Peashooter

The Peashooter is the first plant that the player can plant. It is also the only plant that she/he can use the first time s/he plays level 1-1.

The design for the Peashooter appears to be loosely based on the Codonopsis pilosula, a type of bellflower, and its weapon a reference to Pisum sativum.

Its name is a pun on "pea" and "pea shooter", which is a toy consisting of a long tube that the user can blow through to shoot dried peas or small bits of paper, or alternatively slang for a weak gun.

Usage
The Peashooter shoots peas at what is considered a 'normal' rate (approx. one pea every 1.4 seconds). It can kill an ordinary Zombie in ten shots.

Suburban Almanac Entry
Peashooter

Peashooters are your first defense. They shoot peas to attack zombies.

Damage: normal

How can a single plant grow and shoot so many peas so quickly? Peashooter says, "Hard work, commitment, and a healthy, well-balanced breakfast of sunlight and high-fiber carbon dioxide make it all possible."

Cost: 100

Recharge: fast

Strategy
Especially in the earliest levels, before you unlock the Repeater, the Peashooter is the standard firepower in your floral arsenal. By the time the first zombie arrives on any level, you should have enough sun to plant a Peashooter. Put the plant in the lane of the oncoming zombie and it should easily take out the attacker before it does any damage. Peashooters are really only good for early defense, so once you have two or three per row (or enough sun), you should start to plant stronger plants instead, like the Snow Pea and Repeater.

An alternative to planting Peashooters is to plant Potato Mines for the first part of the level; if this is done, you should have enough sun to plant strong plants (such as Repeaters) right away. However, this may not work due to the Potato Mine's longer recharge time.

Peashooters of any variety are not recommended for the roof levels, because they cannot shoot over the sloping angle of the roof (unless they are in the first sloped column which is not a good idea to place them).

Trivia

 * On the Plants vs. Zombies website, in the character section, the Peashooter shown has the Repeater's picture. This also occurs in the Mini-game Slot Mahcine on the Machine's plant although it does not look fierce. The art could have been mixed up in this case.
 * The Peashooter seems to resemble the Pokémon Bellsprout, being based off of a bellflower.


 * In the official Nintendo DS Game trailer for Plants vs. Zombies there is a golden Peashooter on a Lily Pad. It might mean a new Peashooter, possibly a flaming Peashooter. It could also be something of a Repeater, as in the trailer, it is shown to fire peas very rapidly. Additionally in the video, a Peashooter stops firing for a brief period of time.