Transplanting chillies: when?

[creepycrawley]

Hi all,
Um, first off, I'm not sure if this should come under vegetables or fruits, but I think I'll go by the scientific definition of a fruit. I'd like to know what is the proper time to transplant chilli seedlings. I've got about 30 to 35 of them in a small paper cup, and they're about 4 to 5 weeks old and with half an inch wide leaves. I know, it was stupid, but my uncle who gave me the seeds told me they had a poor germination rate, so I thought that trying with all of them would result in at least a few sprouting. I didn't realise they all would . I think it was his starter mix that wasn't right, that's why he assumed they weren't good. In any case, I'd like to save these little guys if it's not already too late. I looked arounda few sites, and they suggested that when the plant has around 1/2 inch large leaves should they be transplanted, I.e. in their current state.. I tried with just one and it's growth has been seriously stunted when compared to the others over the last few days, and I was wondering if I did something wrong. Any help would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

[applestar]

30 in a small cup... All together?
That is way, way too many. The should have been thinned to one PER cup when they first germinated. if you wanted to save them, then at 4 leaf stage -- 2 seed leaves and 2 true leaves ... Gently separated and individually potted. I normally plant 3 seeds to a spot/cup for iffy germination rate, 2 per spot for new/fresh seeds, and 4 per spot for really questionable germination.

I would think they would be thin and spindly, starving for nutrients by now, with their roots so entangled that it would be impossible to separate them without damaging them. It might be better if you posted a photo and let us see.

But to answer your question, best time to plant out the seedlings is when they have two to three sets of true leaves, ASSUMING they were grown in sufficiently large containers.

[rainbowgardener]

30 or so pepper plants is an AWFUL lot of them. If you could save them all, do you have any room to put them? They get more or less 3 feet tall and bushy, bigger in some conditions. What are you planning to do with all those peppers, figure at least 6 per plant?

Anyway, if you do want to try saving a lot of them, one thing you could try is take the whole ball of soil with all the little plants in it gently out of the cup (or if it is easy to do, just cut the cup off it). Float it in a bucket of water. That will help dissolve the soil away from the roots, so all those tangled up roots will be easier to gently separate, like with a toothpick.

Then pick the ones with the best root systems, and replant them as AS said ONE per cup or 3 or 4 " pot. Let them get re-established and grow out a little bigger before you think about putting them in the ground.

[creepycrawley]

I know, I know, I totally messed up . But to hear my uncle talk about em was as though it'd be a miracle if they germinated at all. Anyhow, what's done is done. I've uploaded some photos as applestar asked, first one being when they were germinating, and the second one as of today. Hope they pass muster .

[img]https://i603.photobucket.com/albums/tt117/creepycrawley/18082010020.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i603.photobucket.com/albums/tt117/creepycrawley/31082010024_edited.jpg[/img]

Containers are not a problem, we've got about seven or eight HUGE empty ones, and neighbors on both sides of the street who love gardening. The other plant in the background of both pictures is a lychee I managed to start from seed. I got a few questions about that too, and I was wondering if I should ask here or in a separate topic ?

And yup I got lotsa space garden-wise RG, but the problem was that we've been getting freak showers here, totally out of the blue, and I didn't want to risk planting them in the ground directly or in a large pot, cuz they're in the open and can't be brought inside. Right now, they're in my balcony, and it's pretty sheltered, so they're safe so far from the occasional unexpected rainburst we've begun to get here. I'll definitely follow up on your idea RG (many thanks for the great solution ), and yes, it's easier to cut the cup than risk easing the soil ball out. And well, as to what I'm planning to do with them, would be pickling and daily use. We're rather partial to hot chillies here, and the ones we get in the markets are pretty unreliable, being spicy only during the early part of the year, with intermittent periods in between. Since these were from my unc's own patch and personally tried and tested, we figured we can try growing our own. Many thanks to you guys though, and I'll keep you updated on what happens over the next few weeks.