It’ll be months before we sow our first black-eyed peas, but if you’re from the South—or simply an admirer of Southern tradition—now is the time to be eating them. For generations, black-eyed peas have been a fixture on the New Year’s table, often served with greens, cornbread, and pork as a humble wish for luck and prosperity in the year ahead.
Whether you’re looking to carry on a family tradition of serving homegrown black-eyed peas each New Year, or simply want to learn more about this versatile staple, growing black-eyed peas couldn’t be easier. They’re undemanding in terms of soil fertility, amazingly heat- and drought-tolerant, and—best of all—perfectly suited to drying and storage.
So join us as we discuss how to grow black-eyed peas—from sowing, to cultivating, to drying and storage. By the end of this article, you’ll be well on your way to starting your own New Year’s tradition to share with family and friends.
Growing black eyed peas is an easy and rewarding task that will keep your pantry stocked for months to come.
Black-Eyed Peas: A Brief History
Black-eyed peas trace their origins to West Africa, arriving in North America through the transatlantic slave trade, where they quickly proved invaluable in Southern fields and kitchens. Their ability to thrive in heat, tolerate poor soil, and produce food reliably made them indispensable. In fact, aside from corn I doubt there is a food crop of more historical or cultural significance to Southerners.
Read through historical sources—from the WPA slave narratives to Appalachian oral histories—and you’ll find repeated accounts of families being sustained by their peas. In times of scarcity, a pot of peas and a pan of cornbread might be all that stood between hunger and survival. That reality helps explain why black-eyed peas became so closely tied to New Year’s traditions: for many families, they weren’t just symbolic food—they were the food that was available.
Beyond their reliability, black-eyed peas were nutritionally important. They provided protein, fiber, and essential vitamins and minerals in a diet that often lacked variety. Filling, nourishing, and easy to store, they earned their place as a cornerstone of the Southern diet long before they became a holiday custom.
Calico Crowder is an heirloom cowpea that dates back to at least the 1800's—prior to the Civil War.
Types of Cowpeas
Depending on who you ask, "black-eyed pea" may mean different things. What many commonly group under that name are several related types of Southern peas, or cowpeas, selected for heat tolerance, low fertility needs, and dependable yields. While the categories overlap, most varieties fall into a few well-recognized groups.
Black-Eyed Peas
These are the classic, smooth-seeded peas most people picture when they hear the name. They’re commonly grown for drying and storage and tend to have elongated or oval seeds rather than tightly packed pods.
Examples include: California Blackeye No. 5, Holstein. Whipporwill doesn't possess a black eye per se, but is it similar in form and usage.
Purple Hull Pea
Closely related to black-eyes, purple hull peas are typically grown for fresh shelling rather than drying. They mature quickly and are widely valued for their flavor and productivity.
Examples include: Pink-Eyed Purple Hull, Knuckle Purple Hull, and Mississippi Purple Hull.
Crowder Peas
Crowders are named for the way the seeds are tightly packed—or “crowded”—inside the pod. They tend to have a richer, denser texture and are most often cooked as shell peas.
Examples include: Top Pick Brown Crowder, Mississippi Brown Crowder, and the once-popular but now nearly extinct Calhoun Speckled Crowder.
Cream Peas
Cream peas are generally smaller, lighter in color, and milder in flavor. They’ve long been favored for fresh eating and simple preparations.
Examples include: Lady, Sa Dandy and Washday.
What all of these peas share is an ability to grow where other crops struggle. They thrive in heat, tolerate drought, fix their own nitrogen, and produce reliable harvests even in poor soil—traits that made them a cornerstone of Southern gardens and keep them relevant today.
Holstein is an heirloom black-eyed pea that features a large, black hilum and unique mottling throughout.
Planting Black-Eyed Peas
Black-eyed peas are one of the most forgiving crops you can plant—in fact, gardeners should be warned not to treat them too well. In Preserving Our Roots, renowned seed collector John Coykendall recalls advice passed down from his longtime friend Mr. Seldon Lang, “You always want to plant those peas on the sorriest ground you’ve got. They can’t stand prosperity.” That bit of wisdom holds true—black-eyed peas prefer lean soil and often perform worse when pampered with excess fertility.
When and how to plant:
- Timing: Plant after all danger of frost has passed, once soil temperatures are consistently warm
- Sun: Full sun is best
- Soil: Well-drained soil with low to moderate fertility; avoid heavy nitrogen amendments
- Planting depth: About 1 inch deep
- Spacing: 2–3 inches between seeds, with rows spaced 24–36 inches apart
- Watering: Water to establish, then sparingly—overwatering can reduce yields
Given good warmth and enough moisture, black-eyed peas are very quick to germinate, typically emerging around 5 days after sowing.
| Can Cowpeas Be Grown in the North? |
| Cowpeas, or field peas as they're commonly known, are famous in the South but they deserve a place in Northern gardens too. They grow beautifully here in Iowa, producing their first pods mid-summer and continuing through frost. I've yet to find a dry bean that yields as well as my cowpeas and because they're seldom grown here, I've never had a disease or pest issue. If you live in the North and have yet to try growing cowpeas, I'd encourage you to give it a try. I think you'll be surprised. |
Black eyed peas are easy to grow and thrive with very little water. Here we have a bush-type pea planted in a row of plastic mulch.
Growth Habit
Before you go planning your pea plot, it's important to note that not all black-eyed peas grow the same way. Some varieties are more compact and bushy, while others vine in much the same manner as a pole bean. These climbers can reach 8 feet or more under the right conditions and often benefit from some form of support. One year, we neglected to trellis our climbers and ended up having to separate rows of intermingling varieties using a hedge trimmer. It was a tangled-up mess!
Needless to say, a little planning goes a long way. Also keep in mind that vining types typically mature later, so you’ll want to be sure your growing season is long enough to see them through to harvest.
Some cowpeas tend to vine, often surpassing 8' tall if given support. Here we have Calico Crowder peas growing on 8-foot t-posts interconnected with tensile wire and bailing twine.
Watering and Fertilizing
As mentioned earlier, restraint is key when it comes to watering and fertilizing black-eyed peas. Watering is usually unnecessary unless conditions are very dry at planting time. Once the seedlings are established, you typically won’t need to water at all unless several weeks pass without rain or the plants show clear signs of stress. A bit of leaf curling on hot days is normal and nothing to worry about (see our post on leaf curling for more).
When it comes to fertilizer, less is more—often none at all is best. Unless you’re gardening on the surface of the moon, fertilizing black-eyed peas is generally unnecessary and can even be counterproductive. We learned this the hard way one year after fertilizing a bed in the fall, with no intention of planting cowpeas there the following season. Plans changed, and what we got were towering, dark green plants that seemed far more interested in foliage than producing peas.
By the time frost arrived, we were fortunate to harvest enough seed to replenish our own stock, but yields were disappointing to be sure. It was a clear reminder that black-eyed peas perform best when left to do what they’ve always done—grow steadily, without being pushed.
Southern peas thrive under lean conditions—I'd even say they have a penchant for neglect. These Calhoun Crowder peas endured harsh, hot summer conditions with almost no attention—and yielded a bumper crop in return.
Pests and Diseases
One of the great strengths of black-eyed peas is how few serious pest or disease problems they tend to have. In most home gardens, they grow with little interference and rarely require any intervention at all.
You may occasionally see insect pressure from aphids, leafhoppers, or bean beetles, but these are usually minor and short-lived. Healthy plants growing in warm weather can tolerate a fair amount of feeding without any impact on yield. In many cases, beneficial insects—and yes, even ants, which are as much a companion to peas as cornbread—take care of the problem on their own. Avoiding excess nitrogen goes a long way here, as overly lush growth tends to attract pests.
Diseases are similarly uncommon, especially when peas are grown in well-drained soil and rotated properly. Fungal issues like leaf spots can appear during extended periods of wet, humid weather, but they’re rarely severe. Good air circulation, crop rotation, and resisting the urge to overwater are usually all that’s needed to keep plants healthy.
In short, black-eyed peas are a low-drama crop. Give them sunlight, modest soil, and a little space, and they’ll generally grow from planting to harvest with very little trouble.
Black-eyed peas are relatively unbothered by disease and pests, especially in the north. Avoid over watering or fertilizing as this can bring trouble.
Harvesting Black-Eyed Peas (Fresh vs. Dry)
One of the advantages of black-eyed peas is that you can harvest them at several different stages, depending on how you plan to use them. The same planting can supply fresh shell peas in summer or dried peas for storage later in the season.
Harvesting fresh (shell peas):
If you plan to eat or freeze your peas fresh, harvest when the pods are fully formed but still green or just beginning to yellow. The peas inside should be plump but not hard. At this stage, pods snap easily from the plant, and the peas shell cleanly. Purple hull types are especially popular for fresh eating, as their color change makes harvest timing obvious.
Harvesting for dry peas:
For dried black-eyed peas, leave the pods on the plant until they turn brown and dry completely. The peas inside should be firm and rattle slightly when shaken. In dry weather, you can let most of the crop dry right on the vine. If rain threatens late in the season, pull entire plants and hang them under cover to finish drying.
Harvesting dry peas is easy. The pods will take on a golden, straw color when mature. You can even determine their maturity by feel—immature pods will feel wet or cool to the touch while mature ones will feel rough and dry.
Storing Black-Eyed Peas
Black-eyed peas can be stored in several forms, depending on how you plan to use them. Fully dried peas are the easiest to keep long term. After shelling, remove any cracked peas or bits of pod, then allow them to air-dry for a few extra days if needed. Once dry, store them in sealed containers in a dry location, protected from moisture and pests.
Fresh-shelled cowpeas can also be frozen for later use. To do so, shell the peas, blanch them briefly in boiling water, then cool and drain before packing into freezer-safe containers or bags. Frozen this way, cowpeas retain their flavor and texture and are convenient for quick meals.
Whether dried or frozen, black-eyed peas store well and remain one of the most flexible staples a home gardener can produce.
Fresh-shelled peas like these Speckled Crowders can be preserved by blanching and then freezing. They make a convenient side dish for busy weeknights.
Saving Black-Eyed Pea Seed
Saving seed from black-eyed peas is about as easy as it gets. I often joke that the key is simply not eating them. Otherwise, you can treat seed peas exactly the same as peas grown for food. If you want to be extra cautious about insects invading your seed stash, a light dusting of diatomaceous earth will do the trick. Store seeds in a sealed, airtight container in a cool, dark place.
Some gardeners choose to store seed in the freezer, which works well as long as it’s a chest-style freezer that isn’t opened frequently. Temperature fluctuations can shorten the life of the seed. If freezing, be sure to use a sealed, moisture-proof bag. When it’s time to plant, allow the bag to come to room temperature before opening it—otherwise, condensation may form inside and damage your seed stock.
Saving black-eyed pea seeds is easy. Basically—just don't eat them. Otherwise, you can treat them exactly the same as the ones you harvested for the pantry.
Final Thoughts on Growing Cowpeas
Well, there you have it—growing cowpeas from seed to seed, planting to harvest. Whether you’re interested in starting a new tradition or simply looking for a dependable, high-yielding crop to keep you well fed through winter, I hope this article has encouraged you to give cowpeas a try. Few crops ask so little white returning so much, and once you’ve grown them yourself, it’s easy to see why they’ve remained a staple in Southern gardens for generations.
Ready to get started? Check out our extensive collection of heirloom cowpea seeds and find one that's perfect for your garden and table.
