April in Paris Sweet Pea - Organic

seeds

1g: $3.65; Item: 5616-A
3g: $6.35; Item: 5616-B
12g: $17.00; Item: 5616-C

Lathyrus odoratus
Open pollinated.

Annual. At last, it’s April in Paris! (Actually, it’s October in Clinton, but we can dream, can’t we?) A hauntingly fragrant sweet pea bred by Keith Hammett, who combined large modern blooms and ruffled form with old-fashioned scent. Soft primrose-cream blossoms tinted at the edges with dark lilac bands that widen and deepen with age, atop long stems perfect for cutting. 4–6' vines.

Supplier Transparency:
① Small seed farmers including Fedco staff

ships year-round

Quick Details

Hybrid Status: open pollinated
Lifecycle: annual
Pollinator Friendly: Yes
Bloom Color: lilac-tinged primrose-cream

Compare

Compare with other Sweet Peas
Variety	Product Type	Hybrid Status	Lifecycle	Bloom Color
Perennial Sweet Pea	seeds	open pollinated	perennial	multi-colored
America	seeds	open pollinated	annual	bright red
April in Paris Organic	seeds	open pollinated	annual	lilac-tinged primrose-cream
Black Knight	seeds	open pollinated	annual	deep maroon-purple
Blue Celeste Organic	seeds	open pollinated	annual	pale purplish azure
Cupani	seeds	open pollinated	annual	maroon and violet-blue
Knee-High Mix	seeds	open pollinated	annual	multi-colored
Erewhon	seeds	open pollinated	annual	pale mauve and lavender-blue
Mammoth Mix	seeds	open pollinated	annual	multi-colored
Kaleidoscope Mix	seeds	open pollinated	annual	multi-colored
Streamers Mix	seeds	open pollinated	annual	multi-colored

Additional Information

Sweet Pea

Annual. Native to Sicily, first domesticated around 1699 when amateur botanist and monk Father Francis Cupani shipped seed for the variety that bears his name to a hothouse grower in England. In the late 1800s extensive breeding work, especially by Henry Eckford, expanded the range of available colors. Around 1900 Silas Cole, gardener to Earl and Countess Spencer, found a sport with much larger ruffled flowers but less scent than Eckford’s varieties. It created a sensation when it was exhibited in 1901. From this variation derive all modern strains including Spencer, Cuthbertson, Knee-High and Mammoth. As interest in fragrance revived, Bodger Seeds Ltd. obtained as many of the pre-Spencer varieties as possible and created Old Spice Mix in the 1970s.

Culture: Soak seeds for 12–24 hours prior to sowing. For earliest blooms, sow indoors 2 months before setting out, or sow direct in spring. Need darkness for germination, which takes 10–21 days at 60°. Old catalogs recommended sowing in a 4–5" trench and filling in as the peas grew. To reduce root fungal diseases, always select well-drained locations and rotate them from year to year. Likes full sun and moist rich soil, but many perform poorly in heat, so mulching is recommended. If you are growing for cuts, avoid windy locations, as exposure will make plants stockier and stems shorter. Requires support. We use Trellis Netting. Harvest flowers frequently to keep blooms coming. Last only 3 days in the vase, but perfume the air incomparably. Give your love a bouquet of these! ~10 seeds/g.

Flowers

All flower seeds are open-pollinated except where noted.

Days in parentheses after a variety indicate days to first bloom.

Saving Flower Seeds Is Easy!

Almost all the flowers we list are open- pollinated and easy to save seed from. Some types cross readily, but who cares! Save the seeds, plant them, and be surprised.

These flowers are especially easy to save seed from: bachelor’s buttons, calendula, cerinthe, cosmos, love-in-a- mist (nigella), nasturtium, poppy, strawflower, sunflower, sweet pea and tithonia.

Learn more about seed saving.

Germination Testing

For the latest results of our germination tests, please see the germination page.

Our Seeds are Non-GMO

All of our seeds are non-GMO, and free of neonicotinoids and fungicides. Fedco is one of the original companies to sign the Safe Seed Pledge.

Shipping

From early May through mid-December, items shipping from our garden seeds warehouse ship twice a week, usually Tuesday and Thursday. For quickest turnaround time order online by noon Monday or Wednesday.