Stock

March 20, 2023

Life Cycle	Annual
Zone 5 Treatment	Can plant seedlings outside about 2 weeks before last frost. (They can tolerate down to about 28ish degrees F) Sometimes, you get the plant in later, you’ll notice that the foliage looks healthy and green but blooms wont come until you get cooler fall weather.
Seedling Care	Transplant within 2 weeks of receiving otherwise the roots can get too crowded and harm the overall health of the plant.
Netting / Staking	Nah
Temperature Range They Will Tolerate	28-70 degrees F
Spacing/Height	Plant in clumps of 2 or 3 plants every 6 inches.18”-36” height depending on the variety
Soil Preference	Nutrient rich, break up heavy clay soils and amend with compost to allow better root potential, well drained.
How to cut for maximum blooms	Harvest when flowers are 2/3 open. Reason being, because they don’t really continue to open once you cut the stem. Stock only produce a single stem so just cut as deeply into the plant to get the stem length that you want.
Pinching	No
When to Plant if you are NOT in Zone 5	2-3 weeks before last frost, as they can handle down to about 28ish degrees F.
Post Harvest Care	Put the stems in room temp water with flower food. Take off all of the leaves and foliage. Leaves and foliage of any cut flower should never be submerged underwater because they decay quickly in water and cause a fast build up of bacteria.
Diseases / Insects	Generally pest free!
Sweet Pea’s Notes	The cooler you can grow stock, the better quality it will be. Don’t allow it to dry out. It doesn’t recover well from a bad day, but if you give it what it needs, it is very rewarding. Don’t worry if you see buds forming when the plant is still really short. It adds height as the temps warm.
Vase Life	5-10 days