How often should I water young pea and mangetout plants?

[AnitaRL]

I have young pea and mangetout plants growing in huge pea/bean planter bags on a West facing balcony. I know that peas usually like cooler weather, so I have put the planters in the part of the balcony that stays cool the longest (i.e. less sun).

Now my problem is, that as soon as the sun hits the balcony (which is from around 15:00 all the way until 20:00) it gets unbearably hot on the balcony (the balcony is full of white walls and windows/glass doors, which just makes everything even worse). Under such circumstances, how often do I need to water my young plants?

Thanks!

[tamsin]

Whenever the soil feels dry. In hot weather than might be every evening. An open topped planter will need more watering than if you planted them through holes in growbag like planter.

[Flummery]

As seedlings you need to water when they look dry. However, when they start to flower and fruit they can drink a lot of water - they need it to set and swell the peas.

[AnitaRL]

Daft question, I know....but how can you accurately tell whether or not the soil is dry or wet. The top layer always seems to be bone dry, but if I stick my finger into the soil it usually still feels quite moist. But how deep do I have to 'dig' to get it right? Does anyone have a tried and trusted method for checking?

[Two_Sheds]

If the compost is moist, it doesn't need watering.

The best way to tell (imo, and it takes some practice) is to lift the pot up: if it feels light for its size, it needs watering.
Always try to have a drip catcher/saucer under your pots, and water into that. The plants will suck up just what they need.

[AnitaRL]

Well, my peas are growing in 80L planter bags...so don't think I'll be lifting them anywhere, anytime soon!

But I've used your method for smaller pots and it works quite well! Thanks for that one!