering can with a rose. This provides a soft flow of water and won’t dislodge the seeds or flatten the young plants. 
• Optional items for growing pea shoots – Other items you may wish to use include clear domes or plastic wrap to hold soil moisture when the seeds are germinating, labels if you’re growing different varieties of pea shoots, scissors for harvesting, and an oscillating fan to boost air flow.

Growing pea sprouts in six simple steps

I always have jars of sprouts sitting in the corner of my kitchen counter for a non-stop supply of delicious sprouts. My favorites include alfalfa, arugula, and mustard, as well as pea sprouts. They take just a few days to grow and I love to sprinkle them on sandwiches, scrambled eggs, salads, stir-fries, and other dishes. Here are step-by-step growing instructions for pea sprouts:

1. Measure the seed. I add four tablespoons of pea seeds to a large wide-mouth jar. It may not look like much but the seeds swell up as they absorb water and sprout to fill the jar. 
2. Soak the seeds for six to eight hours or overnight in clean water and then drain well. 
3. Rinse the soaked seeds thoroughly with clean water and then drain. Cover the top of the jar with a sprouting lid or cheesecloth, or add the seeds to a sprouting tray if using. 
4. Place the jar or seed sprouter out of direct sunlight, but in a spot that’s convenient for frequent rinsing.
5. The most important step to remember is to rinse and drain the seeds with clean water two to three times a day. I usually do this in the morning, late afternoon, and before bed. Once I’ve rinsed the seeds, I drain well over the sink and then place the jar inverted on a bowl or plate at a slight angle. This allows any remaining water drain away. 
6. The sprouts are ready to eat when you see the little white roots emerge. This takes about two to three days.

How to harvest pea sprouts

Once the pea sprouts are ready to eat, I give them a final rinse and then lay them on a clean kitchen towel to drain and dry. This is because storing them soaking wet reduces their storage life. After about 30 minutes of drying, I move them into a food storage container lined in paper towel. The container is then placed in the refrigerator with the sprouts keeping for about a week.

Growing pea shoots in eight easy steps

Planting a tray of pea shoots takes only a few minutes and in just two to three weeks you’ll have plenty of tender greens. Here’s a quick guide to growing pea shoots:

1. Measure the seed. For a 10 by 20 inch seeding tray I use one to one and a half cups of seed.
2. Soak the seeds for six to eight hours in clean water. Cover them with at least two inches of water to ensure they don’t dry out as they soak.
3. Fill the containers with two inches of pre-moistened potting mix, pressing down gently to firm the soil. If you have a very shallow tray, you can get away with just an inch of potting mix. 
4. Sow the seeds densely. They should be touching or almost touching one another and once planted, cover with a thin layer of damp potting mix. 
5. Top the tray or container with a plastic dome or a sheet of plastic wrap to retain moisture and increase humidity. Remove this cover as soon as the seeds germinate.
6. Place the planted seeds in a sunny window or beneath grow lights. If using grow lights, leave them on for sixteen hours a day. If placing the tray in a window, rotate it every few days to encourage the shoots to grow straight. 
7. Use your finger to check the soil moisture daily, misting or watering if the potting mix seems dry. 
8. Begin harvesting when the shoots are large enough to clip (see below for more info on harvesting).

For a non-stop supply, start a fresh tray every two weeks.

Growing pea shoots outdoors

You don’t have to limit growing pea shoots to the inside of your home as they can also be planted in pots and trays in greenhouses, cold frames, or on decks and patios. In spring and fall I often start a tray on my sunny back deck and then in summer, when the weather is hot, I’ll place the container in a spot that offers some shading.

When to harvest pea shoots

Scissor harvest pea shoots when they’re four to eight inches tall. Using clean scissors or herb snips, cut them about an inch above the soil line. I don’t harvest the entire tray at once, but instead snip what I need over the course of seven to ten days. If you wish to clip them all you can store harvested pea shoots in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Wash them before eating and expect them to keep for about a week. Pea shoot plants won’t resprout and should be tossed in the compost once you’ve finished harvesting the tray. 

How to use pea shoots

Pea shoots taste like sweet spring peas and I love to stir-fry the shoots (with a dash of sesame oil, ginger and garlic), add them to salads, sandwiches, pastas, omelets, and even smoothies. Just don’t overcook pea shoots as their fresh crunch is part of the appeal.

For more information about growing microgreens, shoots, and sprouts, be sure to check out these articles:

• How to grow broccoli sprouts and microgreens
• Edible sunflower microgreens
• Indoor food garden ideas: 11 easy vegetables and fruits to grow

Have you ever grown pea sprouts or shoots?