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SWEET PEA - LEAMINGTON SWEET PEA Leamington lathyrus odoratus spencer Discovered in Sicily in 1699 and brought to England, it quickly became popular for it’s perfume and vibrant colours. This variety produces large, fragrant, lilac-lavender flowers. Type: Annual Light: full sun Soil: fertile Space: 15cm Height: 175cm Season: early summer to frost. Propagation. Soak seeds overnight, direct seed 2.5cm deep soon as the ground is workable and frost is still possible. (preferred method) OR Start indoors 4 weeks before last frost. Germinate @ room temperature. Cover seed. Set out after frost danger. Pinch back when 15cm high. Mulch to keep roots cool. Provide netting for them to climb on. SEED COUNT: Approx. 30 A flower with a mystique exhaulted to almost angelic proportions is the heavenly sweet pea. The gardener's love affair with the Sweet Pea goes back to 1699 to the cool, mountainous pastures of Sicily where it was "discovered" by an Italian monk. Seed was sent to a Dr. Uvedale, a gardener and physician in England who grew it under glass. Its heady fragrance made it most desirable and after the development of several new colours and an increase in bloom size, it was much sought after cut flower gracing the finest of tables. In the language of flowers, the sweet pea means adieu or departure. A nursery catalogue from 1907 shows 461 varieties trialed at the Royal Seed Establishment in Reading, England. Exquisite and highly fragrant, these varieties of sweet peas from yesteryear are slowly making a comeback. |
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