How to grow cowpea in Launceston
Vigna unguiculata
Also called black-eyed pea, black-eyed bean, southern pea
Frost in Launceston rules out the cool zone's usual months for cowpea. Ask the growers at your garden what works locally.
An annual legume, the cowpea can stand upright, trail or climb, and plants vary greatly in size and shape. First farmed in Africa, it ranks among the oldest farmed crops. The cooked seeds are the main food, best known as black-eyed peas, and young pods and leaves are eaten as well.
When to sow in Launceston
Launceston, TAS is in the cool zone. The zone also plants in Oct to Jan, but Launceston's frost dates make those months risky for a frost-tender crop.
Not yet checked against a local guide.
Your local conditions can shift any months shown here, so treat them as a guide.
Frost in Launceston
Frost usually arrives in Launceston around late March and finishes by late November. In about 1 year in 10 it comes as early as late January or as late as late December, so frost-tender crops are planned around those dates.
From its Bureau of Meteorology station, 1991 to 2020, counting a night at 2°C or lower as a frost. Frost hollows and hillsides can shift these dates by weeks, so ask the growers at your garden too.
On a shared plot: suits a plot
Finishes in a season and stays within its space, so it suits most plots.
Growing details
- How to start
- Sow directly in the bed
- Sowing depth
- 20-30mm
- Plant spacing
- 15-20cm
- Row spacing
- 50cm
- Height
- 90cm
- Germination
- 7-14 days at 18-25°C
- Time to harvest
- 70-80 days
- Frost
- Frost tender
- Sun
- Full sun
- Life cycle
- annual
These are typical figures, and varieties differ. Your seed packet takes priority.