Planting Hairy Vetch
Hairy Vetch is a cool season flower in the Fabaceae family. Getting the timing right is the difference between a strong stand and a disappointing one, so the windows below are given relative to your own last spring frost and first fall frost rather than a generic calendar date. Look up your local frost dates and count back or forward from there.
You can sow Hairy Vetch directly into the garden 0–2 weeks before your last frost.
For a fall crop, sow 4–6 weeks before your first fall frost so plants mature as the weather cools.
Spacing and Planting Depth
Give Hairy Vetch room to mature. The figures below come from verified extension and seed-supplier data for typical varieties.
| Spacing in row | 2 inches |
|---|---|
| Row spacing | 6 inches |
| Plants per sq ft | 12 |
| Planting depth | 1 inches |
| Sun requirement | Full sun |
Days to Maturity
Hairy Vetch reaches maturity in 180–240 days from sowing.
Hairy Vetch is ready to harvest after about 210 days. Harvest before summer heat or, for fall crops, before a hard freeze, to keep quality high.
Conditions and Care
As a cool-season flower, Hairy Vetch does its best growing in the cooler weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. It is frost hardy and can shrug off light freezes, so it can stay in the ground later into the season than tender crops.
Hairy Vetch needs full sun — give it at least six hours of direct light a day for the best growth and flavor. Sow seed about 1 inch deep, then keep the soil evenly moist until seedlings establish.
Hairy Vetch belongs to the Fabaceae family; rotating where you grow members of this family each year helps limit the build-up of soil-borne pests and disease. Hairy Vetch is generally grown as a single planting each season rather than succession sown.
Growing Notes
Overwintering legume cover crop; nitrogen fixer.