How to grow peppers in pots: photos, cultivation technology and tips

There are about 700 species of Pepper (Piper). Gardeners grow on their backyards Bulgarian sweet, pod, hot chili. And those who do not have a summer residence can try to do it at home.

The article will tell you how to grow peppers in pots at home and what varieties are suitable for this. This culture will delight you with delicious fruits and decorate your home.

Selection of varieties and seeds for successful cultivation

Types and varieties of peppers for home cultivation a great many. When choosing seeds, build on the taste and conditions in your home. If it is not possible to devote a lot of time to caring for the plant, stop at the most unpretentious and disease-resistant varieties.

Interesting. Plant collectors have black pepper. This species belongs to real peppers (from the Piperáceae family), while bell peppers and hot peppers are relatives of eggplant and tomato. The fruits of the plant are small and inconspicuous, but famous all over the world.

The most popular types of pepper

Sweet and pungent varieties deserve separate consideration.

Sweet:

1. Yarik... Early maturing, ripens on day 85. Fruits are conical, heavy, up to 6 cm long. The bush needs support.
2. Sweetie... Red, small, tomato-like, globular fruits. They are in time for 115 days. An ornamental variety, but the fruits are edible and sweet.
3. Etude... Mid-season (135-140 days). Bush 60-70 cm high. Fruits are formed up to 30-40 pcs. on a bush, red, fleshy, juicy, weighing up to 100 g.
4. Curiosity... Ripens on day 65. The fruits are bright yellow, conical, with a pointed tip. Resistant to tobacco mosaic virus.
5. Treasure Island... Repaired grade. On day 60, small light green or orange peppers weighing 50 g ripen.

Sharp:

1. Tabasco... The bush is up to 45 cm high, densely decorated with yellow and red peppers (6 cm), collected in bunches. The famous sauce is made from the fruit.
2. Black Pearl... Luxurious decorative variety. As the plant grows, along with small, bead-like peppers, it changes its color from green to purple-black.
3. Small miracle... Shrub up to 30 cm high. Fruits change color as they ripen. On the bush, peppers of cream, green, red and purple colors ripen at the same time.
4. The Queen of Spades... A multi-colored hybrid with purple and red peppers. Differs in long-term fruiting and the ability to develop in partial shade.

How to grow indoor peppers from seeds and cuttings

For germination of pepper seeds, the same conditions are created as when sowing plants for seedlings.

Growing pepper from cuttings

Cuttings with 2-3 buds are obtained with regular crown pruning and rooted in water with charcoal. If there are a lot of cuttings, they are rooted in boxes with humus and sand (1: 1). Before planting, the lower cut of the shoots is dipped into the root former "Kornevin". Planting is sprayed and covered with foil. Rooting occurs in 2-3 weeks.

How to grow peppers at home on a windowsill

Pepper is a very demanding, even capricious plant: it will be easier to grow it if you know the culture requirements for keeping conditions and the subtleties of caring for adult specimens.

Presowing seed preparation

Preparing seeds for sowing helps speed up germination and ensures healthy seedlings:

1. Calibrated for size and quality (damaged seeds will not work for sowing).
2. Germination test. Pepper seeds are dipped into salt water (30-40 g of table salt per 1 liter of water) for 5-7 minutes. Hollow seeds will float to the surface, and germinating seeds will sink to the bottom.
3. Soaking for 10-15 minutes in a 1-2% solution of potassium permanganate.
4. Processing in any stimulator of growth and root formation - "Epin", "Zircon", aloe juice.

Seed germination technology

Seed reproduction allows you to plant any variety you like at home on the window:

1. The prepared seeds are sown in February in flat containers.
2. Sprinkle on top with a thin layer of fertile soil, mixed with sand in equal parts.
3. Moisten liberally with a sprayer.
4. Cover with foil to create a greenhouse effect. Daily, morning and evening, open for ventilation.
5. For a friendly emergence of shoots, the temperature is maintained at 24-26 ° C.

Pepper does not tolerate transplantation, therefore, it is better to grow a vegetable without picking, sowing it immediately in pots of 1-2 seeds.

Preparing soil and pot

The soil for planting pepper should be nutritious, light in texture, water and breathable.

The soil is prepared from the calculation:

• 2 parts of humus;
• 1 part peat;
• fertilizers (20 g of urea, 45 g of superphosphate and 25 g of potassium sulfate are applied per 1 m2).

The acidity of the earth should be 6-7 pH. If the soil is acidic, add lime or dolomite flour. The earth is spilled with dark pink potassium permanganate and left for 2-3 hours. Then they mix again and start transplanting.

Reference. If it is not possible to prepare the earth, it is purchased at any flower shop. From ready-made soils for pepper are suitable: "Saintpaulia", "Begonia", "For tomatoes and peppers."

Transplanting young plants to a permanent place

Shoots appear on the 6-10th day. The film is removed from the seedlings, the temperature is reduced to 22 ° C or transferred to a cooler room. When young plants reach a height of 25-30 cm, they are transplanted into a larger pot.

At the bottom of the pot, drainage is laid in the form of 1.5 cm of fine expanded clay and a thin layer of sand. The soil for transplanting is used the same composition as for seedlings. After planting, the plants are watered with "Zircon" (1 ampoule for 5 liters of water).

Temperature control and ventilation

Pepper is distinguished by increased requirements for light, heat and does not withstand strong changes in conditions of detention:

• temperature - during the day + 24 ... + 26 ° C; at night + 18 ... + 20 ° C;
• air humidity - 65-70%;
• illumination 20-30 thousand lux (additional illumination is necessary in winter in the dark);
• length of daylight hours - 12-14 hours;
• regular ventilation;
• from May 20 to early August, plants are kept on an open balcony or street, protected from direct sunlight.

At temperatures below 15 ° C, plants slow down their growth. Heat above 29 ° C is also fatal, leading to the loss of flowers and ovaries.

Watering and spraying

Peppers need more watering than indoor cherry tomatoes. The moisture-loving vegetable does not tolerate even short-term drying out of the earth. But waterlogging of the substrate leads to acidification of the soil, the development of fungal diseases and the death of roots. Water the plants when the topsoil dries to a depth of 1 cm.

The air in apartments is often dry, especially during the autumn-winter period. To maintain optimum air humidity, pepper is sprayed daily with warm water. Water containers are placed on the windowsills in the immediate vicinity of the pots. Water, evaporating, will not let the leaves dry out.

Diseases and pests of indoor species

Diseases in indoor peppers are the same as in their garden counterparts:

1. Blackleg dangerous at the seedling stage. It manifests itself as a constriction and blackening of the base of the root collar. Plants lie down and die.
2. Brown spotting. Vague yellow-brown spots appear on the leaves. On the underside of the leaf there is a white bloom, which then turns brown.
3. Sooty fungus - concomitant disease. It settles on peppers infected with insects that secrete a sticky liquid.

Most diseases are the result of improper care and watering. To combat fungal diseases, biological fungicides are used, for example, the "Barrier" drug (20 g per 10 l). Strong fungicides allowed for treatments in the garden cannot be used in the apartment due to the long-term toxic effect. In greenhouses, after treatment with a potent drug, they withstand 3 days of quarantine and do not enter the treated room.

Plants affected by vascular fungal diseases (fusarium and late blight) cannot be cured. They are thrown away, healthy bushes are treated for prevention with the specified fungicide.

Pests affect the culture less often than in the garden. They enter plants through an open window, along with the earth or bouquets of flowers:

1. Greenhouse aphid. Leaves curl, plants slow down. A sticky liquid is visible on the leaves - insect secretions.
2. Whitefly. Numerous small light spots are visible on the leaves. With severe damage, the leaves fall off, the bushes look depressed. The leaves become shiny due to the secretions left by the butterflies.
3. Spider mite. On the affected leaves, numerous pinpoint punctures and light strokes are visible - traces of tick bites, spider webs entangle the stems and leaves.
4. Gall nematode. The plant is stunted and looks dangling under normal watering. Swelling is visible on the roots - Gauls.

From pests folk methods of struggle will help - spraying with an infusion of garlic, tobacco, a solution of laundry soap, or treatment with Fitoverm. Dosage: 2 ml per 1 liter of water. It belongs to the 4th hazard class (low-toxic drug). They are processed on the balcony or in a non-residential area (processing cannot be carried out in the kitchen and bedroom).

Pruning, shaping and harvesting

Peppers do not stepchildren, but they regularly pinch the shoots. The more side branches a plant has, the more abundant the harvest. The formation of the crown begins during the active growing season, with the exception of the dormant period:

• for seedlings 12-15 cm high, pinch the apical bud to form lateral branches;
• regrown lateral shoots are left as the main ones, and the weak ones are pinched after the first leaf;
• also do with the rest of the branched shoots of the 2nd and 3rd order;
• in August, pinch all the tops of the shoots so that the set fruits become large;
• in October-November, lateral shoots are shortened by 1 / 2-1 / 3 of their length.

What is decorative pepper

Ornamental pepper (Capsicum) is a shrub native to South America. The fruits are considered inedible. Plants are grown exclusively for interior decoration. Its many fruits ripen by Christmas. They cover the whole plant and are brightly colored.

Is it possible to eat decorative peppers

Small peppers have a pungent, bitter taste, but not poisonous and will completely replace chili seasoning.

Decorative pepper care

Care measures are practically no different from caring for any other pepper:

• from February to November - regular watering;
• from November to February - a dormant period (watering is rare, the temperature is + 18 ... + 20 ° C);
• transplant every 2 years;
• during the fruiting period - regular feeding with phosphate-potassium fertilizers (every 2 weeks);
• plucking and crown formation.

Flowering, growth and fruiting of ornamental peppers

Ornamental pepper has more abundant flowering, the fruits cover the entire plant. At the same time, there are buds on the plants, ovaries and ripe fruits.Fruits on one bush can be of different colors depending on the variety (yellow and red, purple and red). Extra ovaries are not pinched.

Choosing a place in an apartment for growing such a pepper

The abundant fruiting of a houseplant depends on the light. Choose places for your pet that are lit all day (south, southwest, or southeast windows).

Tips & Tricks

Recommendations of experienced gardeners for growing this demanding crop:

1. Be sure to tie peppers with large fruits to a support.
2. Do not place sweet and savory varieties next to them - as a result of cross-pollination, sweet pepper bushes will give bitter fruits.
3. Use water for irrigation at room temperature, otherwise the leaves of the plant will curl.

Conclusion

Indoor garden is a popular and promising direction of indoor floriculture. Among the vegetable crops grown on the windowsill, pepper takes a worthy place.

To get a good harvest of sweet pepper, you will have to make a lot of efforts to create favorable conditions - light and temperature. It is easier for beginners to start mastering the culture with decorative, unpretentious varieties.