Quick Facts
- Botanical Name: Lathyrus odoratus
- Classification: Spencer
- Petal Pattern: Flake
- Color Profile: Chocolate splashes and speckles over a crisp white ground
- Fragrance: Moderately Scented (Standard mid-toned and dark Spencer varieties typically possess a classic citrus-like perfume)
- Breeder: Roger Parsons
- Year Introduced: 2017
- Flowering Type: Summer-flowering (requires approximately 12 hours of daylight to initiate blooms)
Overview
'Theia-Bella' is a captivating modern Spencer sweet pea that commands attention with its highly distinctive pattern. The beautifully ruffled blooms present a clean white foundation that is heavily speckled and splashed with rich, dark chocolate tones. Because the "flake" pattern naturally distributes pigment equally on both the front and the back of the petals, the markings on every single flower are completely unique. This gives the plant a beautifully varied, unpredictable, and highly textured display that looks spectacular both in the garden and in a vase.
Growth Habit
Displaying the vigorous, twining nature characteristic of summer-flowering Spencers, this vine demands a substantial vertical framework to climb. Providing it with a tall obelisk, sturdy netting, or a bamboo teepee will easily accommodate its upward stretch and ensure the plant is able to produce the long, straight stems that are so highly valued for floral arrangements.
Cultivation Notes
To yield the strongest plants, initiate your seeds in deep modular trays (like Rootrainers) to establish a healthy, downward-reaching taproot system. Once the risk of frost has passed, transplant the young seedlings into a well-nourished, deeply trenched bed. Nip out the central growing shoot when the young vines are a few inches tall to promote the growth of vigorous lateral side branches. Ensure the soil remains consistently moist throughout the warm months, and harvest the blossoms incessantly. If the plant is allowed to develop seed pods, it will prematurely halt the production of new flowers.
Historical Notes
This striking cultivar is a relatively recent addition to the sweet pea world, officially introduced to the commercial market in 2017. It was bred by the highly esteemed British sweet pea specialist Roger Parsons. Parsons is a legendary figure in contemporary sweet pea conservation who maintains the UK's National Collection for the Lathyrus genus. Because of his monumental conservation efforts and expertise, any variety introduced under his banner is considered a mark of supreme quality.
In the Garden
Grown for: Providing an abundance of uniquely patterned, eye-catching cut flowers, and adding an element of dramatic, speckled contrast to mixed borders.
Companion Planting: Due to its dramatic chocolate and white contrast, it looks absolutely breathtaking when paired with solid whites (such as 'White Frills' or 'Wild Swan') to highlight its clean background, or paired with solid dark maroons (like 'Midnight' or 'Windsor') to echo and intensify its dark flakes.
