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The sweet pea, ''Lathyrus odoratus'', is a flowering plant in the genus '' Lathyrus'' in the family
Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...
(
legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...
s),
native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...
to Sicily, southern Italy and the Aegean Islands. It is an annual climbing plant, growing to a height of , where suitable support is available. The
leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
are pinnate with two leaflets and a terminal tendril, which twines around supporting plants and structures, helping the sweet pea to climb. In the wild plant the flowers are purple, broad; they are larger and highly variable in color in the many cultivars. Flowers are usually strongly scented. The annual species, ''L. odoratus'', may be confused with the everlasting pea, '' L. latifolius'', a perennial.


Horticultural development

Scottish nurseryman Henry Eckford (1823–1905) cross-bred and developed the sweet pea, turning it from a rather insignificant if sweetly scented flower into a floral sensation of the 19th century. His initial success and recognition came while serving as head gardener for the Earl of Radnor, raising new cultivars of
pelargonium ''Pelargonium'' () is a genus of flowering plants that includes about 280 species of perennials, succulents, and shrubs, commonly called geraniums, pelargoniums, or storksbills. '' Geranium'' is also the botanical name and common name of a separ ...
s and dahlias. In 1870 he went to work for one Dr. Sankey of Sandywell near Gloucester. A member of the Royal Horticultural Society, he was awarded a First Class Certificate (the top award) in 1882 for introducing the sweet pea cultivar 'Bronze Prince', marking the start of association with the flower. In 1888 he set up his development and trial fields for sweet peas in
Wem Wem may refer to: * HMS ''Wem'' (1919), a minesweeper of the Royal Navy during World War I *Weem, a village in Perthshire, Scotland * Wem, a small town in Shropshire, England *Wem (musician), hip hop musician WEM may stand for: * County Westmeath, ...
in Shropshire. By 1901, he had introduced a total of 115 of the 264
cultivars A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...
grown at the time. Eckford was presented with the RHS Victoria Medal of Honour for his work. He died in 1906, but his work was continued for a time by his son John Eckford. More recently, the association between the sweet pea, the Eckfords and Wem has been highlighted again. In the late 1980s, the Sweet Pea Society of Wem started an annual show. Many of the street signs now carry a sweet-pea motif, and an area of the town is known as Eckford Park. There is also a cultivar 'Dorothy Eckford', named after a family member.


Cultivation

Sweet peas have been cultivated since the 17th century and a vast number of
cultivars A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...
are commercially available. They are grown for their flower colour (usually in pastel shades of blue, pink, purple and white, including bi-colours), and for their intense unique fragrance. They are grown by gardeners for private enjoyment or for exhibition, and in the floristry trade. The large, pea-shaped seeds are sown in cold frames in Spring or Autumn. The seeds benefit from pre-soaking or chipping with a sharp blade. The plants are also available later in the season, as young plants or plugs. They are grown up canes, with the new shoots being regularly pinched out to promote a bushy habit and higher flower yields. Plants typically reach heights of 1-2m, with the flowers appearing in midsummer and continuing for many weeks if regularly deadheaded. Over 50 cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's
Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...
. See
List of AGM sweet peas The following sweet pea (''Lathyrus odoratus'') cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. They are annuals grown as twining climbers, with flowers in pastel shades from white through pink to blue and deep pur ...


Pests and diseases

The sweet pea plant does suffer from some pests, the most common being aphids. These insects suck the sap out of the plants, reducing growth. Mosaic virus is spread by greenfly, causing yellowing of leaves, distortion of new shoots, and inhibited flowering. A pest called the pollen beetle which is small, shiny and black, eats the pollen and disfigures the flowers. Other pests include caterpillars, thrips, slugs and snails. Another problem is mildew; this is a white powdery coating that covers the leaves and slows down growth. The sweet pea is also susceptible to
ethylene Ethylene (IUPAC name: ethene) is a hydrocarbon which has the formula or . It is a colourless, flammable gas with a faint "sweet and musky" odour when pure. It is the simplest alkene (a hydrocarbon with carbon-carbon double bonds). Ethylene i ...
in quantities produced by senescing plants. Because of this, growers are encouraged to plant sweet peas away from fruit trees among other plants prone to early dieback or senescence.


Toxicity

Unlike the edible
pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
, there is evidence that seeds of members of the genus ''Lathyrus'' are toxic if ingested in quantity. A related species, '' Lathyrus sativus'', is grown for human consumption but when it forms a major part of the diet it causes symptoms of toxicity called
lathyrism Lathyrism is a condition caused by eating certain legumes of the genus ''Lathyrus''. There are three types of lathyrism: ''neurolathyrism'', ''osteolathyrism'', and ''angiolathyrism'', all of which are incurable, differing in their symptoms and ...
. When sweet peas are planted too close to each other it causes fungal diseases like powdery mildew. Powdery mildew looks like white-silver dust that settles on the plant's leaves, flowers and stems. Fungus suck nutrients from sweet peas and stunt their growth. In studies of rats, animals fed a diet of 50% sweet pea seeds developed enlarged adrenals relative to control animals fed on edible peas. The main effect is thought to be on the formation of collagen. Symptoms are similar to those of scurvy and copper deficiency, which share the common feature of inhibiting proper formation of collagen fibrils. Seeds of the sweet pea contain beta-aminopropionitrile that prevents the cross-linking of
collagen Collagen () is the main structural protein in the extracellular matrix found in the body's various connective tissues. As the main component of connective tissue, it is the most abundant protein in mammals, making up from 25% to 35% of the whole ...
by inhibiting lysyl oxidase and thus the formation of
allysine Allysine is a derivative of lysine, used in the production of elastin and collagen. It is produced by the actions of the enzyme lysyl oxidase in the extracellular matrix and is essential in the crosslink formation that stabilizes collagen and ela ...
, leading to loose skin. Recent experiments have attempted to develop this chemical as a treatment to avoid disfiguring skin contractions after skin grafting.


Genetics

Gregor Mendel is today recognized as the "Father of Modern Genetics" for his work with the cross breeding of
pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
plants ('' Pisum sativum'') with different characteristics, and sweet pea has been used in a similar way. The sweet pea is thus a
model organism A model organism (often shortened to model) is a non-human species that is extensively studied to understand particular biological phenomena, with the expectation that discoveries made in the model organism will provide insight into the workin ...
being used in early experimentations in genetics, particularly by the pioneer geneticist Reginald Punnett. It is highly suitable as a genetic subject because of its ability to self-pollinate and its easily observed Mendelian traits such as colour, height and petal form. Many genetic principles were discovered or confirmed in this species. It was used by Punnett in early studies of
genetic linkage Genetic linkage is the tendency of DNA sequences that are close together on a chromosome to be inherited together during the meiosis phase of sexual reproduction. Two genetic markers that are physically near to each other are unlikely to be separ ...
. Complementary factor inheritance was also elucidated in sweet peas, from the cross of two pure-breeding white strains which gave rise to a blue hybrid, the blue colour requiring two genes derived independently from the two white parents.


Hybridization with ''Lathyrus belinensis''

Like the blue rose, the yellow sweet pea remains elusive. ''
Lathyrus belinensis ''Lathyrus belinensis'', also known as the Belin pea is a flowering plant species in the genus ''Lathyrus'' under the Family (biology), family Fabaceae. The species was discovered in Turkey by botanists Nigel Maxted and David John Goyder and was ...
'' is a related Lathyrus species which has red and yellow flowers. There are ongoing attempts to bring the yellow color into ''Lathyrus odoratus'' by crossing it with ''Lathyrus belinensis''. Several new sweet pea cultivars have been created as a result, though not any with the yellow flower color so far.Dawn Edwards
''Developing a yellow sweet pea''
/ref>


Gallery

File:Sweet Pea-1.jpg File:Sweet Pea-3.jpg File:Sweet Pea-6.jpg File:Sweet Pea-5.jpg File:Sweet Pea-2.jpg File:Sweet Pea-4.jpg File:Edelwicke (Lathyrus odoratus) Blüte focus stack-20200628-RM-175552.jpg, Close up of flower


See also

*
List of AGM sweet peas The following sweet pea (''Lathyrus odoratus'') cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. They are annuals grown as twining climbers, with flowers in pastel shades from white through pink to blue and deep pur ...
- list of sweet peas that have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's
Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...


References

{{Authority control Lathyrus Annual plants Vines Garden plants Garden plants of Europe Plants described in 1753 Nitrogen-fixing crops