Toxic1979
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Location: Labrador City, NL, Canada

Some Hot Pepper Questions...

I've planted three types this year.
- Monet (Jalapeno Type)
- Cheyenne (Cayenne Type)
- Primero Reds (Habanero Type)

I've been told hot peppers may be a bit difficult to grow, so I planted about 12 of each type just to make sure I gave it a fair chance this year. Everything germinated, and everything was doing very well. I hate saying it was unfortunate, but I dod not plan for everything to make it. And I have a hard time deciding which plants to throw out.... I found a few folks that wanted some so I gave them out for free. I simply don't have the space for all those plants in my greenhouse, along with the ever so invasive cucumber.

I started back in March. They are now in my greenhouse. Each plant is easily 3-4 foot tall.Each plant also has ~ 8-10 peppers growing.

Questions:
1. When the flowers first started, they would just fall off after a few days. Actually they would wilt and fall off. No peppers forming at all. I read that you may need to assist them with some hand fertilizing. I used my finger to gently rub the inside of the flower. Finger was covered in pollen. Now they don't seem to be falling as much anymore. Is there a reason them to be falling off? Or was it because of the pollination?

2. The plants have a few peppers on them now, but they are producing a lot of flowers still. I keep pollinating them with my finger, and they eventually start new small peppers. Its the greed of gardening! Should I removing flowers to allow the plant to put energy in the other peppers that are already growing? Is there such thing as stressing the pepper plant with too much pepper growth demand?

3. How long, on average, does it take to see the colour change. I want to taste the heat in the peppers, and I'm told they need to turn Red before they are good to eat. I've been seeing good sized peppers for about 2-3 weeks now. Is there something else I should be doing to encourage color change, or is this just one of those "wait it out" gardening methods? I'm anxious to try them...

4. How do you harvest the seeds of your own peppers? I would like to reuse them for next years crop, if they are any good. I know you have to remove the seeds, but is there anything in particular you need to do in order to ensure a good storage for replanting in March 2021? Do you dry them, refrigerate them, wash them.... ? Is it just not worth it, as it may be easier and more successful to just purchase them again? Curious!

5. Pepper storage. How do you guys store your peppers? Given they seem to go a bit soft after a few days of being picked. I'm curious about this as, I'd like to be able to keep them, to enjoy through the winter, as I'm not going to eat them all when they are picked.

Thanks for any help or suggestions!

Toxic1979
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Posts: 148
Joined: Tue May 12, 2015 4:23 pm
Location: Labrador City, NL, Canada

IMG_6680.jpg
These are the Cheyenne Variety about 2 weeks ago.

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I pulled these off about two weeks ago as I'm impatient, and wanted to try them.

pepperhead212
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You're going to have a lot of peppers, @toxic! I have 19 kinds of peppers this year, but I think only 5 of them I have 2 each of - all the rest singles! In fact, past year on just 2 habanero plants, I had so many that this year I only planted one - I hate only having one of an essential plant, since something might kill it! But even one will provide more than I will need.

I have never grown peppers in a greenhouse, but I have grown them in a hoophouse, and the lack of pollinators had me concerned, but it seemed that I was getting more peppers on the ones under cover than in the outer rows. So they definitely self pollinated with no need for help. Those flowers falling off in a few days are probably the peppers formed, just not growing yet. Eventually, they should grow into peppers. I've even had some grow into peppers without seeds, which were uncovered, which means that they were not pollinated, but they still grew!

When trying new varieties, I always wait until I see them beginning to ripen, but I then take a full sized green one and sample it, to compare it to the ripe ones. Some peppers simply have little flavor, and sometimes little heat, when green, and some taste horribly bitter - it's always nice to get a pepper that's good green, ripe, and dried, though it doesn't happen often! Jalapeños are more often used green, but occasionally used ripe. Habaneros are always best ripe, and to me they seem best when totally ripened on the plant. Cayenne types are used both ways, but also often dried, when ripe. My Thai peppers are just starting to ripen now, and I always let this first flush of peppers ripen , and dry them - the later crop I'll harvest some red, to freeze (this way it's frozen for less time, than if I freeze the early peppers), then I'll freeze a bunch of the green ones, at the end. And something that you don't see much - you can dry the green peppers, like some of your cayennes, and grind that up to make what the Indians call a "white chili powder", with a different, but delicious flavor.

To dehydrate larger peppers, like jalapeños, slice them in half - otherwise, they take forever to dry. Something like a cayenne, while thin fleshed, would still dry faster if you just put a slit in it - same thing with the habaneros.

For freezing, I keep various kinds in pint containers, but all the rest of those varieties in Foodsaver packs, where they will last pretty much indefinitely. When the pint jar is empty, I just refill it, from a Foodsaver pack. Habaneros, surprisingly, loose more heat when frozen, than other varieties - the flavor will still be great, but the heat is reduced a lot, by the next season. I just made a dish with 2 frozen chocolate habaneros, that really needed more, yet one of those, fresh off the plant, makes that same dish too hot for most people!

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kayjay
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Location: Southern Ontario

Hi Toxic.

1. The pepper flowers are self-pollinating, so I don't see that as an issue. However, the fruit won't set and the whole flower, stem and all, will turn yellow and fall off if they're not happy with the weather. Too hot, too humid, too rainy... I'm not sure there's much you can do about it. Probably other conditions too, like soil, fertilizing, etc but I'm not too familiar with that. I know I lost a lot of flowers in the sweltering heat we've had the last month.

2. I'm not sure on this one.

3. It takes forever. :) That's why green bell peppers are cheap in the grocery store and ripe ones are at least double the price (here in Ontario, anyway.) My seedlings went out around the last week of May, and I got my first ripe hot pepper about a week ago. I got my first ripe sweet pepper yesterday. I don't think there's anything you can do to speed it up.

4. They're easy to save, but all three of those pepper varieties are hybrids, so your results might be all over the place. If you want to try it anyway, all I do is bust open a ripe pepper, scrape the seeds into a wire mesh sieve, rinse them off gently in tepid water, then dump them onto a coffee filter on a plate to dry in the basement for a week. Easy-peasy. I always use gloves! I burned my eyes once after washing my hands repeatedly, so no more.

5. If I have a lot, I chop them up and put them into little wee plastic ziplock bags sold as craft bags at the dollar store, and freeze them. Then they're ready to go for stir-fries, chili, etc. I'm always laid off work during pepper season so once I'm back at work and perpetually tired, this is handy. I have a dehydrator and I did dehydrate some a few years ago, but they tasted funny to me. I think I prefer freezing them.

Hope that helps! :)

Vanisle_BC
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Toxic; In Newfoundland you probably shouldn't expect peppers to develop & ripen at the rate they do for Kayjay. Here in S. coastal BC, my sweet types went out at the same time - late May - but I don't yet have even a baby pepper.

I've heard of people nipping off the early buds but I don't know if it really helps.

Kayjay: Ripe peppers in mid July - lucky you!

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kayjay
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Location: Southern Ontario

Vanisle_BC wrote:
Wed Jul 22, 2020 4:05 pm
Kayjay: Ripe peppers in mid July - lucky you!
Summer is fast and furious here! :lol: Also, I tend to jump the gun in March getting them started, then they're busting out of their cups to get outside by the time the weather is warm enough. I don't necessarily recommend this tactic. :lol:

imafan26
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Hot peppers are easier to grow than bell peppers for me. Peppers do like heat. Most peppers will not even germinate well until the temperature is at least 68 degrees. Indian peppers like Bhut Jolokia like it closer to 80 degrees for better germination. Cold weather does slow growth and flowering will stop, but pollinated fruit will continue to grow. Bell peppers have a narrower range as they don't like it much above 88 degrees.

Peppers are self pollinating, but they are wind and insect pollinating as well. I grow mine outdoors year round, but I live in Hawaii so it is not a problem. The greenhouse may not have enough wind. While a finger works, so does just shaking the plant. It works with tomatoes as well.

Since you are in a colder region, you may just need to find the right cultivars. Most of my hot peppers will take about 3 months from seed to fruit. However, I do pick my peppers in the green stage. They are still hot. Waiting until it is red is not always possible. The birds here will go after small peppers and even larger ones once they color up. Some peppers need to be caged or the birds will only leave caps. Bell peppers and jalapeno are not long lived, but the other species like the super chili, Hawaiian tobasco, Bhut Jolokia, and Thai peppers can live a few years. Peppers in 4 gallon pots usually live less than 5 years. I have kept super chile, and Hawaiian tobasco in 18 gallon pots for 8 years. One in the ground was at least 10 years old and still productive.

The other thing to consider is pepper load. Habanero has a pepper load of about 20, Superchile can support 200 easily if it is a large plant. Letting peppers ripen on the tree usually has a negative effect on flowering and can shorten the life of the tree. Peppers are heavy feeders of phosphorus and potassium. When the top starts looking sparse, I usually cut the plant down. If it is healthy it will put out new branches and leaves.

Vanisle_BC
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Re. peppers liking phosphorus & potassium: My small experiment with fertilizer suggests potassium in particular. That's in the early stages. The crowded pots I'm using won't let me evaluate later growth.

This paragraph edited; I.e. corrected :))
What has greatly surprised me is the apparent effect of fertilizer on germination. I've always thought it had no influence before the emergence of true leaves, but my small trial suggests otherwise. The seeds in a pot with fertilizer about 2 : 3.5 : 3.5 failed completely. Those with no fertilizer came up, but with smaller leaves than those with the second fertilizer, having proportionally much more potash (~ 1.25 : 2.25 : 3.5).

I'm running a second test but it's too early to see results. I've increased the amount of the second fertilizer so that both fertilized pots get approx. the same amount (weight) of nitrogen,

imafan26
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For peppers and most everything else I do use citrus food 4-6-4 as a starter fertilizer in the pot. I can also use 8-8-8. 9-12-12, or 10-10-10. When I use higher numbers 10-30-10 or 10-20-20 I have issues with no germination or killing the seedlings with fertilizer burn. I forget I have to decrease the amount I use when I use higher numbers. I just killed my cucumber seedlings because of this. I use about a cup of the slow N, low number fertilizers in an 18 gallon pot. If I don't use starter fertilizer, the plants are smaller than they should be. I supplement with a tablespoon after the true leaves appear, at first flowering, first fruit, and monthly thereafter. Peppers are relatively heavy feeders. They also need to be potted up frequently because they have a fairly large root system. I usually start hot peppers in 4 inch pots and pot up to 1 gallon and depending on the size of the plant I will up pot eventually to a 5 gallon bucket or an 18 gallon pot for a large pepper.

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Gary350
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imafan26 wrote:
Tue Aug 11, 2020 2:22 am
For peppers and most everything else I do use citrus food 4-6-4 as a starter fertilizer in the pot. I can also use 8-8-8. 9-12-12, or 10-10-10. When I use higher numbers 10-30-10 or 10-20-20 I have issues with no germination or killing the seedlings with fertilizer burn. I forget I have to decrease the amount I use when I use higher numbers. I just killed my cucumber seedlings because of this. I use about a cup of the slow N, low number fertilizers in an 18 gallon pot. If I don't use starter fertilizer, the plants are smaller than they should be. I supplement with a tablespoon after the true leaves appear, at first flowering, first fruit, and monthly thereafter. Peppers are relatively heavy feeders. They also need to be potted up frequently because they have a fairly large root system. I usually start hot peppers in 4 inch pots and pot up to 1 gallon and depending on the size of the plant I will up pot eventually to a 5 gallon bucket or an 18 gallon pot for a large pepper.
I agree you need to be careful how much concentrated fertilizer you put on plants it can over dose them especially if that fertilizer contains ammonium nitrate. I use 1 cup of 15-15-15 fertilizer in 5 gallons of water. I also add potassium to the water this promoted lots of blossoms that turns into lots of very large peppers. 2 cups of wood ash in the 5 gallons of water gives plants potassium for blossoms and calcium for BER. I water plants with about 1 pint of fertilizer water every few days it is not easy to over dose plants this way. Your 10-20-20 fertilizer will work best for you and you won't need any or very much wood ask for potassium.

Ammonium nitrate has been outlawed in concentrated form but I still find it in many fertilizer mixes like 10-10-10 and 15-15-15 and others. Easy way to learn if your fertilizer mix contains ammonium nitrate is put 1/2 gallon of room temperature water about 75 degrees F in a 5 gallon bucket then pour in 1 cup of your 10-10-10 fertilizer then stir well with your hand. If water temperature suddenly drops to about 35 or 40 degrees in 45 seconds it contains ammonium nitrate. If temperature does not drop then your fertilizer could contain Urea or something else maybe ammonium sulfate.

pepperhead212
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When starting peppers, or just about anything, for that matter, I use some of my hydroponics nutrients, for vegetative growth, not high P or K. I don't want them to be flowering before I transplant them, and with peppers, especially, I sometimes have to wait a little longer than normal, due to a cool May. Not a problem in greenhouse growing, but you still don't want them to start flowering in the small pots, before they get to their final location.

This is the time peppers start going crazy for me! Both habanero types started ripening over a week ago, and I've harvested at least 4 quarts of Thais, from just 3 plants. Only one of the 6 varieties of Aji peppers has ripened, so you never know with the different varieties.



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