I'm planning on alternating between 5-1-1 fish emulsion and epsom salts every week for fertilizer. I've grown jalapenos in the past, but this is the first time I'm really going all out. I already have poblano, red chili, jalapeno, and habanero growing in the earth box -- got the already adolescent plants on thursday -- and I've ordered scotch bonnet, white habanero, red thai, fatalii, aji cito, and aji benito which i'm going to put in their separate pots to make sure they get enough room and aren't over-watered. I've read peppers don't need much water and you can even wait until they start to wilt a little to water them. Is that true? I live in Connecticut and it rained pretty hard this weekend, so they should be set for a while. Is that plan not enough/too much fertilizer? Should I water them every week I don't use the fish emulsion?
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fertilizer How often should peppers be watered and fertilized?
- Thread starter sibed
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i've experimented with almost all kind of growing methods. i would say it depends on so many factors. you can water everyday or never water at all as long as you can maintain soil humidity level at 32%-58%. even though soil humidity level < 30, pepper plant won't die easily, it's really tough.
btw, pepper plant doesn't need much magnesium(Mg). so please don't give it too much epsom salt. after 4-5 weeks, K > N > Ca > P > Mg.
btw, pepper plant doesn't need much magnesium(Mg). so please don't give it too much epsom salt. after 4-5 weeks, K > N > Ca > P > Mg.
One thing to mention about this is if the plant says I need water then give it water (i.e. hot summer days that are unforgiving) you will notice the leaves start to droop which is a defense mechanism to attempt to make the surface area of the leaf smaller as to lesson the evaporation of water and save the plant. Also, one other word to the wise is make sure you try and save some rain water each time it does rain as your plants will love it.
lek said:
overwatering. pepper plant needs a lot less water than you might think. if you're beginner, check your soil humidity level. 32% - 58% is acceptable range.
Weird. I do a soil test. So best thing to do now is let it dry out more? I did a finger test and the soil was dry so i watered today. watered enough so soil is wet.
overwatering will invite pest and disease. if your plant are not infected yet. it will be okay to let it dry. just leave the pepper plant alone.Codeman said:
if you grow in pot, check drainage hole. trust me, you need really good drainage. the bottom of the pot may be too wet. it will be ok if your soil mixed has plenty of air space, otherwise pepper plant is drowning.
Watering is very important. I've experimented quite a bit and on the years ive let my plants wilt before watering they bounce back like crazy. I wish i did it more but to be honest, i hate to see my plants go dry. Its a mental thing. In nature plants dont have the luxury of being ideally watered like we think of it. They get rain, then dry out (and possibly wilt) before the next rains come around. This is natural and its very unpredictable. I think that is truely how plants thrive but when we grow for personal use we tend to overthink the process. Let the plant do what its gonna do.