Chillies - growing and overwintering 2022

[Ms-T]

Have got flowers on the Hot Lolly and the hot wax . Will let them stay as i have already off one lot. .

[Philthy]

Hi guys. I figured it was high time I contributed something to this year's thread!

I still have four of my five plants from last year that I considered worth keeping on; two Jalapeno, two Apache. I had a Demon Red that appears to have snuffed it now, but that one is a dwarf and as such was only in a small pot. I think it dried out too much. No great loss that one imo. The other four are suited to the British climate so not particularly challenging to grow. As long as they don't get frosted they are happy enough to tick over. I didn't cut them back much, just took off all old pods, straggly shoots, and a bit of shaping. I will look to re-pot them into something a bit bigger this weekend hopefully, and cut them back more extensively at that point. First new shoots are starting to appear now.

I was actively researching and sourcing seeds up until the 2019 season, but this will be the 3rd successive I have not sown any. It isn't really practical for me to be sowing and caring for seedlings like I used to, certainly not on a big scale. So I'm not sure when I'll get to delve into my seed box again. I just hope the majority stay viable for a couple more years at least. I have quite a few rarer varieties, and also an emphasis on ornamental and variegated types. If all else fails I would rather give them away than have to bin them. I'll see where I am in Spring 2023 and then make a decision...

Seed sowing isn't as necessary as it was 15 years ago (when I first started with chillies). Raising from seed used to be the only way to obtain the majority of varieties. Nowadays online nurseries routinely have dozens of plugs and plants for sale, even main stream garden centres will have ten or more choices on their benches. So I'm quite happy for someone else to do the hard work!

Something which has always irked me is people presuming that because I like chilli I must therefore like the most nuclear of sauces and candies, when actually I dislike that level of intensity, and often say so. Sauces maybe, in very small doses on the right foods that will absorb some of the heat. I often get given little presents of things like Ghost Pepper peanuts or Naga relish, and I smile and say thanks but really I'm groaning haha. The gesture is what is important of course. For me the love of chillies started with the plants first and the eating was secondary. For a budding chef I imagine it would be the other way round.

Happy growing, everybody

[annie8]

Having the same issue I have every year with my chillis. They grow so slowly! And I never end up with big enough plants to get a decent crop. I have my scotch bonnet and cayenne in individual pots now on a sunny windowsill and they look fine and growing but slowly. Is there anything I can do to encourage? Should I stick them back under the grow lights in the evenings for a few hours?

[Bren In Pots]

No sign of new growth yet from my Orange hab.

Its looking like my Orange hab hasn't survived its 3rd winter

[Ms-T]

Sorry to hear that Bren.

I have two chillis on my Hot Lolly about 1/2" long.

[ameno]

Having the same issue I have every year with my chillis. They grow so slowly! And I never end up with big enough plants to get a decent crop. I have my scotch bonnet and cayenne in individual pots now on a sunny windowsill and they look fine and growing but slowly. Is there anything I can do to encourage? Should I stick them back under the grow lights in the evenings for a few hours?

Varieties in the species Capsicum chinense (which Scotch Bonnet is) always seem to grow slowly at the seedling stage, before taking off later on. That doesn't explain Cayenne growing slowing, though, as they are Capsicum annuum, and ought to grow faster.
I doubt lack of light is the reason. Even with insufficient light they should still grow at their normal rate, they would just grow long and thing rather than stocky.
It's more likely either sub-par compost (maybe consider giving them a liquid feed once a week?), or else lack of warmth (how warm is your windowsill?)

[annie8]

It’s the brightest and warmest windowsill, in the house. Might just give them a wee feed then.

[stigs]

Having the same issue I have every year with my chillis. They grow so slowly! And I never end up with big enough plants to get a decent crop. I have my scotch bonnet and cayenne in individual pots now on a sunny windowsill and they look fine and growing but slowly. Is there anything I can do to encourage? Should I stick them back under the grow lights in the evenings for a few hours?

I wouldn't worry too much yet, these 2 plants were sowed last september Bahamian Goat and smaller Aji Pineapple, they have been kept in a growroom until now, once the warmer weather and longer light gets to them they will take off, normally they would be 3-4ft tall at this age.

[annie8]

Thanks. Did given them a slight feed hopefully as you say once they are out in the greenhouse they will really take off.

[stigs]

What size pots do you use for your plants ?
I see them saying 5 gallons for a Habanero I usually use a 5 Litre pot for Habs a 2 Litre for Medium plants and 0.75 Litre for small.

[ameno]

What size pots do you use for your plants ?
I see them saying 5 gallons for a Habanero I usually use a 5 Litre pot for Habs a 2 Litre for Medium plants and 0.75 Litre for small.

5 gallons definitely seems excessive.
I use 4-5 litre pots for all varieties, and they seem to do well. I wouldn't want to grow even small varieties in anything as small as 2 litres, much less 0.75. They need more root space than that, plus even setting root space aside, such a small volume of compost has very little water-holding capacity, so would need watering very frequently.

[annie8]

Have now potted on my chillis to bigger pots but still have them inside. Are people putting theirs out in the gh yet? I have an unheated gh so won’t be leaving them out in there overnight for a while. Could maybe put them out during the day if that would boost them more than the windowsill. My gh gets really hot though so don’t want to fry them.

[ameno]

I put my big overwintered ones out on the patio a couple days ago. I needed the space in my conservatory. Night time temperatures here are forecast 8-10 minimum, so they should be fine. Some of them have flower buds coming already, others aren't really growing much yet, although they are still alive.

Mature plants are a bit tougher than young plants, though. I won't be planting my new plants out for another couple weeks (outdoors, mind, not in a greenhouse).

[annie8]

Thanks might at least start taking them outside during the day and bring in at night unless overnight expected to be say 8 as will be a few degrees warmer in the gh.

[ameno]

I have a question about seed saving (a bit early, I know).
Am I right in thinking that different species of pepper cannot cross with each other, so if I'm only growing one variety of Capsicum baccatum (the rest being C. annuum), then as long as no one else nearby is growing that species I can save seeds from it without needing to actually isolate it?