A Compelete Gardening Guide for Planting the Best Peppers
New varieties of peppers are introduced each year, each featuring a
different mature color and unique flavor. Peppers make the perfect
addition to any garden and are fairly easy to care for as long as you
know what it takes to keep them thriving. There's nothing better than
having the choice of any pepper you could possibly imagine, in your
backyard. Being able to go outside and cut a few of these ripe babies
fresh off the stem is convenient and will make any dish that much
better. Pepper gardens are ideal for anyone who loves fresh fruits and
vegetables, salads, or making homemade salsa from jalapenos or other
peppers of your choice. This quick guide will help you learn what it
takes to maintain your own pepper garden. Pretty soon, your friends will
be calling you Peter Piper because you'll have the best peppers in
town.
Planting
Do:
- Choose
a site with full sun, but consider planting taller plants nearby to
provide shade on extremely warm days. Peppers are tropical plants that
thrive in the sun, however temperatures over 90 degrees Fahrenheit can
scorch your plants, causing the leaves to wilt and fruit to fall off or
drop.
- Make sure the soil drains well. Standing water encourages root rot and will kill your plant.
- Leave
plenty of space between plants. Try to aim for spacing transplants 1
1/2 feet apart in rows at least 2 feet apart. Keep in mind that most
hot-pepper cultivars need less room than sweet ones.
- Use stakes or other gardening tools to support the plants. This is especially important if you start your plant out in a pot or container, as the fruit starts to bloom and weigh the plant down, it becomes common for the plant to tip over on a windy day.
- Water during dry
spells to encourage deep root development and to keep your plants from
drying out or becoming scorched. Lack of water will produce bitter
tasting peppers. Yuck!
- Pull any weeds. This will help reduce damage to the roots.
- Pick
any weevils or other pests off your leaves. If pests become a problem
consider a natural pest deterrent. Many recipes for these can be found
online and made at home using common household ingredients.
Don't:
- Plant
where tomatoes or eggplants grew previously. Peppers, tomatoes, and
eggplants are all members of the nightshade family and are subject to
similar disease.
- Forget to water.
- Buy Transplants from a garden center. This is of course, completely optional (I bought transplants from Lowes and they did just great last summer) but you will have more choices and better chances of your plant producing more peppers if you plant from seedlings instead. If you do decide to forego seeds and buy a plant from your local garden center, look for one that has strong stems and dark green leaves. Try to avoid any plant that is wilted, brown, or has holes in the leaves. Also try to avoid plants that already have tiny fruits on them, they won't produce as well.
Seedlings When it comes to pepper
plants, roots are very touchy. The best way to start your pepper garden
from seedlings is to plant them indoors in peat pots about 2 months
before the last frost date. When sowing seedlings, aim for 3 or 4 seeds a
pot. It is crucial to maintain soil temperature and moisture during
this period. Soil temperature should be kept at 75 degrees Fahrenheit.
Always remember to water your seedlings. You want the seedlings to be
moist, but not wet. This is extremely important. Keeping your seedlings
in sunlight for at least 5 hours a day is also key to growing a healthy,
strong, pepper plant. If you are planting your seedlings indoors and do
not have a window available, keeping them under a light for at least 12
hours a day should suffice. Once your seedlings grow and are about 3
inches tall, it will be time to thin them. This can be done by leaving
the strongest plant in each pot and cutting the others off at soil
level. Once your plant is 4 to 6 inches tall it is ready to be
transplanted and can be moved outside to your garden.
Transplanting To Garden
When it comes times to transfer your plants to your garden, simply
follow the above tips (see planting section). Keep in mind that peppers
are very susceptible to transplant "shock", which can interrupt growth.
To avoid shocking your pepper plants, make sure that the soil
temperature is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit before transplanting. A
good rule of thumb to ensure this temperature and avoid shock is to
plant 2 to 3 weeks after the first frost. Planting outside on a cloudy
day or during the evening is also ideal, as it will reduce the chances
of sun scorch. Providing temporary shade for your plant is also never a
bad idea if you just can't help but plant on a sunny day.
Maintaining Growth & Health
As mentioned before, pepper plants are especially susceptible to root
rot, however evenly moist soil is essential to good growth and health.
This can be the trickiest part about caring for your pepper plants
because you don't want to water your plants too much and kill them, but
it can also be easy to under-water your plants. Since pepper plants
thrive in sunny areas, under-watering can be a death trap as well
because sun scorch is a very common problem. In order to avoid these
types of issues, you can invest in a thick mulch. The good news? Mulch
is fairly inexpensive and most places like Lowes carry it and will even
have great sales during the summertime, where you can purchase a decent
size bag for $2. Other materials that will work are straw or grass
clippings. All 3 of these items will help lock in moisture and keep soil
temperatures warmer.
Harvesting
Most sweet
pepper varieties will become even sweeter as they mature. Watch for
change in color to determine when they are ready to harvest. Peppers
generally will change from green to bright red, yellow, orange, or
sometimes even brown or purple. Mature hot peppers, offer an even
greater variety of color and feature the best and spiciest flavor when
fully grown. A good rule of thumb is to watch for how dark the pepper
gets. The darker the pepper, the hotter and tastier it will be. Earlier
in the season it is important to harvest peppers before they ripen. This
will help encourage the plant to keep bearing; a mature fruit can
signal a plant to stop production. Once you have harvested your fruit a
few times early on in the season, your plant should continue bearing
fruit and as the season progresses you should have an abundance of
mature fruit as long as you follow these tips and tricks. My pepper
plant was still bearing fruit in October or November. 2013 was a great
year for peppers. I had homemade salsa many times thanks to my jalapeno
plant, and many salads with banana peppers, fresh from the garden.
When harvesting your peppers, never pull or pluck your peppers from
the plant. Instead cut them. This can be done with pruning sheers. When a
frost is predicted, pick all fruit or pull plants up by the roots and
hang them in a cool, dry place indoors. This will allow for the fruit to
ripen fully.
Preservation
Peppers can be preserved by freezing (without blanching). Hot peppers can be dried. Done with peppers lets move on to Growing Perfect Tomatoes!
