Spencer Ice Cream Sweet Pea is a compact, open-pollinated sweet pea that delivers simple, genuine sweetness in a flower you can actually harvest and enjoy. This frost-tolerant cultivar takes 75 to 85 days to reach peak flowering, making it a reliable choice for gardeners who want fragrant blooms for cutting without fussing over a towering vine. The variety thrives in moderate moisture and neutral to slightly alkaline soil, and its compact growth habit means it works beautifully on trellises, arbors, and garden borders where other sweet peas might sprawl beyond control.
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Half the flowers on each stem open in succession, which means continuous harvests throughout the season as you cut. The more blooms you pick, the more the plant produces, turning your gatherings into an incentive for the plant to keep flowering. Sown in spring four to five weeks before your last frost, seedlings tolerate light frost and can be transplanted out early. Pinching young plants when they reach 6 to 8 inches tall triggers denser branching and a fuller flush of flowers. Simple elegance paired with reliable abundance.
Spencer Ice Cream Sweet Pea shines as a cut flower for arrangements and cottage gardens. Its compact habit and flowering character make it valuable for arbors, back borders, fences, and trellises where you want color and fragrance without overwhelming vertical space. The flowers are edible and harvestable, rewarding frequent cutting with continued blooming.
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Sow seeds 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep in 72-cell flats or deep-cell seedling containers in darkness, as darkness is required for germination. Maintain soil temperatures between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Start seeds 4 to 5 weeks before your intended transplant date, which should fall after your last spring frost.
Harden off seedlings gradually before planting. Transplant outdoors after your last frost date; seedlings tolerate light frost well. Space plants 4 inches apart. These are robust transplants and establish quickly in spring soil.
Direct sow seeds 2 to 3 seeds every 6 inches at a depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Thin seedlings as needed once first true leaves appear.
Harvest flowers for cutting when half the blooms on a stem are open. Cut in the morning when stems are fully hydrated for longest vase life. The more frequently you harvest, the more flowers the plant will produce, creating a positive feedback loop through mid to late summer.
Pinch seedlings back when they reach 6 to 8 inches tall to encourage denser branching and a fuller flower production rather than single tall stems. Regular flower harvesting also encourages the plant to produce more blooms throughout the season.
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