How to plant, maintain and harvest Growing Peppers

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Most people find that pepper plants are easier to start indoors. They can be started as early as the last month of winter and kept indoors until about May or June.

Transplanting them after the temperatures stay above 50 degrees is the best time to ensure the weather is warm enough for them. The most popular type is the green bell pepper.

How to plant a pepper seedling

If you purchase seedlings make sure they are healthy looking plants with 4 sets of leaves at the least. They should not have flowered yet and they need to be checked for insects. Do not buy plants with spots or abrasions on the leaves.

Pepper plants should be placed at least 16 inches apart when transplanting them to the garden. The rows should be about two feet apart and as soon as they are transplanted they need to be watered well.

When you grow peppers the vegetable will require some fertilizer. The soil should be fertilized before planting using a 5-10-10 solution.

This should be about 3 pounds every 100 square feet. After the Pepper plants begin to get peppers and when they are just tiny a side fertilizer can be used.

One thing to watch when fertilizing peppers is the amount of nitrogen in the fertilizer. Too much will cause all leaves and no peppers. Growing peppers do like a fertilizer that is rich in potassium and phosphorous.

If you test the pH level of your soil the optimum is 5.8 to 6.5. Mulch can be added to help retain moisture in the soil and this will also cut down on the amount of weeds.

When to Harvest peppers

When you grow peppers harvest when they are the size that is right for eating. If you continually pick the peppers, the plant will flower again.

This means you may get another crop of peppers as long as the weather cooperates. The growing season in the south is longer therefore enough time for a second crop is quite feasible.

Keep in mind when you grow peppers they do not like extremely cold temperatures nor will they fare well in frost. If the weather gets cold early, the pepper plant does not grow as well.

If frost is expected in the fall before your pepper plants are gone they can be covered to help protect them. The covers can actually be left on in the daytime if they have vents for the plants.

Pepper Growing Pests

When pepper growing you plants are susceptible to aphids and spider mites. There are also other insects that bore into the plant. The best treatment for these pests is an organic dust or insecticide.

Growing peppers are not especially prone to a lot of disease. However, if a fungal infection is suspected, the best treatment is a fungicide. Early treatment is the key to preventing problems.

Although most people do not know this, a green pepper is actually a pepper that has not ripened yet. The pepper can be allowed to grown and the color will turn red. The texture of the pepper will also change as will the flavor.

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