A friend handed me a tiny 3 inch seedling. It grows to about 8 feet and is easy to maintain- she said. I found the only suitable spot for it in my backyard, and planted it in the flower bed, beside the rose. It was a Pigeon Pea aka Tuvar Lilva seedling. I had never ever seen the plant before, let alone grown it. It was a very hardy seedling and soon began to grow without any fuss. It was soon around 3 feet tall, and I was told that I can expect a crop only in the fall. Other than watering it, I left it alone. I don't have any decent picture of it either, other than this one. Here it is, surrounded by a some flowering plants, like Salvia and Penta.
It was about 8 feet tall as promised, by the end of August. In September, a lot of buds appeared on almost every branch and soon, happy yellow blooms swayed to the winds. I feel so bad I cannot any picture of them in my files. We left to go on vacation then, and by the time we got back in mid-October, tiny pods were growing all over on the plant.
Allowing the seeds to grow in the pods took about a month, and soon, the plant seemed to be weighed down by clusters of pods at the end of every branch.
A freeze threatened soon after Thanksgiving, and that sent me outside to collect the pods that were now ready to be harvested. They had these lovely black striations on the green and I called them 'tiger pods'. I got a great yield, but before I could get to them, there had been other contenders for the bounty. I saw several shelled pods on the ground, thanks to the critters in my yard.
Here are a few shelled pods. The fresh green peas were a delight. Rich in protein, they make a great snack, and a variety of recipes are available, from really simple to very elaborate ones.
I had left a few pods on the plant after my harvest. Sure enough, a squirrel was seen snacking on them one evening. We share the yard with these guys. They make life interesting outside.
It was about 8 feet tall as promised, by the end of August. In September, a lot of buds appeared on almost every branch and soon, happy yellow blooms swayed to the winds. I feel so bad I cannot any picture of them in my files. We left to go on vacation then, and by the time we got back in mid-October, tiny pods were growing all over on the plant.
Allowing the seeds to grow in the pods took about a month, and soon, the plant seemed to be weighed down by clusters of pods at the end of every branch.
A freeze threatened soon after Thanksgiving, and that sent me outside to collect the pods that were now ready to be harvested. They had these lovely black striations on the green and I called them 'tiger pods'. I got a great yield, but before I could get to them, there had been other contenders for the bounty. I saw several shelled pods on the ground, thanks to the critters in my yard.
Here are a few shelled pods. The fresh green peas were a delight. Rich in protein, they make a great snack, and a variety of recipes are available, from really simple to very elaborate ones.
I had left a few pods on the plant after my harvest. Sure enough, a squirrel was seen snacking on them one evening. We share the yard with these guys. They make life interesting outside.
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