Raising Peppers in the Garden
How to Grow These Heat-Loving Vegetables
Apr 20, 2009 Stephen Allen Christensen
Peppers are tender plants that require plenty of heat and sunshine, and gardeners are occasionally frustrated by the failure of their healthy-appearing plants to bear fruit. However, with a bit of care and preparation, almost anyone can raise abundant crops of peppers.
Sweet peppers, particularly bell peppers, have long been popular for their versatility in the kitchen. They can be eaten green or ripe, although the flavor and vitamin content are usually optimal when the peppers turn yellow, purple, red, or orange.
Sweet peppers can be used in soups, salads, stews, relishes, sauces, salsas, and stuffing, or they can be stuffed themselves and served as the main dish. They also make tasty pickles.
Hot peppers, too, are enjoying a new-found popularity as people experiment with cuisines that make use of the peppers’ heat and flavor. Indeed, there seems to be an ongoing competition to develop hotter and hotter varieties.
Pepper Cultivation
- It is best to start peppers from seeds indoors about 8-10 weeks before the last frost date and transplant them to the garden when soil and air temperatures have warmed.
- Plant seeds about ½ inch deep in sterile seeding mix; optimum soil temperature for germination is 70-85º, so bottom heat is helpful until sprouting occurs.
- Keep soil moist; a clear dome helps to maintain optimal moisture and humidity.
- Once seedlings have acquired two sets of true leaves, grow on at 70º daytime and 60º nighttime temperatures.
- Supply plenty of light—peppers need at least 6-8 hours of direct, full-spectrum light daily.
- Resist the temptation to transplant to the garden too soon. Peppers may not be ready for transfer until two to three weeks after tomatoes have been set out. Garden soil temperature should be at least 60º, and nighttime air temperatures should remain above 50º before transplanting.
- Peppers prefer nitrogen- and compost-rich soil that has been deeply worked. At the time of transplanting, use ½ cup of nitrogen fertilizer (e.g., well-composted chicken manure, blood meal, kelp meal, or fish bone meal) around and beneath each plant.
- Space plants 12-18 inches apart.
- When flowering starts, side dress each plant once again with ½ cup of a complete fertilizer.
- If nighttime temperatures fall below 55º, leaves may yellow and flowers may drop from plants. If cool temperatures threaten, protect peppers with floating row covers. Adding mulch or black or green weed barrier will help to maintain warmer temperatures.
- Remember to remove row covers during the day to prevent overheating.
- Maintain uniform soil moisture throughout the growing season.
Diseases and Pests of Peppers
- As members of the nightshade family, peppers share many of the same diseases and pests that affect tomatoes, eggplants, tobacco, petunias, and potatoes.
- Smokers should wash hands before handling pepper plants to avoid spreading tobacco mosaic virus.
- Practice conscientious crop rotation.
- Use rotenone-pyrethrin spray or floating row covers to limit insect damage.
Harvesting Peppers
- Peppers can be harvested at practically any size, but green bells are usually picked when they are at least 4 inches long and firm. Other sweet peppers can be left on plants until they ripen fully to their mature colors.
- Hot peppers are typically harvested when red and ripe, but many recipes call for green, immature fruits; some varieties become chocolate-colored when mature.
- Usually, mature peppers break easily from the plant, but it is better to cut the peppers away to avoid damaging the plant.
- Hot peppers contain substances that can be very irritating to skin, eyes, and mucous membranes. Use caution!
Although peppers may be a bit more demanding than some garden vegetables, their diversity of form, color, and flavor make them well worth the trouble.
California Wonder Bell Pepper
|
What do you think about this article?
Latest Articles