I think they'll germinate fine through mulch. You also could wet the ground and then place a board or sheet of cardboard on top (weigh it down with bricks if you think it might blow away) of the area where the peas were planted. Lift the board or cardboard every morning and every evening to check for sprouts and remove it permanently once you have anything green popping up out of the soil.

Do you know your soil temp at planting depth? That likely has more to do with the peas popping up (or not popping up) at this point. Since you pre-soaked, they should have absorbed plenty of moisture before you put them in the ground.

I have two flats of peas in the greenhouse, which isn't heated so is just about as cold at night as the outdoor air. For comparison's sake, I left 8 little pots of peas on the light shelf indoors where it is significantly warmer 24/7. The peas in the green house range from being maybe 1/4" tall to 1" tall. The peas inside on the light shelf are 6" tall. That illustrates the growth rate differences for seedlings subjected to temps that swing from the mid-20s to the mid-70s versus those grown indoors where they're kept at about 60-70. It is a huge difference.

In answer to miraje. Yes I've had lots of seeds germinate and push up through horse stall shavings mulch.
and
Dawn,
You and I are at about the same place with the peas, and have gone about it in different ways. I planted my english snow peas about the last of january and they are just the size you say yours are. Isn't that amazing. They just started coming up about 3 or 4 days ago. I though they were all rotten, but here they are.
And while we're on the subject of peas. Do I remember in the past that you could buy a bag or box of english peas? I have looked and looked and can find none. Only in seed packages. Anyway,
The best of luck to all of you
Bill

The soil temp varies quite a bit depending on the air temperature and the moisture content of the soil. Obviously when it's wet it stays cooler and varies less. I haven't actually taken any measurements, but the night you dropped down to 23 we only got down to 31, and that was for less than an hour. That's still pretty cold, but I imagine it probably had somewhat less of an impact on the peas.

That's good to know about the mulch. It'll save me several trips out there with the hose/watering can, at least until I get the drip irrigation set up.

Hi Bill! Hope you're well. I have had peas germinate as slowly as your 2012 peas sometimes in the past, but not in recent years. I suspect it might be related to the age of the seeds because some years they germinate the minute they're planted, and other years they pop up a month later after I've decided the seed is too old and is no good.

I do remember when we could buy a bag of dried English peas on the same row as the pinto beans and black-eyed peas. Are you telling me the stores don't have them any more? (Guess I haven't bought any in a long time.) I know I have seen them at Central Market in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, but think that when I saw them there they were labeled as "split peas" for soup and maybe were on the soup aisle, although I think the dried beans were on the same aisle too. I'll look the next time I'm in the store and see if they still have dried peas.

Heather, Although my air temps are fluctuating wildly, my soil temps are holding fairly steady around 50 degrees. I don't think an air temp of 31 would have bothered the peas a great deal if at all. Sometimes they're just pokey. That's why I pre-sprout---because they can be pokey some years and I can be very impatient, especially in pretty weather. I also have a hard time getting them to sprout well in cold, wet clay, so that's why I normally start them in paper cups. I think I may put my pea plants into the ground tomorrow. Today the outdoor (well, technically indoors in the greenhouse, but I took them outside and sat them on the concrete patio) pea plants all doubled in size so apparently the warmer weather is agreeing with them. Another couple of days like today and they'll be the same size as the ones raised inside.

Even though the air temps are so lovely right now, the soil still feels really cold to me when I am digging in it. I always think to myself "wow, I wouldn't want to grow in this cold soil", and that kinda sorta keeps me from putting too much in the ground too early.

Next year, you can trick the soil by putting black plastic on top of the pea-growing area's soil about 3 weeks before you want to put your pea plants in the ground. The sun will warm up the earth a few degrees underneath that black plastic. I keep a watering can full and in each garden at this time of year so I can sprinkle the ground where seeds have been sown if it seems like it is too dry. When the wind is blowing like it has been in recent weeks, the upper surface level of the soil dries out so quickly.

Did you stick your finger in the soil to see if the surface of the soil had crusted over? That happens a lot and it can crust over just enough to keep seedlings from popping up out of the ground. When I plant carrot seeds, I put a radish in the row about every inch or two because radishes germinate quickly and break the crusty soil surface, paving the way for the carrots. I haven't tried interspersing radish seeds with peas since I started raising them in cups instead.

Based on Tom Clothier's germination charts, pea seeds in my 50-degree soil would take 14 days to germinate. In the cold wet clay here, they'd likely rot in less the 14 days. If the peas don't send up sprouts in the next few days, you might dig into the ground gently and see if the peas are still there and still viable.

Dawn

It gets a bit crusty when it's dry, but once I wet it down it improves. At least the mulch will keep it moist longer. I have tons of backup seeds, so I might dig one out tomorrow and see how it's doing. The peas were already germinated when I planted them, so I'm a bit surprised I haven't seen a single sprout in five days. I thought germination was the slow part, and that happened overnight...literally.

Thanks for the radish tip. I'll poke some in to the carrot box tomorrow! My soil is very very cold here, too, for some reason. Today's continual warmth helped. It seemed to stay warm this evening as well. Still, most of my tender yummy plants are in raised beds this year.

Err, so how can you tell if the pea is still viable or not? I dug one up this morning, and the root is about an inch and a half longer than when I planted and it didn't look like it was rotting or withered or anything. My guess is that they've just slowed way down because the ground is cold. I hope they hang in there and sprout eventually!