Lime Yellow Pea is a cover crop — grown to build and protect the soil rather than for a harvest of its own. It's hardy across USDA zones 10 through 13 and shrugs off dry spells. Its summer flowers are a modest draw for honeybees. A nitrogen-fixer, it draws nitrogen from the air and feeds it back to the soil — turn it under or leave the roots in place, and the next planting inherits a richer bed.
Zones
10-13
pH Range
5.5-7.5
Sun
Full Sun
Days to Maturity
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What Lime Yellow Pea is
Lime Yellow Pea grows as a perennial and reaches around a foot at maturity. It blooms in summer.
How to grow Lime Yellow Pea
Lime Yellow Pea grows in USDA zones 10 through 13. Lime Yellow Pea does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5.5 to 7.5, on well-drained ground. It needs a growing season of at least 140 frost-free days, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
10-13
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
5.5 - 7.5
USDA PLANTS Database
Sun
Full Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost Tolerance
51.8°F
The lowest temperature it shrugs off — below this, expect damage without cover.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Mature Height
1 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
140+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Start the season right
Plant lime yellow pea in full sun with at least 6 hours of direct sun, once the soil has warmed and frost risk has passed.
Match the soil
Lime Yellow Pea prefers pH 5.5 to 7.5 (FAO ECOCROP). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band. It fixes its own nitrogen, so skip the high-nitrogen feed and instead dust the seed with a matching rhizobium inoculant at sowing.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Turn it in before it seeds
Cut lime yellow pea down or turn it into the soil before it sets seed, while the growth is still green — that's when it returns the most to the ground.
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — lime yellow pea isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Lime Yellow Pea offers low value to bees and other pollinators.
Where Lime Yellow Pea thrives
Lime Yellow Pea is hardy across USDA zones 10 through 13. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
Zones 10–13·Where Lime Yellow Pea growsOpen map →
Continental US shown — Alaska and US Pacific territories sit outside the federal map's polygon dataset.
On USDA hardiness-zone overlap, Lime Yellow Pea can grow in these states:
See if Lime Yellow Pea will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether lime yellow pea actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I grow Lime Yellow Pea in my zone?
Lime Yellow Pea grows in USDA hardiness zones 10 through 13 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
When should you plant Lime Yellow Pea?
Most growers plant lime yellow pea after the last spring frost, once the soil has warmed, leaving enough of the season for its 140-day frost-free need. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Lime Yellow Pea need?
Lime Yellow Pea needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Lime Yellow Pea need?
Lime Yellow Pea prefers soil pH 5.5 to 7.5, on well-drained ground (FAO ECOCROP). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Lime Yellow Pea attract pollinators?
Yes — lime yellow pea's flowers are a modest nectar source for honeybees.
Is Lime Yellow Pea safe for pets?
Lime Yellow Pea is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data. Always supervise pets around new plantings. (Source: ASPCA.)