Crop type: Peas
Pisum sativum ‘Delikata’
Common name: Mangetout pea ‘Delikata’
Crop slug: peas
This Allotment Pro editorial draft summarises the cited RHS cultivar profile and its linked crop guidance. Check the sources and adjust cultivation decisions for local conditions.RHS cultivar profile
1 - Overview
‘Delikata’ is an AGM mangetout pea reaching about 1.3m. It produces long, stout, crisp, bright-green edible pods from early summer into autumn when picked regularly. The sweet pods are harvested flat and eaten whole; pods left to ripen can instead be shelled for sweet wrinkled peas.
Its long cropping season and dual use make it a versatile supported pea, but regular young-pod harvesting gives the characteristic mangetout texture.
2 - Size
- Ultimate height
- 1–1.5 metres; about 1.3m typical
- Ultimate spread
- 0.5–1 metre
- Time to maturity
- one growing season
- Pod form
- long, stout, flat and bright green when picked as mangetout
Use tall sturdy supports and space seeds about 7cm apart in a double row. Allow generous airflow around the mature foliage.
3 - Growing conditions
- Suitable soils
- Chalk, clay, loam or sand
- Moisture
- Moist but well drained
- Preferred pH
- Acid, alkaline or neutral; preferably near neutral
Grow in humus-rich, moisture-retentive soil that drains freely. Incorporate mature compost before sowing and mulch established plants to maintain even moisture.
4 - Position and hardiness
- Light
- Full sun
- Aspect
- East-, south- or west-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- Hardiness
- H2
Sow once spring soil has warmed to about 10°C. The crop tolerates cool weather but is not intended to survive freezing conditions.
5 - Colour and seasonal interest
Climbing green stems carry glaucous rounded leaflets, curling tendrils and white flowers. These develop into conspicuously long, broad, bright-green flat pods with only slight seed swell when ready for mangetout picking.
6 - Botanical details
- Family
- Fabaceae
- Native to Great Britain and Ireland
- No
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Habit
- Climbing
- Name status
- Accepted
Genus
Pisum is a small genus of annual legumes native to south-west Asia and north-east Africa. Hollow stems climb with tendrils; compound leaves, butterfly-shaped flowers and edible seed pods are characteristic.
Safety
Young shoots, flat pods and mature peas are edible. Do not consume chemically treated sowing seed.
7 - How to grow
Cultivation
Sow seed 5cm deep from early spring to early summer, spacing about 7cm apart in a double row within a flat-bottomed drill 15cm wide. Provide 1.3m or taller netting, trellis or twiggy hazel support from the start.
Water when flowers open and again two weeks later, keeping roots moist through cropping. Pick flat pods frequently from early summer to autumn while crisp and before peas expand. Leaving selected pods longer converts them from mangetout to a shelling crop.
Propagation
Propagate by seed sown directly or in deep modules for an early start.
Suggested locations
- Productive vegetable plot
- Cottage or informal garden
- Supported edible border
- Wall-side border
- Tall raised-bed support
Pruning
No pruning is required. Frequent pod picking maintains the long harvest.
Pests
May be susceptible to pea moth, aphids, pea and bean weevil, thrips, pigeons, slugs, snails and mice. Protect vulnerable growth and inspect regularly.
Diseases
May be susceptible to powdery and downy mildews, foot and root rot, Fusarium wilt, grey mould, pea leaf and pod spot, and virus diseases. Use rotation, airflow and root-level watering.