A couple of chilli questions...

[sandspider]

Hi all.

I've lurked here for a while, but this is my first post, so please be gentle!

I'm currently growing a crop of mixed chillies in a flat in Bristol. I planted the seeds in May or so, and I've got some good big plants with flowers. (They're growing in miracle grow potting compost and I water them with organic seaweed extract).

My questions are: 1) I'd like to pinch off the growing tips (as I read somewhere) to make the plants bush out a bit, stop them getting any bigger, and fruit more densely, but don't want to pinch off the flowering shoots. If I post a picture here can someone point out exactly what I should pinch off?!

And 2) I was going to fertilise my chilli flowers using a damp paint brush (again, read this somewhere) but was waiting for the plants to stop producing new flowers. THey're still flowering, but I've noticed one or two of the flowers are dying and drying up. This is presumably because they've not been fertilised. Does this mean I've left it too late to fertilise them? Should I do the other flowers now? Or is it just the grim lack of SUN we've had this summer?

(OOh, also, I've got several varieties of chillies growing, and I haven't labelled which are which. Does that mean I should fertilise from one flower to another flower on the same plant? I'm guessing that mixing pollen and what not from different species of chilli won't have much effect...)

Below see pictures of my chilli beds!

Any suggestions or advice much appreciated.

Cheers,

Giles

[Eyren]

Hi Giles

I have to admit I haven't managed to get a chilli plant as far as flowering yet, as the cats keep eating my indoor plants! However...

The bottom plant looks to me like it doesn't need pinching out (yet), as there is no new growth above the flowers. Not sure about the top one, though - maybe an expert will be along to help soon.

Re the pollinating: like most veg, different varieties of chilli will actually be the same species (think of varieties as being like different breeds of dog), so you can cross-pollinate them no problem. They will still bear the right fruits for their varieties, because the bit we eat is grown from the flesh of the parent plant, not from the crossed seed. The only proviso is that it probably won't be worth saving the seed for next year, as the hybrids might not produce great chillis themselves (if you're in a flat, you're presumably not going to have room to experiment with loads of plants that might not be worth the effort!).

Cheers

Anne

P.S. Say hi to Bristol for me - it's where I went to uni

[Two_Sheds]

no pinching out needed, I'd say

[sandspider]

Thanks both.

Anne - I'll look out for new growth above the flowers to be pinched out, that makes sense. Likewise the chilli and dog comparison (so much for a biology degree!) I did mine in Bristol too as it happens, I just liked it and stayed here. I'll definitely give Bristol your greetings :-)

Thanks again,

Giles

[Alice]

Welcome to the Vine Sandspider.
I wouldn't bother pinching the chillies. They tend to branch by themselves.
Now that you have lots of flowers I'm sure you'll have chillies along soon. They are self fertilising and you don't have to do anything. Spraying with water helps but it looks as if you have been doing that.
It's quite normal for them to throw some flowers away. If they're standing in a very sunny windowsill I would move them back from the window when the sun is very warm to save csorching the flowers.
I think we're just talking about a little patience and your chillies will be along.
When did you plant them ? Try planting in Feb next year and you'll get your chillies along sooner. Good luck.

[sandspider]

Hi Alice.

Thanks, I'm loving it so far! (More tempted than ever to leave my flat in Bristol and move to a cottage in the countryside...)

I thought chillies were fertilised by flies, and as there aren't any (well, very few!) in my flat I would need to do this myself with the aforementioned damp paintbrush? Or does spraying with water "wash" the pollen from flower to flower?

Sunny windowsill? Ha, I wish! ;-) Yeah, I know I planted them late (April / May I think) but I didn't really think of it any earlier! Next year I will be prepared...

Cheers,

G

[markwcel]

for the time you planted them they are doing well....patience patience patience lol

[BrideXIII]

OK, chillies, cos i love chillies, and they are one of my few success stories.
I buy supermarket chillies for cooking cos we use hundreds so I can never crop enough, but i save the seeds, dry them and then plant them with a pretty much 99.9% propogation rate.

pinching out should be done before they flower, like any plant, pinch out the tip, so they shoot off from the next lowest 'node' to produce a bushier plant, but I rarely bother.

I have read, that the optimum is three levels of flowers, then pick off the middle layer, allowing better flowering on the bottom and top layer, i have tried, and not really noticed much difference on yield.

chillies seem to manage to self pollinate if you open the window, whether that's insects or the breeze I can't tell you, but i have also used the damp paint brush method ( same plant pollination) to good effect.

those 'dead' looking fl;owers are exactly what they should be doing the fruit is about to set.

patience IS a requirement, mine rarely ripen beyond green, cos I love green chillies, but i have tied my hands behind my back this year and cropped some beautiful red ones, like toms, they take ages, seem to go a rotten black colour first then ripen up a glossy red, good luck, and enjoy.

[sandspider]

Hi Bride.

Many thanks for adding your wisdom! In fact, my chillies are fruiting pretty well now. I fertilised all of them using the finger method, and keep doing this from time to time as new flowers form. Not all of them fruit by any means, but I've got about 10 chillies over my 10 plants now. (Some multi-fruited plants, and some non-fruited at all). HOpefully this will continue to improve, especially if we manage to get a few more sunny days like the weekend just gone. Only slight problem is that I lost the labels on my chillies during a house move, so am now not quite sure which is which and what they should all look like when ripe! :-)

[BrideXIII]

Hi Bride.

Many thanks for adding your wisdom! In fact, my chillies are fruiting pretty well now. I fertilised all of them using the finger method, and keep doing this from time to time as new flowers form. Not all of them fruit by any means, but I've got about 10 chillies over my 10 plants now. (Some multi-fruited plants, and some non-fruited at all). HOpefully this will continue to improve, especially if we manage to get a few more sunny days like the weekend just gone. Only slight problem is that I lost the labels on my chillies during a house move, so am now not quite sure which is which and what they should all look like when ripe! :-)

LOL, I have a similar problem, I planted some seeds from some chillies I bought in Tesco's , not my usual long type, and although the plant gre strong and healthy, nothing seemed to be occuring.
I Have shoved it up on the southfacing windowsill with the sweet peppers I have going, and my sons are responsible for watering them daily.
I just went up to check them and lo and behold the straggling chilli plant is festooned at the top with sets, they stand upright from the stem rather than hang down, so I know they are not the same as all my other plants, but i'll be blowed if I can remember what type they are.I seem to recall they were pretty firey to the taste though

[coomber]

Don't know about the chillies, just wanted to say hi - i'm from Bristol too

[sandspider]

Hi Coomber. Nice to meet you! If you ever fancy a pint of liquid fertiliser and a chat about plant diseases(!) drop me a message :-)

Bride, I know the feeling - wait as long as you can, then eat them and see what they taste like. Half of mine are short, broad upward pointing green chaps, and the rest are long, slim, downward pointing green chaps. I planted at least four different varieties, so make of that what you will! Come to think of it, the room they live in (my bedroom!) faces West - I could move them to my living room (South facing), but the living room is a dangerous place for a young plant... :s

[Diva1983]

I'm another chilli fan-we eat more chilli's than anything else and I plan to grow chilli's next year.
Sorry to butt in on the thread-can I just ask other chilli growers-is it possible to have a successful crop of chilli's outside or would I need to keep the plants in my teeny greenhouse?

Alliyah

[sandspider]

Hi Alliyah.

I germinated mine in my airing cupboard, then grew then inside on a sunny windowsill. I believe you can grow them outside in the UK, but I'd keep them inside until any chance of a late frost has passed (March or April for safety). They'll do better in the greenhouse then outside... No doubt someone with more experience than me will have more to add!

Giles

[BrideXIII]

you don't have to grow them outside or in a greenhouse, they do perfectly well on a sunny windowsill.

I do move mine outside at the first sign of flowers, mainly to aid pollination, but some i dont and they do ok too.

I had the first of my RED ones on pizza tonight.......WOW!!! nearly lost the roof of my mouth, will definately be letting more of them fully ripen in future.


AH HAH! i remember what seeds the green stand up guys came from............. Birds eye chillies! nice and hot too