Growing Peppers needn’t be difficult. I grow all of mine from seed and without the help of any fancy uv lighting, never say never, but for now, with the energy crisis, I feel no need to add to the electric bill.
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How to Sow Pepper seeds
To get started, all you need is a warm windowsill, pots, seeds, water and a propagator lid or cling wrap.
- Sow Pepper seeds Mid February-early March, indoors 8-10 weeks before your last frost date.
- Sow 1/2 inch deep in trays, pots or modules filled with moist, good quality compost, cover with cling wrap or a propagator lid.
- Pop on a sunny warm windowsill, seedlings should emerge within 2 weeks.
How to Grow
Once large enough to handle, prick out seedlings and plant into larger pots. This gives each individual seedling room to grow and thrive, crowded pepper roots do not make for healthy Pepper plants.
What is Pricking Out ?
Pricking out, is simply the process of separating seedlings growing together and repotting them in individual pots or modules. TopTip* Lift seedlings by the leaf, never by the stem, you risk the seedling breaking if handled that way. See Below for demonstration.
How and Why I Pinch Pepper Plants
When the Pepper plants are at least 8 inches tall I pinch off the growing tip. This encourages the plant to branch out. More branches=more flowers=more fruit. See below for the branching habit 5 days later
Here you can see all the new growth, pinching makes for a bushier higher yielding plant.
All these plants have been pinched. You can see the foliage is much denser and bushier, less sparse than they would be normally.
Where to Grow
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I grow my peppers in the greenhouse in 17cm coir pots. I find peppers to be quite thirsty, so water often, but don’t drown, coir pots are a fabulous remedy for good drainage.
Want To Grow A Vegetable Garden?
Have a look at my DIY Greenhouse , DIY Potting shelter and Potting Shed and have a gander at these ‘How To’ Veggie Posts…
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