Master Gardener News - Yakima County

How to grow peppersby Phyllis PugnettiWhen deciding what type of peppers you want to grow, you will need to consider size, flavor,and color. For sweet peppers, your choices include bell, pimento, banana, and cherry varieties.If heat is what you want, you can grow Habañero, Jalapeño, Anaheim, or HungarianPeppers. Whether sweet or hot, pepperscome in a rainbow of colors with nice foliage.The best time to start peppers is indoorsabout 8 weeks before the last frost date.They like a temperature of 75ْ to 80ْ butwill grow as long as the soil remains above65 degrees F. Peppers are very sensitive toextreme cold.If you prefer to buy plants, you shouldallow about 1-2 weeks to harden off youngplants.Peppers are ready to be transplantedwhen they’ve developed their third set oftrue leaves. Plant them out about 2 weeksafter the last frost, placing them one footapart in rows that are 30-36 inches apart— peppers do well planted close together.Site them in full sun in rich, well-drainedsoil. Water well and mulch to conservemoisture.Don’t plant your peppers in the sameplace you planted tomatoes, eggplant, orpeppers the year before. These veggies allbelong to the same plant family and thereforehave similar nutritional needs and aresusceptible to similar diseases.Once your seedlings are in the ground,be sure they get sufficient water as peppersare quite thirsty in early growth. Also,make sure the soil is well drained to helpprevent root rot. The soil’s pH level ideally should be around 6.5. More acidic soil will produce asharper, hotter taste.If necessary, stake plants when they are loaded with fruit. Pick yourpeppers as soon as they’re big enough to eat, or you can leave them onthe plants to change color and flavor gradually. Don’t pull them off, butrather cut them off cleanly. Pepper plants are fragile and pulling thefruit off may damage the stems. If a stem does get broken, use a knifeor cutter to remove it cleanly. Otherwise, no pruning is necessary. Becareful not to over-fertilize. Too much nitrogen will result in a greatlookingbushy, green plant, but very little fruit. aTry growingpeppers,a fragilevegetable withsome amazingflavors.