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Remove flowers?

P

pwb

Hi, this is my first post :-) I'm trying to grow some chili and its growing fine. But someone mention that i should remove the first 5-7 flowers, how many should i remove and should they flower before i remove them?
 
       Are they inside,if so some do pinch them off.I butchered my plants before setting them out and they turned out fine.
 
pwb said:
Hi, this is my first post :-) I'm trying to grow some chili and its growing fine. But someone mention that i should remove the first 5-7 flowers, how many should i remove and should they flower before i remove them?
Click to expand...
Hello pwb, welcome!
 
The idea behind pinching off buds (when they appear, before they flower) is to redirect all the plant's energy into becoming strong and healthy and reaching its growth potential before fruiting. Whether this is effective is something growers will argue about for as long as people grow peppers.
 
Whether you pinch is up to you. It will not harm your plant either way, it will just delay your first harvest. Again, whether it benefits the plant is up for debate. To pinch them off, just use your fingers to remove the buds and stems, literally pinching them off. As for how many to remove, generally you keep removing until you're happy with the size/strength of the plant.
 
If your plants are growing fine and this is your first time growing, you might want to leave them to their own devices until you feel more confident experimenting. On the other hand, if you have lots of plants, you can try pinching off buds on some plants and leaving them on others to see if you have a preference. It's up to you. Have fun with your grow!
 
I like Prazzie's answer wrt how and whether to pinch buds/flowers.  Why not pinch half of your plants, put a colored string around the base of the plant to know which ones you pinched, and then leave the rest to Mother Nature.
 
Then start a garden diary/notebook and record which plants did what.  It's always good to experiment.
 
I didn't pinch last year, but I did top half my crop to promote forking and extra growth at the 11-12 week range as they'd got a little lanky indoors; which knocked off the first round of buds on them.
 
I ended up with some HEAVY producing plants. Plants were 8-12" tall at the time of topping. The ones which weren't topped still produced well, but nowhere near the level of the ones I did top.
 
Topped Habanero (I *think*, can't quite make out the tag)
 
w4GrTswh.jpg

 
Topped naga viper:
 
dnsQllAh.jpg
 
TrentL said:
I didn't pinch last year, but I did top half my crop to promote forking and extra growth at the 11-12 week range as they'd got a little lanky indoors; which knocked off the first round of buds on them.
 
I ended up with some HEAVY producing plants. Plants were 8-12" tall at the time of topping. The ones which weren't topped still produced well, but nowhere near the level of the ones I did top.
 
Topped Habanero (I *think*, can't quite make out the tag)
 
w4GrTswh.jpg

 
Topped naga viper:
 
dnsQllAh.jpg
Click to expand...
just as was stated above to pinch or not to pinch will always be argued just as topping or not to top, if the plant starts to fork early no need to top also.. but some say they get better harvest on topping others say better not, it all depends on you and what you find better
 
pwb said:
ok, thanx for info. I think i let it flower and see how it goes, maybe trying to remove some flowers nest summer :-)
Click to expand...
 
If this is your first time growing peppers, just be aware of how the flowers can behave. If it gets too hot or cold, the flowers will fall off at the stem. If a flower has not been successfully pollinated, it will fall off at the stem. You can also experience blossom drop from a variety of other factors, including watering and fertilising issues.
 
What you should NOT worry about is if you see the petals falling off, but the stem remains attached. Once a flower has been successfully pollinated, the tiny fruit will start growing even as the petals brown and dry. So if you see petals falling off, that's a normal part of the process.
 
Keep us updated on your grow!
 
- Mandie
 
Prazzie said:
 
If this is your first time growing peppers, just be aware of how the flowers can behave. If it gets too hot or cold, the flowers will fall off at the stem. If a flower has not been successfully pollinated, it will fall off at the stem. You can also experience blossom drop from a variety of other factors, including watering and fertilising issues.
 
What you should NOT worry about is if you see the petals falling off, but the stem remains attached. Once a flower has been successfully pollinated, the tiny fruit will start growing even as the petals brown and dry. So if you see petals falling off, that's a normal part of the process.
 
Keep us updated on your grow!
 
- Mandie
Click to expand...
 
When they flower, when should i pollinate them, or should i use a soft brush every day i see some flowers that seems open? Should i pollinate between two plants (of same type)? What happens if it pollinate from one type of chili to another type? They are now inside a greenhouse in my basement with arround 27-28 celsius, is that ok temperature?
 
pwb said:
 
When they flower, when should i pollinate them, or should i use a soft brush every day i see some flowers that seems open? Should i pollinate between two plants (of same type)? What happens if it pollinate from one type of chili to another type? They are now inside a greenhouse in my basement with arround 27-28 celsius, is that ok temperature?
Click to expand...
Peppers are self-pollinating, so you don't have to use a brush (although you absolutely can if you want to). You can also shake your plants every day to encourage the pollen to fall. The flowers are ready for pollination when they are fully open.
 
You don't have to pollinate between two plants of the same type (but again, you are free to do so, no harm will come of it). If you pollinate between two different varieties successfully, you will create a hybrid chilli (cross-pollinated plant). This will not be apparent in the parent plant, but any seeds resulting from such a cross will be hybrid seeds. On this webpage, there is a chart indicating outcomes of cross-pollination between chilli species. Purposeful cross-pollination is a massive topic in its own right, you can find plenty of information on that on this forum if you become interested in trying for hybrids.
 
Your temperature in the greenhouse is great. I'm sure your plants will flourish in that environment. Have fun!
 
- Mandie
 
Pinching/not pinching is all up to you. Since they're overwintered plants, they probably already have a really strong stalk and won't benefit from pinching as much. If you want them to grow more veg, pinch. If you're happy with the amount of leaves they have right now, let the buds grow and you'll have pods growing by the time you plant out.
 
randyp said:
      Prazzie my overwinters are what looks like setting flowers.
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I agree with SciurusDoomus, leave the flowers. If the plant can't handle it, they'll fall off by themselves. If they make it, you score some pods sooner.

But I'm actually posting to compliment you on your plants. Looking good!
 
Prazzie said:
I agree with SciurusDoomus, leave the flowers. If the plant can't handle it, they'll fall off by themselves. If they make it, you score some pods sooner.
But I'm actually posting to compliment you on your plants. Looking good!
Click to expand...
 
Very likely to score *pure* pods as well... which is always a bonus. :)
 
OK, then i dont want to remove flowers. This is the largest plant, its 5 1/2 week old. I didnt know that i could Topping/pruning the plant, 2 days before i tok this photo i did prun that plant and its starting to get new branch where old leaf has been. I removed the two leaf at the top on that plant. I have done topping on 1/3 of the plants and pruning on 1/3. Its look like topping or pruning does the same thing to the plant? The plants i have topped are also showing new branch on every leaf. Its fun to see results so fast. I think i should have some more plants in my greenhous when i get that up, is there something i shouldnt have there beacuse the chili plants?
2014-04-16%2020.53.19.jpg

 
2014-04-16%2020.54.04.jpg
 
Plants will try to re-grow leaves; but there's a difference in behavior when they are topped. When a plant is topped it'll try to form *clusters* of leaves at each node, which will usually result in more branches forming. You'll *definitely* get a fork out of it at the node you cut above, which is useful on annums once they have 6-8 sets of leaves. Usually I top mine right when the first buds start appearing. Helps multiply production and keep them from getting real lanky and top heavy later. (I hate having to stake pepper plants, and I hate *losing* them to broken stalks even MORE).
 
The Chinese varieties I only top if it looks like they won't fork naturally.
 
But everyone does it differently; some don't like to "interfere"... I don't mind playing mad scientist.
 
When plants are "topped" it sends them in to a frenzy of growth because they think they've been EATEN by an animal. It's a chemical reaction, pretty predictable.
 
But you have to also make sure you've prepped them for this with a good nitrogen base - I do it a day after fertilizing with liquid 12-8-8 - otherwise they won't have the capacity to sustain the growth. If they don't have a suitable supply of nutrients they'll start to freak out, grow clusters, then HALT production. Then you get a bunch of runty, twisted leaves in clusters around the stalk which don't really DO anything later.
 
-T
 
Let me know if I should start a new thread.
Should I top-half the plants and pinch the buds off these plants?  They are Bishop's Crowns and Yellow 7-pots.  They are far bigger than any other.  I planted around 30 types of chilies, back in February (lights, heatmat, etc).  Tall and skinny, but with good foliage and buds.  I'm using 15-30-15 on them, sparingly, once a week.
I would appreciate any feedback regarding the pinch and top-halfing combination.
Thanks.
 
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