pepper plants

Lyn

Does anyone pinch out the tips from top and side shoots of the pepper plant. Last year I had beautiful huge peppers but only about 4 on each plant. Would pinching encourage more.

sotongeoff

Just leave mine to get on with it-they seem to be naturally self -branching-like everything last year put it down to the lack or warmth and sunshine so slow in getting going -then cropped and that was it

This year of course will be fantastic

Lyn

Thanks Geoff, I thought I read about pinching out, but can't find it now, I will take your advise and leave them to it.

square foot

I don't pitch mine either. I tried pinching them few years ago as an experiment. It did not help since the plants need to produce a certain number leaves before forming a flower.

Lyn

Thanks for the confirmation square foot, I will leave them to grow. Does anyone take of the first flowers?

BobTheGardener

Hi Lyn, no, but I do hand-pollinate all flowers.  Another thing which helps with peppers & chillis is to re-pot them several times as they grow.  Start them in small 3" pots and re-pot into 5" then 7", then 10" as the roots reach the sides of each size.  Planting them directly from 3" to 10" pots (or into growbags or greenhouse borders) seems to temporarily stunt their growth somewhat.  The best crops I ever had were when I started them early (end of Feb) and kept them above 20C at all times, but that was an expensive thing to do (I kept the conservatory heated with a temperature controlled fan heater) and isn't something I will ever consider again, given the cost of energy now.

Lyn

I did pot them on gradually Bob, and kept them in my conservatory all the time, they ripened up a treat but not many of them, although the plants were about 2.5ft tall.

I will try pollinating them. Thank you.

BobTheGardener

Good luck, Lyn - all we can hope for is a decent amount of sunshine this year - they definitely need that (but don't we all!)

Lyn

Sure do bob, my conservatory faces east south and west so is wonderful for growing in. It's also double glazed and I sometimes run a dehumidifier in there to keep the air circulating.