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Old July 24, 2006   #1
Innoma
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Default Can't Seem to Get It Right...

What is the secret to growing peppers, both hot and sweet? I've been trying it for a few years now in Zone 9 with results that are not very impressive. Here's some general background:

1. Plants are started from seed indoors in mid February and planted out in mid April.

2. Have had soil tests done and everything is pretty much in the normal range.

3. In the garden, the plants are spaced about 2ft apart and on drip irrigation.

Here's the problems:

1. The plants themselves, while healthy looking, tend to be on the smallish side and are fairly sparse on the foilage, which I suspect leads to the next problem:

2. Bell and frying type peppers are always very thin skinned and seem excessivly prone to sunburn (at least, I assume its sunburn when the portion of the pepper facing upwards looks somewhat 'blanched' and is generally softer than the rest of the pepper). I've generally grown them in full sun, but this year they are located in an area that is shaded in late afternoon and that problem persists.

3. Bells and frying peppers are not particularly bitter, but hot peppers (serranos, jalapenos, etc) are usually not very hot. I suspect this may be due to overwatering, but my dad (farmer) seems to think I'm underwatering.

There are those around here who seem to be able to grow large, thick-skinned peppers, but after several years of trying, I have been unable to do so myself. The only two solutions that I can think of would be:

1. Irrigate less.
2. Plant more densely so that adjacent plants will provide some coverage for the peppers.

In short ... how do you do it? Am I missing something?
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Old July 24, 2006   #2
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Hi Innoma - I'm in a Zone 5b - SW Ont Great Lakes region, & I start my seed about the same time as you do, & transplant out about mid-May. I know we don't have similar growing seasons, but I am just wondering if maybe it is too hot when you finally transplant out? Here, last frost has just passed - nights are mid 50's, 60's, and days are just warming up in the 70's. It seems to allow them to get established without alot of stress from excessive heat.

I also think that thin walls are due to not enough water - the more water, the plumper the flesh. However, the "not as hot" thing is a mystery to me - my experience is lots of water "dilutes" the heat, less water makes them more pungent.
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Old July 25, 2006   #3
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Now I have forgotten what zone I am in, but, I have found that peppers that are slightly underwatered and grown in slightly deficient soil tend to be hotter. I would also tend to believe that underwater/undernutrient would produce thinner walls.

In the SF Bay area, I typically set out pepper starts late May. i try to avoid any cool nights that might hit i August because I am superstitios and think this slows down establishment and rate of growth for the rest of the early seson. I have no proof of this, just a feeling.
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Old July 25, 2006   #4
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What would your "cool" night time temps in August be?
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Old July 25, 2006   #5
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Quote:
3. In the garden, the plants are spaced about 2ft apart and on drip irrigation.
Hi Innoma,

At season end when you pull up the plants... do they have a good root system?

What kind of time intervals for the drip irrigation?

I might have some suggestions with more info. Maybe not.

Rather curious whether your pods are experiencing sun scald or what I call 'sun tan'. Does the discolored soft part eventually rot?

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Old July 25, 2006   #6
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Thanks for the replies! To answer some of your questions:

"...but I am just wondering if maybe it is too hot when you finally transplant out?"

This year I planted out around April 20 and the temperature variation for the next 10 days was from 58-84 (highs) to 50-59 (lows).

"What would your "cool" night time temps in August be?"

August temps are generally lows of 60-75, highs of 90-105.

"At season end when you pull up the plants... do they have a good root system?"

I've never actually inspected them. I can see where that would be quite informative, but I've just never done it (shame on me for end-of-season laziness!)

"What kind of time intervals for the drip irrigation?"

I'm using manual timers and 1gph emitters. Last year the frequency was every day for 15 minutes; this year its been 1 hour every third day. In this area I have to confess I really don't know all the ins and outs of drip irrigation so I've mostly been winging it.

"Rather curious whether your pods are experiencing sun scald or what I call 'sun tan'."

The affected areas are generally at the top, and the scald is yellowish and softer than the areas that are unaffected.

"Does the discolored soft part eventually rot?"

I usually pick green when I see scalded areas and salvage what's usable, so I'm not really sure. Affected peppers (if I recall correctly) seem to fully ripen without rot, but the 'scalded' areas remain yellow and soft.

Just to note: it took me a few years of wildly divergent seed-starting and growing techniques to finally get good results with growing heirloom tomatoes, so I suppose a few more years of growing peppers might do the trick. However, there's still a part of me that's lazy and wants to look at the answers at the end of the book!
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Old July 25, 2006   #7
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I'm just a bit confused - one post said transplant out end of May, & then the other said April 20th. (Did you mean May 20th?) Those August temps. do not seem "cool" at all - still plenty warm for peppers!
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Old July 25, 2006   #8
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Definitely April 20 on getting the transplants out, not May.

August generally is pretty warm here, but after the last few days of heat, I'm looking forward to a few days of temps barely over 100!
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Old July 25, 2006   #9
Polar_Lace
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Innoma,

1. Irrigate more - one hour each day, especially in a hot dry zone.

2. Plant the pepper plants more densely so that adjacent plants will provide some coverage for the peppers. 2 plants at 15 inches apart at the maximum. 9 inches for the minium.

Read this, Management Practices for avoiding pepper problems
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Old July 26, 2006   #10
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I was going to say irrigate less often.

At start of season when first set out seedlings and they have hardened off for a few days start watering deeply so that ground is moist for maybe 18" deep. Don't irrigate again until seedlings start to wilt from lack of water. Water deeply again & repeat water/wilt cycle for several weeks more or less. Then add deep layer of mulch. When plants start blooming and setting pods irrigate just often enough to keep plants from ever wilting. The roots by then should have formed deep in the ground with additional roots now growing just under the mulch. What Polar_Lace suggests might be right on the money now.
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