Growing Peppers

[DaveJ]

I am considering growing peppers this year for the first time. Is there any useful advice or tips that I should know about?

[Bigmallly]

I can only speak through personal experience Dave but mine will be grown in a greenhouse. if you live further south , you may get away with growing them outside. I'm sure more advice will follow.

[beaufontboy]

Hi ya, I grow mine outside in pots, started in February indoors until it warms up, get fairly good results from salad peppers, grilling peppers and the link, good luck !

[Capsid]

I grow mine in pots in a greenhouse and feed them once a week with tomato fertiliser. When they are about 6-8" tall then I pinch out the growing shoot to encourage sideshoots that will generate more branches from which more fruit can grow. Generally it is recommended to restrict the number of fruits to about 6 per plant to get good size peppers (although I don't always adhere to that). They taste lovely too.

[Bigmallly]

I thought I knew the difference between a chilli & a pepper but am not so sure now.


Chilli pepper seeds hot pepper seed, the hottest there is.

[Flummery]

There are chilli peppers and sweet peppers. They are all the same family. I also use a greenhouse for mine and only put them there permanently after the last frost. A lad on our alloment site ot a great crop of chillies from using a small cloche-type poly tunnel. I've never got much from outside plants here in Yorks.

If you're growing from seed, Dave, remember that they take quite a while to come through - longer than toms - so don't assume they're done for if you don't get 'babies' in the first couple of weeks.

Good luck with them.

[elsie-scot]

Go for it, but get started soon - make sure you have somewhere warm for them, as need heat to get going. I grew for first time last year in a conservatory, new house has a greenhouse so will be growing there this year. Initially felt like mine were going very slowly but got some nice peppers in the end. We hand pollinated - gently shook plant daily and occ used paintbrush, just incase.

[chris]

I grew some outdoors in Cardiff last year, they grew fine until the local slug population demolished the lot.

I grew them in my garden, in grow bags, straight on the ground. So I learnt the hard way

I moved all my other stuff growing in a similar way to one of those cheapo plastic greenhouses, and then all over our garden furniture too.

[selfraising]

I sow mine in January and keep indoors until the frosts have passed, then gradually aclimatise them to life outdoors! Being down south and not having a proper greenhouse, I grow mine outside in containers and they do quite well. I do find tho unless we have a hot summer they don't change colour, so I pick those off that I want red and bring them indoors and they soon ripen up.

[DaveJ]

Thanks for the advice. I will definitely have a go growing some.