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From: booth@princeton.UUCP (Heather Booth)
Newsgroups: net.garden
Subject: a question about black-eyed peas
Message-ID: <1509@princeton.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 16-Sep-86 13:05:26 EDT
Article-I.D.: princeto.1509
Posted: Tue Sep 16 13:05:26 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 27-Sep-86 11:15:55 EDT
Reply-To: booth@princeton.UUCP (Heather Booth)
Organization: CS Department, Princeton University
Lines: 31


I'm growing some black-eyed peas and have trouble with
black ants.  They cluster around the tops of the pods.
The places they cluster are lacking pods and some of the
pods are lacking some peas.  None of the garden books
I've seen even mention black-eyed peas and none mentioned
any trouble with ants (except for encouraging aphids).
How can I get rid of them without pesticides?  One book
said that ants didn't like to cross ground bone meal
or charcoal.  I tried some wood ashes but the ants were
undeterred.  

Also when do I pick the peas?  They seem to be ready now
(pods are light green, peas are fully formed but still
pretty hard) but I have vague childhood memories of 
withered brown pods.  

I've also had some trouble getting the vines tied up.  I
ran them up vertical strings but they'd grow about 10 feet
high vertically if I let them.  Is there a better way?  I
had horizontal strings originally but they just climbed
the supports.  They seem to want to go straight up.

Thanks,
Heather Booth

(Why is it that no garden books mention black-eyed peas?
Do southerners not garden or do they not write garden books?
Or does my New Jersey public library contain only northern
garden books?  Black-eyed peas are delicious and easy to grow
(except for the ant problem).)