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Repotting/light intensity

CAPCOM

CAPCOM

When the time comes to think about re potting your seedlings, are annuums the only peppers that can be buried deeper? I have seen references to this several times but am curious to if it has specific applications or just a general reference.
also, is there a way of determining what is too close for a HPS bulb to be to seedlings without getting into *trial and error?
 
* destructive testing
 
     I've had some luck transplanting annuums and chinenses deeper. I don't think the limiting factor here is species, but the age of the plant. Once any perennial plant gets to a certain point (age, stem diameter, stem lignification), it will lose the ability to grow adventitious roots. (That's why it's always bad to plant trees too deeply and bury the root crown.) Once the cells in the stem tissue have differentiated to this point, the only outcome from deep planting will be stem rot or girdling roots.
     Last year a friend of mine planted (into his garden) all his peppers deep like his tomatoes. After excavating a few of the root crowns, we saw that none of them grew any adventitious roots - just fungus. 
    The problem with deep transplanting peppers is that it's hard to tell when a plant is past the cutoff of being able to grow adventitious roots. I've always relied on feeling how stiff the plant's stem is. If it's tender and green, I might chance it and plant deeper (only if it's looking leggy). If it feels at all like it's beginning to harden up, I won't risk it.
     Since you're growing with HPS, you probably don't have to worry about leggy seedlings, though... :)
 
You can't can plant other species deep. They grow roots from the stem.


Edit: I mean you can plant other species deep, lol!
 
Just to touch on light intensity, I've had no problems with my 250W HPS at a height of 6-10". It's all a matter of light strength, and heat output. Higher wattage bulbs need to be further away.

The safest way to tell is to start high, and gradually lower your lamp until you fond the sweet spot.
 
I was running @750 w roughly 24" and am getting what I think could be considered stringy seedlings. bumped it to 1000w and lowered to 12" with a reciprocating fan blowing across crop. this was fine short term but I was concerned heat output coupled with air circulation would prematurely dry out seedlings between watering. So I moved light to 24" @1000w. My interpretation of stringy is significant distance from growing media the primary leaves.
1" on some.
 
This isn't answering the question, but may help. I grow my seedlings in 4 inch pots. I cut most of the bottoms out of the pots and place them in trays that have capillary pads. The seedlings are perfectly watered from the bottom so you never get dry seedlings. Just make sure there is at least a little water in the trays and your good. Tom
 
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