Can I grow peppers in zone 5?

[pharmerphil]

Last summer, raising peppers was a little tougher for Us here in Minnesota, we had a very cool period when it should have been in the 80's.
Yet, Our 125 hot pepper plants, raised from seed did very well. the summer before, we had 186 plants out, we still have a few pounds of processed peppers left over..They'll be fine, follow these folks reccomendations and you'll be fine...

Hello everyone, winter weather has had me in quite a funk...but I'm back!!

[garden5]

Thanks, pharmerphil and BrianSkelton.

I'm thinking that my problem last year was partly starting too late (end of Feb.), but mostly my problem was probably due to the lack of any grow lights. There may have been a few other things, but I feel that these were the main two.

Brian, I did not know about warm/cold fluorescent lights. I plan on using 6000k bulbs this year; I don't know if these are cool, warm, or if there are both cool/warm variations from which I can chose. I suspect I would mainly want cool, since I do not plan on having the plants flower until they are outdoors.

Can anyone else weigh-in on the subject of cool/warm fluorescent bulbs?

[BrianSkilton]

No problem, glad to help 6,000 color temperature will do just fine, that is leaning toward the more bluish spectrum. Daylight white, is considered 4100k, while 6,000k is considered cool. The further you go down on the scale, the warmer the light is (red/orange). You are correct in your assessment, about having more of a blue light. Some people believe full spectrum lights work better, because the sun provides a full light spectrum. I think using lights that lean more on the blue light spectrum will do just fine.

[garden5]

No problem, glad to help 6,000 color temperature will do just fine, that is leaning toward the more bluish spectrum. Daylight white, is considered 4100k, while 6,000k is considered cool. The further you go down on the scale, the warmer the light is (red/orange). You are correct in your assessment, about having more of a blue light. Some people believe full spectrum lights work better, because the sun provides a full light spectrum. I think using lights that lean more on the blue light spectrum will do just fine.

Thanks for clearing that up. What, in your opinion, is the best light rating to use for this application? Would I want to go to a lower number so the light is more cool, or would that be considered more white and less cool? Should I possibly go higher (I have yet to purchase the bulbs)?

Also, could I grow the large bell peppers up here (zone5-6)? I've never known anyone who has grown these; only the long banana type.

Looking at your avatar, I'd suspect that you know a thing or two about growing peppers. Thanks for your advice.

[BrianSkilton]

Here's a quick pic of the calvin scale. I would go with 6500k bulbs or 7000 if you can find it.

[img]https://www.3drender.com/glossary/colortemp.jpg[/img]

What I did is just pickup a cheap t-8 fluorescent tube holder ($10) at walmart or hardware store would probably have it. They are usually very cheap. Then you could just pickup two t-8 fluorescent tubes with a color temp of 6500k. Let me know what you think of that.

Oh, and about the large peppers like the Italian Marconi pepper, you could easily grow these. In-fact there's not much you couldn't grow. Anyway, you could try Poblano to if you like a little spicy. Try the early Bell I just mentioned (yellow belle) its super early. Hope that helps

[Ozark Lady]

I am farther south than you, and I bought transplants, since, I decided to go ahead and grow a garden, a bit late to start my own.
However, I did have good luck with peppers.
We had such a cool August that it was too chilly to swim. Which is odd for us.
We had several frosts in October and November. And the day after... Thanksgiving, I harvested tomatoes, peppers and tobacco.... this was after some frosts... I had to get them out of the garden, we were facing a week of daytime highs below freezing.

But, my point is, peppers are tougher than you think, they can actually ride out the first few frosts, if they are healthy to begin with, and if you help them out on really cold nights, just cover them up....
I extended my harvest over a month with covering them at night.

And you can use cloches to get an early start, before the ground has even warmed up properly... just use the cloche to warm it some... then put your peppers in.
Go ahead, plant some extras.... try putting them in early... a bottomless milk jug, just set over them... you can even add more milk jugs, filled with water to help keep them warm at night.

Bend the rules, sometimes you win. But, keep some reserve plants,,, just in case the rules bend back... ha ha

[garden5]

Thanks, Brian and Ozark Lady!

Brian, you've just described exactly what I was planning on doing . Your post and chart was really enlightening. It looks like I was right on with 6000k to 7000k.

Thanks for letting me know about the peppers. I had grown some banana from seed last year and they went in super small and never got more than 7 or so in. tall and only yielded about two or three peppers each. I, at the time, thought that it would be impossible for me to get a large bell pepper. Now, I'm sure that by starting my plants earlier and using lights I'll be able to not only grow large bell peppers, but a good amount of them too! Especially with the early varieties you mentioned and that I found for you.

Oh, and thanks to Ozark Lady for the tips about setting the plants out early. I noticed that they weathered the frost well this past fall.

[BrianSkilton]

No problem Garden5. Be sure to harden them off about 2 or so weeks before your ready to plant as well. Hardening off is simply getting them gradually use to being outside (the wind, the hot sun etc). Under those lights the peppers tend to grow very paper thin leaves. Basically all your doing is toughing them up slowly so you don't kill them. For example place them outside for a few minutes one day then place them for a longer time, lets say an hour. just keep increasing. You can do a quick google search on hardening off plants, for a better explanation then I can give.

Also, I'm going to try to get them out, as much as a month early. I'm going to be using Wall o' water, (hope it works).

[garden5]

No problem Garden5. Be sure to harden them off about 2 or so weeks before your ready to plant as well. Hardening off is simply getting them gradually use to being outside (the wind, the hot sun etc). Under those lights the peppers tend to grow very paper thin leaves. Basically all your doing is toughing them up slowly so you don't kill them. For example place them outside for a few minutes one day then place them for a longer time, lets say an hour. just keep increasing. You can do a quick google search on hardening off plants, for a better explanation then I can give.

Also, I'm going to try to get them out, as much as a month early. I'm going to be using Wall o' water, (hope it works).

I've heard of Wall O' Waters, but I don't know much about them (more to research ). I think these are what Ozark Lady meant by clotches.

I just found some good reviews of them [url=https://www.amazon.com/Wall-Water-Gardening-Teepees-3-Pack/dp/B0006IH400]here[/url]. However, [url=https://www.amazon.com/Wall-Water-Gardening-Teepees-3-Pack/product-reviews/B0006IH400/ref=cm_cr_dp_synop?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending#R9QQDE25CHSMU]here[/url] is a word of caution to anyone who will be using them on peppers (read the first review). Here is a person who seems to have had some [url=https://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg0102521810750.html]good luck[/url] with them.

At the price , I think it would be way cheaper for me to use milk jugs.

I've heard before that the plants will grow weakly under the lights. I plan on brushing the tops of them with my hand about daily. This is supposed to work well for tomatoes, making them stockier and stronger, so why not peppers? Of course, I could be totally wrong too
.

I'm thinking I might try some early starting techniques this year, too. Thanks for the heads-up on hardening-off and good luck with the Wall O' Waters.

[rainbowgardener]

No wall of water isn't the same as cloche. Cloche is just a glass or plastic mini-greenhouse that you put over one plant (or a couple teeny ones). Wall of water is plastic tubes that you fill with water. I haven't used them, but the idea is that the water heats up during the day and gives back the heat during the night. Much more protected environment inside of one of those than inside the cloche, which loses the heat it gained in the day MUCH faster.

Since I don't spend a lot of $$ on my garden, I use gallon plastic water jugs as cloches. Cut the bottom off and put it over the plant. Works great, even has the lid, so you can open it up on nice days to vent and put the lid back on in the evening. Besides protection from wind, cold etc, it also helps protect the seedlings from all the critters. Sometimes without it, baby seedlings, even if no one wants to eat them, can get trampled.

[garden5]

No wall of water isn't the same as cloche. Cloche is just a glass or plastic mini-greenhouse that you put over one plant (or a couple teeny ones). Wall of water is plastic tubes that you fill with water. I haven't used them, but the idea is that the water heats up during the day and gives back the heat during the night. Much more protected environment inside of one of those than inside the cloche, which loses the heat it gained in the day MUCH faster.

Since I don't spend a lot of $$ on my garden, I use gallon plastic water jugs as cloches. Cut the bottom off and put it over the plant. Works great, even has the lid, so you can open it up on nice days to vent and put the lid back on in the evening. Besides protection from wind, cold etc, it also helps protect the seedlings from all the critters. Sometimes without it, baby seedlings, even if no one wants to eat them, can get trampled.

Thanks for informing me on the cloches. The terminology threw me off since I know these types of things as cold-frames and hot-caps.

On the milk jugs, will they allow me to plant earlier? Will they protect against a frost or do they simply warm the soil?

I guess even if they just warm the soil, it would be a step toward better plants.

[Ozark Lady]

I use water jugs (same as milk jugs) and simply remove the bottoms.
I use them at all times of the year.
I just reviewed photos, no idea how to post them here, but I even had cloches over my tobacco in July, when the weather is hot.

The water jug setting over the plants (oh by the way, I don't use the lids) create a small greenhouse effect. I place them immediately, always.
I check under them from time to time. And usually, when the plant is lifting the jug, or coming out the top, I remove it.

I also, turn some upside down, still bottomless, and fill it with compost and water through it to deliver the compost tea down closer to the root zone. You do need to keep your distance, and add the lids with holes punched in them to keep roots from growing into these.

When I start early and I am concerned of early frosts, I take some water jugs, and simply fill them with water, and set these as a hedge around the outside of the plant that is inside the cloche (water jug).

When I am transplanting in hot soil, I have a terrible time hardening plants off. So, I cheat, I simply pick the cool of the evening and plant my transplant, water it well, and then I add a cloche... the water jug cloche protects my new transplant from the sun also, and lets it get used to the soil more gradually. I do often remove the cloches for awhile, while I am in the garden working and can watch the plants for stress.
I just got tired of carrying plants to sun and back to shade. So, I simply uncover and recover and leave plants where they are.

If I have a whole bed of new transplants, I simply add my tunnel, and cover it over so that my transplants are protected. I gradually give them more and more sun. For me, at least, it is easier to throw a cover over a bed, and remove it, than it is to carry a bunch of plants from place to place.

[rainbowgardener]

On the milk jugs, will they allow me to plant earlier? Will they protect against a frost or do they simply warm the soil?

I guess even if they just warm the soil, it would be a step toward better plants.

A bit earlier... it does help warm the soil and it does provide some protection against frost. But it's not a greenhouse. If it is killer frost, like 25 degrees or less, your cloche won't matter, it's still killer frost. Protects against light frost. Also protects from wind, baking sun, etc.