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Potting up?

Capsicum

Capsicum

Banned
Hi everyone. I was wondering about re-potting peppers in the season. When I get the seedlings, do I plant them right from the seed tray into the final 2 gal pot? Should I just pot up to 4" pots and let it grow then planting in the 2 gal in later spring?


Also, whats some good potting mix you would suggest. Anyone ever try growing in orchid bark and perlite? I want to try that this year but am worried about ph problems.

Thanks.
 
Welcome i would go straight to the final pot, why do more work than ya need? I like the Jungle growth from Lowes, but thats what I have close... just be careful to not get the moisture retention soil.
 
romy6 said:
2 gallon is awfully small. I would go 3,5 or 7 gallon if you want a nice yield and bigger plant.
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+1

Think of it like this, the more room for root growth, the bigger the plant. With a #2 pot you are restricting the root growth. A Trinidad Scorpion can grow like 5 feet in diameter and the same and more in height. If you put it in a pot that doesnt provide ample room to grow you will maybe get half that.
 
Capsicum said:
Hi everyone. I was wondering about re-potting peppers in the season. When I get the seedlings, do I plant them right from the seed tray into the final 2 gal pot? Should I just pot up to 4" pots and let it grow then planting in the 2 gal in later spring?


Also, whats some good potting mix you would suggest. Anyone ever try growing in orchid bark and perlite? I want to try that this year but am worried about ph problems.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Most people like to scale up in pot sizes because the plants will devote most of thier energy into root development if its a young plant in a large pot, rather then growing leaves and growing taller. I know its more work, but I think you get more even growth by potting up into larger sizes. The key is to keep up with the growth of the plant and dont wait until it gets to big!
 
In my limited experience I find that going through several series of pots helps. It might be air in the soil or roots branching more. I don't really know. As soon as roots start circling you need to pot up or trim them. It will happen pretty quick in a 2 gallon pot. If you are set on a 2 gal. pot go with an air pot.

I also like smaller pots because It takes me time to figure out where I am going to put them.
 
+1 megahot
My WI Ag Expariment Station here germinates the plants in a tray till they have scond leaves and then transplant them into 1-1/4 inch grow containers and then in about 30 days replant them into 3 inch plants for a month and sell them. then the buyer can plant them in the ground.
If the plant gets root bound they just tear open the roots before transplanting and that makes to roots grow quicker. It works.
 
megahot said:
Most people like to scale up in pot sizes because the plants will devote most of thier energy into root development if its a young plant in a large pot, rather then growing leaves and growing taller. I know its more work, but I think you get more even growth by potting up into larger sizes. The key is to keep up with the growth of the plant and dont wait until it gets to big!
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+1


 
I agree with Megahot, Frosty, Balac and Prod Son on this. Staged pot up.

For zone 6, I'm starting seeds in 72-cell trays. Then thinking pot up to 2.5-inch or 4-inch, then to gallon, then to final location. Might be able to skip the gallon if going straight to final location depending on Spring weather Idaho.

Its all about the root ball. (Quote from AJ)

If you go straight from seedling to a big container, you have to deal with space, light, moisture, nutes, etc. when the plant doesnt need it yet.
 
Hey thanks everyone. I thought potting up was best, its good to hear thats what you do. Thanks for the tip on size pots.

So is jungle grow a good soil? Or is like miracle grow with all the large bark? I dont want to pay for foxfarm and I dont want to make my own medium again, good results just dont want to gather everything together again. Can someone tell me about jungle grow or whatever it called, does it have large bark in it or smaller? I would consider it by the picture on the package of soil, it looked pretty good.

Thanks again.
 
Capsicum said:
Hey thanks everyone. I thought potting up was best, its good to hear thats what you do. Thanks for the tip on size pots.

So is jungle grow a good soil? Or is like miracle grow with all the large bark? I dont want to pay for foxfarm and I dont want to make my own medium again, good results just dont want to gather everything together again. Can someone tell me about jungle grow or whatever it called, does it have large bark in it or smaller? I would consider it by the picture on the package of soil, it looked pretty good.

Thanks again.
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Jungle Growth??? You dont need anything fancy or to spend alot of money on things like Pro Mix, Happy Frog, Fox Farms etc. Just use something light with good drainage. A good peat based medium will do the job just fine!
 
megahot said:
Jungle Growth??? You dont need anything fancy or to spend alot of money on things like Pro Mix, Happy Frog, Fox Farms etc. Just use something light with good drainage. A good peat based medium will do the job just fine!
Click to expand...

This helped a good amount. I do have 5 gal of peat but I will get a 3 cu ft bale I suppose and make my own mix. I think I will stick with the peat/perlite/lime for now, I always had very good results. Can't wait., will post some pics this year.
 
Capsicum said:
This helped a good amount. I do have 5 gal of peat but I will get a 3 cu ft bale I suppose and make my own mix. I think I will stick with the peat/perlite/lime for now, I always had very good results. Can't wait., will post some pics this year.
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Sounds good! Just make sure the PH is balanced!
 
I was once told that in growing peppers, you can make it as complicated or as simple as you want..Afterall, mother nature does not use Pro Mix, Fox Farm or Happy Frog - just soil, water and sunshine and she does fine...It seems to me that with all the supplements, nutrients, chemicals, etc. out there, pepper growing can be an unnecessary science..Just MHO...
 
meinchoh said:
I was once told that in growing peppers, you can make it as complicated or as simple as you want..Afterall, mother nature does not use Pro Mix, Fox Farm or Happy Frog - just soil, water and sunshine and she does fine...It seems to me that with all the supplements, nutrients, chemicals, etc. out there, pepper growing can be an unnecessary science..Just MHO...
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You are quite right! They just need the bare essentials. Food,water, and light! Keeping it simple is the way to go! ;)
 
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