How far up...

[acs1]

Or maybe its how far down..? can you plant a very leggy seedling rescued from the nursery...? If the original 2 leafs are gone as are the next 3 or 4 sets leaving a good 6+" main stem with no leafs but the next 6" has a dozen leaf sets and lots of new healthy looking growth. Can you plant to that depth or will it hurt the plant..?
 
If its ok to plant root ball at depth, will the roots efficiently use the soil above the root ball 'plant,..?

 

[solid7]

Start it in a container with a light airy mix.  Plant it 1/2 way up the mainstem, wait for it to get deep rooted.
.
As long is can breathe, it can live.  I've done this with quite a number of plants that got too much shade before hardening off.  some of them became some of my best plants.

 

[acs1]

Start it in a container with a light airy mix.  Plant it 1/2 way up the mainstem, wait for it to get deep rooted.
.
As long is can breathe, it can live.  I've done this with quite a number of plants that got too much shade before hardening off.  some of them became some of my best plants.

 
Thanks for the reply solid7...
 
Its replanted. 75%peat,25% perilite, a small scoop of worm castings(5-10%) a splash of eggshell powder and some 10_3_6 rolled in, is that "a light airy" enough mix..?

 

[solid7]

Sounds perfect.  Just don't water it too much, as you don't want it to compact.  But yeah, that's sweet.
.
You know what our weather is like right now.  Hell one minute, monsoon the next.  Keep him out of direct sun and rain until he's well rooted.

 

[acs1]

Ya, the water thing seems to be a bit tricky. It involves so many variables to not over/under water. What has been working for me is to only water when I see the start of leaf droop/wilt. This does take a constant vigilance. When shortly after watering the plant perks up and stands tall I know I've got it right. But sometimes, especially with newly potted plants over sun/heat (like today its steaming hot) can imitate lack of water to a rookie like me... Can't even count how many plants I've re-potted that come out of old pot a wet soggy root ball. Trying to avoid that at all cost now.
 
Seems once you get basic soil/water right, all else is secondary, and while still important its less than immediately critical...
 
Thanks for the solid' lessons my fellow Floridian...

 

[solid7]

If I were you, I'd learn to judge the watering issue by the weight of the pot.  Notice what it feels like when you water, notice what it feels like when it really needs water.  You get the picture.
.
Definitely once you get that figured out, everything gets easier.  There is a lot of anxiety with new growers over making sure that the plants are watered.  But when you get it right, the plants almost thrive on neglect.  And I'm not kidding about that.

 

[flexy123]

Which is ironic (a bit) as overwatering (basically always having the substrate moist) is MUCH worse than occasional underwatering.
 
It's beneficial when the soil can entirely dry out between waterings, even when the plants may even start to droop/wilt a little. They will always recover in a couple of hours. But overwatering is the reason for 90% of growing problems.
 
As for re-planting them deeper: I have found peppers (at least mine, Jalepenos and Serranos) VERY eager wanting to grow roots from their stems. So definitely plant them deeper if too lanky.

 

[acs1]

judge the watering issue by the weight of the pot.  Notice what it feels like when you water, notice what it feels like when it really needs water.  You get the picture.
.
 

 
Been doing that for a long time now. Thats the first thing I do is pick up the pot and 'feel' the heft or lack of. But in my experience even a light pot that seems like it needs water but plant isn't yet even slightly drooping, might get over watered enough in their black plastic hydo pots to cause root 'boil'. Probably I've imagined it but in previously over watered plants could swear I've seen the occasional wispy streak of steam vapor coming up in the high noon FL pounding summer sun.
 
 
 I keep an RV out west in PHX and go into the desert a little west of Yuma in Cali, at a place called Glamis, 200+ square miles of beautiful desert dunes bordering on Mexico but still the USA. Glamis Cali, the sand toy capital of the world. Our group has been going there for 15 years to camp/play in the sand dunes with sand cars/utv/atv/bikes. The season is from Oct thru April, after that it just gets way to hot. I've been in PHX @ 117° and the dry heat/wet heat argument is bogus. 117° dry is brutal. Opening the door of my RV felt like sticking my head in a pizza oven.
 
 Anyhow, the point of this is, out west in the desert/Phx, with humidity at <8%, didn't take but a few hours off the plane till my lips, hands, pretty much everything would dry up so bad my lips and hands would crack if no lip balm or hand cream was used. Never eva have that problem in FL, ever. So I'm thinking the plants have the same problem, opposite of the soil needs here in FL. Probably be almost impossible to over water in Phx or SW desert states.      Probably the soil mix I use here in FL wouldn't work well in the SW desert areas. And more than likely I'm guessing a whole different list of problems would confront a grower in the sw deserts of Az, Cali, etc... Just 20 miles away are very large agricultural areas in Brawley/El Centro Cali. Wonder how mites/aphids like the deserts..?
 
 

 

[solid7]

No, that wet heat dry heat thing is for real - don't ever doubt it for a second.  Because 95 degrees wet feels like 110 dry.  When you are in wet heat, your sweat doesn't work properly.  You dehydrate so quickly in the dry, obviously, because it does. (evaporative cooling, vs wearing a sweat blanket as a layer of insulation)  A good survivalist has to know how to deal with both.
.
Both are brutal, and both have their issues.  But dry climates tend to be much better for growing anything that isn't tropical fruit.  Transpiration is improved, and yes, the heat in both areas will overheat pots, and kill the plant from the roots up.  That's why it's almost always better to go with bigger pots, and insulated.  No matter where you live. 
.
If you see steam coming out of a plant pot, your plant is doomed.  
.
I used to live in a hotter, drier climate.  It's a whole lot easier to regulate watering in that environment, than ours.  Of course, you may have the hassle of water restrictions, and water nazis. 

 

[acs1]

No, that wet heat dry heat thing is for real - don't ever doubt it for a second.

 
What I meant is, many say that FL wet heat, very high humidity is much worse then dry heat out west. I disagree 100%.
 
Here in sFL summer it never usually gets over 92-94°max but 70-90% humidity is the norm. As is 100% humidity/rain every day for maybe 15-30min then blazing sun again. From my personal experience, I can and have suffered thru that wet heat, where as the dry heat of >115° would kill me fast. 115°@10%RH is painful with probable death soon to follow for most if no shelter/water is quickly found, but its dry heat... Whereas 92-94° 90%RH is very very uncomfortable but without the pain and immediate possibilities of imminent death of dry 115°.
 

 

[solid7]

I think you're right, neither is worse.  It's about the same level of shitty hell.