How to Grow Chickpea
Chickpea At a Glance
Difficulty
Easy
Category
Vegetable
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -7°C
Plant Family
Fabaceae
Growing Season
Warm Season
Plant Lifecycle
Annual
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Chickpeas handle a light frost, so sow them around your last spring frost, once the soil has started to warm. Push the seeds 4 cm deep, 12 cm apart, and water once. They sprout in 10 to 14 days. Sow them where they will grow, since their roots do not like being moved.
Chickpeas need about 100 days, so sow them early to give them the whole summer. Each pod holds only 1 or 2 peas, so plant a good patch for a real harvest. They like dry summers and struggle in damp, muggy weather.
When To Start
Chickpea needs warmth. Wait until your last frost has passed and the soil has warmed before sowing.
We do not have exact sowing dates for this one yet.
When should you plant Chickpea?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Chickpea Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Chickpea Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Sow chickpeas outdoors now, 4 cm deep
Around your last frost
Pick chickpeas green, or let them dry on the plant
About 100 days after you plant it
Did you water your chickpea seedlings today? Keep the top of the soil damp until they are up and growing.
About 1 days after you plant it
Time to thin the chickpea seedlings: snip the extras at soil level so each one has room to grow.
About 24 days after you plant it
Hello from your chickpea patch! Chickpeas like it on the dry side, so water only when the top soil is dry.
About 47 days after you plant it
Chickpea check! Pick some pods green for fresh eating, or leave them to dry on the plant.
About 81 days after you plant it
Picking time may be here: check your chickpea.
About 100 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Chickpea's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Expect sprouts in 10–14 days
Growing Tips
- 1Grow chickpeas in full sun, at least 6 to 8 hours a day.
- 2They do well in plain, well drained soil with a little compost, and rich soil is not needed.
- 3Water only when the top few centimetres of soil are dry, and water at the base to keep the leaves dry, which helps keep leaf diseases away.
- 4Skip extra feeding, since chickpeas make much of their own plant food.
- 5Spray aphids off with water, and leave space between plants so air flows.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
~100
Days to Maturity
50 cm
Mature Height
25 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
21 days
When to Pick
Pick green for fresh, or leave to dry on the plant for dried chickpeas
How to Harvest
- 1For fresh green chickpeas, pick the pods when they are plump and still green.
- 2Pop them out of the pods and eat them raw, or steam them like edamame.
- 3For dried chickpeas, leave the pods on the plant until the plants turn brown and the pods rattle.
- 4If rain is coming, pull the whole plants and hang them in a dry place until the pods are crisp.
- 5Shell the dry chickpeas, let them dry a few more days, and store them in a sealed jar.
- 6Soak dried chickpeas overnight and cook them until soft before eating.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
How to Save Seeds
Chickpea flowers pollinate themselves, so the seeds grow true as long as the variety is not a hybrid (hybrid F1 seeds will not). Your dried harvest is also your seed: set aside the biggest, healthiest chickpeas from your best plants. Make sure they are fully dry and hard before you store them. Keep them labelled in a sealed jar in a cool, dark, dry place, where they keep a few years.
Seed Production
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