Hi there again. Last week, I had asked about transplanting my peppers to bigger homes, to which I did. This was because it seemed to me that my peppers stopped growing. Approximately a week later now, it still does not look like anything is happening to them. They are still all alive and very healthy looking, so that is not a problem. But, I was just wondering if being stuck indoors in all this beautiful (NOT) weather we having is making them not grow. I am hoping in two weeks to be able to start the long hardening off process with them. Is it common for a plant to grow better outdoors, or is it just that they are still adapting to their new bigger homes? Thank you.
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indoor Do Peppers Grow Better Outdoors Than Indoors
- Thread starter obchili
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well it could be not enough nitrogen and also I have found it takes a minute after transplant for it to start growing again
Plants are in a greenhouse in a South facing window. Outdoors high is 55 this Tuesday with it being lows averaging 35, so outdoor greenhouse is out as well. Current renovations are eliminating me using next years set-up this year. I will try the fertilizer route in a couple of days, as it has been a couple of weeks since getting nutes for them. Thank you for the help.
To directly answer your question - outdoors is best, as no man-made light can compete with the light from the sun. On your other items, I believe I responded to your other thread - plants often take time working on their root system while small, instead of focusing on upper growth. This combined with less-than-ideal light and possibly too-cool temperatures will slow the growth, but it is not something to worry about. Once you can take your plants outside you'll see them grow in leaps and bounds. I think the biggest problem many of us have is a lack of the amount of patience it takes to grow peppers - we want growth NOW, we want production NOW, etc. Sometimes that results in over-tending, which can kill them. The spring temperature swings suck (ours is about like yours now), but this WILL change.
Oh, and if you do decide to up the nitrogen, be sure to back way off once the plants start flowering and producing. Excess nitrogen can block calcium uptake, which can cause blossom end rot (BER) in peppers.
Oh, and if you do decide to up the nitrogen, be sure to back way off once the plants start flowering and producing. Excess nitrogen can block calcium uptake, which can cause blossom end rot (BER) in peppers.
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/46490-growing-frustration/?p=979460
That's a link to another post I made, which contains a link to my old grow log - you can see what a huge difference one month outside makes. Hopefully that will help calm the nerves!
That's a link to another post I made, which contains a link to my old grow log - you can see what a huge difference one month outside makes. Hopefully that will help calm the nerves!
@geeme - Great grow you sent the link to. That was sweet and made me very jealous. Now if I may ask. What is the size of the pots you were using in the end? I saw a couple of pots in the pictures which I was able to read 10" 4.5 cups. Were these the pots you had gotten some pods in, or were the final pots in the 5 - 10 gallon range? I am really considering potting a few plants this year now after seeing yours. Also in your post you had mentioned thunderstorms. We usually get a couple of good ones each year here. Is there any effects from a pepper living outside during these lovely events? I ask because I am originally planning on a raised garden at the back of my yard along a south-facing fence where it will get all but the morning sun. It is and will be exposed to the elements at that location. Thank you kindly for all of your help and time, it is greatly appreciated. This pepper growing is a whole new learning curve for me, and I am loving it.
I use different size pots for different varieties, based on the average size given on gardening sites such as chileplants.com. Jalapenos, as an example, don't usually get very big and also have fairly small root systems so they can go in smaller pots. Congo Trinidads, Douglahs, and others can get 3 feet or taller and I put them into larger pots - 5+ gallons.
Thunderstorms - If they're in the ground all you can do is try to shield them a bit. In pots, you can move them into shelter (I move mine into my garage now) or lay them on their sides for the duration - assuming you can get to them in time. If you lay them down, do so that the pot takes the brunt of the wind, so if it's blowing east to west you want the pot to the east and the plant to the west. They may still take some damage if laid down, but it will likely be less than if left standing and get knocked down. That said, depending on the nature of the damage the plant may still be salvageable. A couple of my Trinidad Perfumes got beaten up pretty badly that year, with one branch heavy with green pods still partially attached. I used medical tape around the broken parts and made kind of a net of string on stakes to hold the branch up in place until it healed over. The pods ripened fine and none were lost.
Oh - and don't be jealous….. yours will do the same, I am sure!
Thunderstorms - If they're in the ground all you can do is try to shield them a bit. In pots, you can move them into shelter (I move mine into my garage now) or lay them on their sides for the duration - assuming you can get to them in time. If you lay them down, do so that the pot takes the brunt of the wind, so if it's blowing east to west you want the pot to the east and the plant to the west. They may still take some damage if laid down, but it will likely be less than if left standing and get knocked down. That said, depending on the nature of the damage the plant may still be salvageable. A couple of my Trinidad Perfumes got beaten up pretty badly that year, with one branch heavy with green pods still partially attached. I used medical tape around the broken parts and made kind of a net of string on stakes to hold the branch up in place until it healed over. The pods ripened fine and none were lost.
Oh - and don't be jealous….. yours will do the same, I am sure!
Just a little update. I think someone had a talk with my peppers and gave them all a kick in the pants the other day. They have almost all shot up in growth. I am now getting worried. Darn temps are not co-operating here. I would really like to get all of them outside into the garage as they are starting to get too tall for the indoor greenhouse. I do know that next year I will be practicing topping/pruning early on.