yield 2024 season European season ?

[Englander]

Hi Guy's

It would seem 2024 is proving a terrible year certainly in northern Europe for chilli growers, many I've spoken to have said poor weather this year has put them way behind.

I believe chillichump and others have made YouTube videos on the subject.

The poor weather seems to have produced lots of foliage growth and tiny chillies often only finger nail size.

Certainly this seems true of my capsicum chinense varieties although my only capsicum annuum seems to be producing pretty normal sized pod's but in smaller quantities that last year.

My outdoor capsicum pubescens has only recently got small green pod's perhaps only 1/2" long max ! This time last season there pod's were bigger than my thumb !

I'm wondering what if anything can be salvaged from this year ..........

I've just started picking these small ripe fruit and freezing them I'm wondering how representative they will be to the flavour of the variety ?

 

[MarcV]

I have lots of small pods on my bonnet plants that taste nice, contain no seeds and have low heat level. But the last couple of weeks the weather is more like proper summer weather and it shows on the plants. New grown pods are getting a more normal size. All is not lost yet for me

 

[Englander]

Hi Guy's/Marc

Pretty much every chinense variety this season so far has been producing very small and smooth pod's !

This is a 7 Pot Barrackpore but it could any other of my chinense.............

I've recently seen the same thing as Marc later more recent pod's seem to be of normal texture, bigger and hopefully will grow to full size

A more recent 7 Pot Barrackpore pod on the same plant.

A Question for all those with more experience : These small smooth pod's will ripen.........Should I let them ? or remove them ?

I'm thinking by removing them the plant's will put more effort into these newer pod's ?

 

[MarcV]

Not sure if you should remove them. I haven't and my plants keep producing new, proper pods. Those little pods are good as snacking peppers though as their heat is much less, there are no seeds in them and taste sweeter than the propper pods

 

[ahayastani]

I'm thinking by removing them the plant's will put more effort into these newer pod's ?

It's mid-August already. How much time before the Scottish sun becomes too cold?

 

[Tinkerbelle]

What is Scottish sun?

My chinense are being very, very slow to do anything except wallow in their own self-pity.
On the plus side, weather permitting, they've got until mid October to produce something amazing

 

[Deadpouk]

First months where really bad, lots of rain and chill weather, and after this i got a massiv aphid invasion. Saddly ladybug season was way over and the aphids did a lot of damage. The plants just got back on their feets, maybe im going to have a late harvest.