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Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)
  • Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)
  • Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)
  • Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)
  • Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)
Whipporwill Cowpea (bush)

Vigna unguiculata
$4.50
Description

Whippoorwill peas were once the standard for southern peas, but are now a rare variety. It grows as a bush, only a few feet high, but will send out runners about 5 feet long given enough nutrients and moisture. Like all cowpeas, it is highly tolerant of heat, drought, and poor soil.

It is quite productive, with vines producing many 7-9" green pods filled with small light brown and speckled seeds, over an extended period of time. Very young green pods can be enjoyed like a green bean. Or the dried pods can be saved to eat the dry bean inside.

This unique pea is boarded to the Slow Food Ark of Taste. Be sure to save your own seeds of this treasure, and share them widely!
Product details
  • About 30 seeds
  • 70 days to pod formation
  • Seeds grown at Siembra Farm in Gainesville, Florida
How to grow

Legumes are able to manufacture their own nitrogen (magic + science!) and typically do not need very rich soil or much fertilization at all. Well composted and healthy soils are still encouraged, but you will not need to offer them much in the way of fertilizer. In fact, too much will encourage rampant leafy growth at the expense of the pods.

Plant about 1"-1.5" deep, spaced 4-8" apart. Cowpeas do not tolerate frosts and so should only be planted well after the last expected frost is over. Cowpeas can also be planted from spring and into late summer/early fall. Direct sowing is recommended as legumes don't appreciate the stress of moving from a pot into the ground.
How to save seeds

Legumes like beans and peas are among the easiest seeds to save! The biggest challenge in Florida is our humidity, which can make it difficult to get seed pods fully dry on the plant. For this reason, late-summer plantings can be especially good for seed saving, as the pods mature into the drier fall weather. Although, weather patterns are getting more unpredictable and this isn't always the case.

Allow the pods to dry indoors once harvested, and shell them soon afterward to reduce the chance of mold and pests taking up residence inside the pods. If the pods are nearly mature but the weather is staying humid, go ahead and harvest them early and finish drying them indoors.

Thorough drying is key to keeping cowpea seeds healthy and reducing the risk of weevils, which can damage or destroy stored seed. Continue drying the seeds with silica gel or clay drying beads, or use a household dehydrator on a low-temperature setting. Make sure the seeds are completely dry before storing.

Cowpeas are highly self-pollinating, so there is generally only a small chance of crossing between varieties. However, some large bumblebees can work their way into the flowers and transfer pollen between plants. This only matters if you are trying to maintain a variety’s purity; if you don’t mind a little genetic mixing, there’s no need to worry about it.

You can successfully save seed from just one plant, but saving from 5–10 plants is better, and 20 or more plants is even better for maintaining genetic diversity and long-term vigor.

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