Oats and Peas Mix by the pound, organic
$7.00 – $40.00
Organic Jerry Oats mixed with Field Peas 50/50 may be sown fall or spring. Sow 3 lbs per 1,000 square feet; 45 lbs per acre. Grows to 5 feet tall. Produces lots of biomass and nitrogen for building soil and feeding plants. This is our most highly recommended, very simple, covercrop for fall or spring planting. The peas climb up the oats. In this classic combo, you get Nitrogen and Carbon growing hand-in-hand, a kind of living compost pile. Very, very good for the land. How to proceed once the covercrop has matured and you want to plant other things? Once the field dries out a bit, on a sunny day perhaps, cut the peas and oats down and/or mow them down and then let the field/garden sit in that new green mulch for a week or two, so the debris can compost in place. Then, plant your potted plants right through the mulch or go ahead and till it in with a rototiller and then prepare your seed bed or plant your potted plants. The fact that you covercropped will have reduced weed pressure, increased nitrogen and carbon content of the soil, increased fertility and improved soil tilth. Think ahead. Covercrop. It helps. r
Ian moore –
Would this work for a new field for dahlias? They are not in ground yet and they don’t need high nitrogen. Thanks
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Richo Cech –
Hello Ian,
Oats and peas is the standard covercrop to plant and turn in to increase tilth and fertility of any land for any crop. Oats are actually slightly allelopathic so they will inhibit the growth of weed species. Large plants like Dahlia will be unaffected. I hope that answers your question. Richo
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Question
Pat –
Hi Richo,
When is the earliest this spring that I can plant this? I’m in a 6b to 7a USDA Hardiness Zone. I hope to get some good organic matter into the soil before planting my garden this year.
Thank you!
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Richo Cech –
Hi Pat, Thanks for writing. I would go with April 1 in your zone. Last frost is likely to be around April 15 and the seeds will benefit from early spring moisture while they are unbothered by late frost. Highest N content is when the plants are 6 inches or so, which will allow a mowing, tillage and planting around May 15 to June 1. richo
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Erin Laure –
Hi Richo, I cleared an area of immature trees and brambles that was an overgrown pasture. It’s very rocky so I’m rolling hay over to start making dirt. I seeded buckwheat and annual Rye just to start making it happy. I want to cover crop hay eventually having a permaculture nursery. What cover crop would you recommend? TY
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Richo Cech –
Hi Erin,
Thanks for writing, and thanks for covercropping–all nature will trill. You’re in zone 6b which is just a wee bit cold. Oats only reliably overwinter in zone 7 and up. Red clover is significantly more cold hardy and there’s still time to plant it, although you probably won’t see full cover til spring. You do have some options. Sow red clover on existing stand, then mow down to cover seed with the mulch left after mowing, and hope that the red clover germinates through the mulch fall or spring. It can be a bit iffy. Or, just leave it for now, you’ve done some good work in there, and till and plant peas and oats in the early spring, let that grow up to calf high, mow down and plant in the stubble–garden it out. Oats and peas is your cheapest grow-in-place compost. richo
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Herlina Schmitt (verified owner) –
Richo, what is the best way to sow this mix? Thank you
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Richo Cech –
hello herlina, thanks for writing. to best plant oats and peas, one prepares first a seedbed. no-till gardeners do this by mulching. I’m not an expert on this approach but I kinda assume they smash down the weeds with something neutral like rice straw, strew the seed on top, cover with a little more mulch to discourage the bird’s appetite, and water it in for germination and growth. could be pretty cushy. Otherwise you could weed by hand, fork and rake to make a seedbed, strew the seeds, rake in, tamp and water. Good organic growers that use equipment mow first, then till, then strew seed, then till it in, then tamp. That’s the way I do it. Works exceptionally well. richo
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jayajbs64 (verified owner) –
Hi there, could you please tell me how late in the fall I can plant this mix? I’m in RI, zone 6B and our autumn can stay quite temperate through November and sometimes December. Thanks!
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Richo Cech –
hello jaya, Oats and peas germinate well in cool soils. In a z 6 you can plant it on into October. r
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Question
Barb –
My back yard has poor quality soil, is hard packed, and dry except when it rains. Due to the trees, the back yard has minimal sun. Will the oats and peas combo help?
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Richo Cech –
hi barb, thanks for writing, and for wanting to improve your patch of earth. oats and peas generally works best for open field or garden situations. under trees other covers work better, and may indeed improve the soil over time, retain moisture, root into the debris dropped from the trees, etc. you might consider mulching the area and watering during dry spells. Bugle (Ajuga reptans) is a preferred under-tree ground cover. here’s a link to our blog on the subject https://blog.strictlymedicinalseeds.com/where-and-how-to-grow-an-herbal-groundcover/
richo
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Logan –
I am looking to plant the pea/oat mix as a fall cover crop. I live in zone 5B (Iowa City). I am hoping that these will winter kill and I can plant into the mulch in the spring. Do these winter kill easily or will mowing be required?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Logan,
Thanks for contacting. Love Iowa City, was born and grew up there. Went to Lincoln gradeschool. The oats and peas covercrop will not overwinter for you, you can plant into the mulch in the spring. I personally like to mow anyway, to even it out, but you don’t have to. richo
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Tim –
Last fall i planted some peas and oats mix and both the peas and oats came up. Some time during the winter when there was no snow on the ground i noticed the oats were turning brown with in a few days the oats were gone but the peas survived. The peas are doing very good now. What would cause the oats to do that? It is a zone 7 here as far as i know.
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Richo Cech –
depending on the severity of the winter as well as variety, fall-planted oats may overwinter or they may winter kill. no-till farmers plant in the spring into the stubble of winter-killed oats. if you choose to keep a fall-planted pea crop going, there are benefits to that, or the crop may be mowed in the spring and used as a basis for no-till or tilled. either way the soil benefits. r
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lazywildswan (verified owner) –
The mix grew quickly and easily. I planted some in October, and a month later I have pea plants to eat — I had intended to let them grow, but I clipped a bunch before the first frost. The frosts did not kill them! So I am planting the rest of this pound and ordered another several pounds for our field.
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Richo Cech –
oh yes, this takes me way back to a visit we had from city folks. an old man tottered into our field and started eating the field peas. i laughed and pointed out the pea trellis, indicating that he could be eating sugar snaps. he just stayed where he was and said “These suit me just fine!”
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Question
kaisernorstad (verified owner) –
Hi Richo, Do I need to inoculate this mix? What temps are a turn off to the peas and oats? I’m planting this in zone 8a. Just trying to get the timing right.
Thanks
Kirsten
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Richo Cech –
as long as there have been beans or pulses grown in the soil previously, it really isn’t necessary to use a rhizobial inoculant. I always think the best inoculant is a spare scattering of organic compost, anyhow. r
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Leslie Rice –
We are looking to help a tall grass meadow in NE OK that was overgrazed by horses and is all now ragweed. Clay soil that can be dry in the summer but we have been getting a ton of rain in spring the last several years.
Will be lightly grazed by sheep/goats. Will be letting it go to seed. Have looked at buckwheat and different clovers. What do you suggest? Thank you so much for your help.
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Richo Cech –
Hi Leslie, not sure what machinery you have available but it would be very good to mow at this point which would mulch up all that carbon and lay it down. Then in the spring plow or till and disc and plant red clover and forage chicory. Basically in these kinds of situations you get out of it what you put into it, and seedbed prep is primary. Richo
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Tim –
Is it to late to plant Oats and Peas mix in a zone 7 this time of year?
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Richo Cech –
yes, I would recommend buckwheat or clover at this time of year. r
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Bobbie (verified owner) –
I ran this as a cover crop over a small garden plot. It worked beautifully. I did end up with a few peas that sprouted afterward. Wondering what is the variety— are they as good for eating as they are as mulch?
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Richo Cech –
they can be eaten safely–a field pea, small and sweet but not as sweet as oregon sugar snaps.
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Tim –
I bought some of this oat and pea mix last year but never got around to planting them. Are they still good enough to plant this year in early spring or in the fall?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Tim, Nice to hear from you. The oats and peas last for years–please use them with confidence. richo
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Elizabeth Casey –
I’m thinking of purchasing this for use in my home garden. When would you recommend sowing this oats and field pea mix for a fall cover crop? (I’m in zone 7 on Long Island, NY). Also, how many days to maturity and would I be able to harvest the milky oat seeds and the field peas in the fall or the spring? Thanks for your help.
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hi Elizabeth,
The oats and peas should be planted early so that they get started growing before the ground freezes hard. I already planted mine 2 weeks ago and we’re in a Z 7. Depending on the severity of your winter you can expect the crop to mature out in April or May, and the oats can be harvested for milky seed at that time, and you’ll have trouble keeping the kids out of the patch, they will be after the peas.
Richo
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Question
Sheila McEnany –
Could these seeds be grown as cat grass?
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Diana –
Yes, there is nothing in there that will hurt a cat and much that will help a cat. meow.
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Julie Hawthorne –
Will the oats put seeds in the soil that need weeding for years to come?
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Diana –
Hi Julie,
Generally the covercrop is mowed or tilled under prior to seed maturation, so, no.
Richo
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Elizabeth Lock –
Hi Richo. I’ve just solarized a section of grass in my 5b yard, which will I plan to use as a garden space. After raking away the dead grass, should I plant cover crops and let them be until spring then mow and till, or would it be best to mow the cover crops before winter and leave as mulch over winter and plant in spring? I was planning to use the oats and peas mix. Thanks, Liz
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Richo Cech –
hi elizabeth, thanks for taking care of that patch of earth. in a z 5 if you plant oats and peas late summer it grows and then winterkills. the trick is to plant into the dead mat in the spring. either that or if it looks pretty rough after overwintering, till it in in the spring and plant into the newly tilled ground. richo
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Jeanette –
Would planting milky oats and sugar snap peas have a similar effect? I live in so cal and don’t have a significant frost. Also, if I order this instead, can I use the oat straw or seed medicinally like Avena sativa? Thanks!
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Richo Cech –
hello jeanette, yours are the kinds of questions i like best. yes, yes and yes. richo
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