Stake your peppers!!!!!!

[redser]

or this will happen ....



A whole branch snapped right off with the weight of the peppers
7 blinking months!! You probably all knew to do this. Ah well lesson learnt. That's what first years are for...

[darcyvuqua]

oh no you must be gutted can i ask what variety they are as im growing califoria wonders and they have only produced 2 fruits per plant!

[Potstubsdustbins]

Try hanging them up some where they might just ripen, I also thing they might be edible now.

Colin

[redser]

They are called Gypsy, an F1 hybrid.
Sweet Pepper 'Gypsy' F1 Hybrid - Pepper (Sweet) & Chilli Seeds - Thompson & Morgan
It was recommended in a book for our climate and apparently do well even in a poor summer. I think they've been doing well. Have more branches on that plant and two more plants so not the end of the world. But yes pretty gutted as it was the best branch.
Thanks for the suggestion pots, I'll try that. Have tasted one, peppery alright but without the bit of sweetness you'd expect. They went before their time I guess. Will be eating them anyway!

[redser]

Actually I hadn't picked them because I was waiting for them to change colour and grow bigger. But I just googled them and looks like 4-6 inches is a good size and greenish/yellow a good colour. So could have been eating them for a while. So maybe it's a good recommendation for people ...

Perfect Peppers -- Eat & Drink

[Jeanied]

I don't think mine is ever going to get big enough to produce a pepper this year! To be fair it has suffered some serious neglect and slug attacks since it was a seedling this spring - and it is the only one of a dozen or so to make it. However it is going to be fine as an over- wintering windowsill pepper and I am quite proud of it as it is an offspring of my original Purple Gusto saved a couple of years ago.

[Likac66]

Wow! I never seem to get more than 2 or 3 fruits on each plant and certainly not to that size. I have a sweet pepper plant that currently has about 4 or 5 very small fruits and that's my best.

[Uber-Uncool]

Yours look great and if you do as recommended ^ and hang them up or place them in a sunny windowsill they will likely as not ripen up enabling you to harvest them.

[Leeds_lad]

I wish mine were big enough to stake up. I've had a TERRIBLE year for peppers. They are STILL about 1 and a bit feet high and only just flowering. Given up with them.

[redser]

Mine are only under 2 foot high. It must be some sort of miniture variety, but it seems prolific. Recommended in the Polytunnel Book for our climate.

[Pa Snips]

I thought you could do with a good laugh after having your pepper plant self-destruct, so here's a picture of my California Wonder peppers which I like to call my 'California I Wonder Why They're So Small'.

Despite them being so small the plants have produced a decent enough amount of fruit and, as you can see, they're ripening up well.

[Farmer_Gyles]

i'm normally lucky if i get 1 pepper per plant on average ....

this year i have about 15 pepper and chilli plants left out of maybe 100 that we sowed .... the biggest is about 8in high and i have just seen the first flower ....

[marchogaeth]

I wish mine were big enough to stake up. I've had a TERRIBLE year for peppers. They are STILL about 1 and a bit feet high and only just flowering. Given up with them.

i'm normally lucky if i get 1 pepper per plant on average ....

this year i have about 15 pepper and chilli plants left out of maybe 100 that we sowed .... the biggest is about 8in high and i have just seen the first flower ....

I don't think mine is ever going to get big enough to produce a pepper this year! To be fair it has suffered some serious neglect and slug attacks since it was a seedling this spring - and it is the only one of a dozen or so to make it. However it is going to be fine as an over- wintering windowsill pepper and I am quite proud of it as it is an offspring of my original Purple Gusto saved a couple of years ago.

Have a look at SarzWix comments on this thread and you might feel a bit more positive, I know I do.

[Buleste]

Ah Suicidal Pepper Syndrome. I first experienced it with Chilli's but have also experienced it with peppers as well (stands to reason as their the same family). I now use a system of cane arches to support the larger plants.

This year has been bad for Chilli's but good for peppers for me. I used some seeds from a long sweet pepper I bought at Morrisons last year and I've had lots of large peppers.

[redser]

Thanks for the tip about the cane arches