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'Tis coming to an end...... but i don't wanna give up

twenty

twenty

well, here in not so tropical southern Ontario our season has quickly turned from mid 30's to the low teens in about a month. it actually dipped down to about 5 degrees for the last couple nights but the long range is showing low teens at night warming to high teens during the day for the next couple of weeks but the hours of sun are quickly dwindling.
 
when i started all this back in April, i knew i was getting a way too late start but decided some peppers was better than no peppers. i do plan to try and overwinter some of my plants and have already got new seed varieties to add to next years crop but....... i have several plants with lots of pods still unripe and others still setting new pods.  so i have decided to bring a few in to finish off...... or see where it goes.
 
so i have a few questions
 
- should i pick all the ripe and semi ripe before?
- should i trim back the plant,
- i’m going to spray with soapy water and rinse thoroughly before, then repeat every couple days for a few weeks to try and stave off or at least control aphids, anything else?
- their photo period will be reversing (hydro cheaper through the night here), don't see that as an issue?
 
any advice/tips at all would be very much appreciated,
 
yeah if you get a freeze warning (sustained 0c temp) you should pick them ones you aren't brining inside.
 
yeah you can trim back the parts that aren't producing.
 
Bugs will be in the soilmix as well, it's easy to change it out completely or you can soak it in soapy water for 30 minutes.
 
peppers aren't too sensitive with photo period that's fine
 
Right before the first frost, we harvest all the unripe ghosts and make a green hot sauce also using green tomatoes and tomatillos and lime and sage.  Most of the summer harvest goes into the freezer, anyway, because in the winter when life is a little more boring (summer is beach & fishing & gardening weather here), it's fun to make sauce in the garage with the door open.
 
There are always a couple plants that were growing in another one's shade that get repotted and brought into the house in front of a sunny window to have fresh peppers all winter long as well.
 
thanks for the replies, mother nature has possibly altered my plans.  we had a nasty storm roll through the last couple days and while the temperatures are still holding fine, the 80kmh/50mph wind did some serious damage. 
 
i picked everything ripe today, wanted to wait a bit so i can try and grab as many seeds as possible but didn’t want to risk losing any either. i trimmed back the broken bits and cut off all the damaged leaves. think i will wait a couple of days then bring in the survivors that i want to try and finish off, then overwinter the other keepers next weekend.
 
i know i will be bringing some critters in with the soil but at this point i'm just trying to get some of these unripe pods......  but if they continue setting pods ,  the plants are going to go to the basement and the room i will be starting my seeds (planning JAN 1...... maybe 2 would be better) is on the second floor, so hopefully i won’t run into problems, if i take a few precautions.
 
even with my small hauls this summer, i have managed to freeze a couple dozen mixed peppers and just picked a good bunch this morning that will join their kin in the freezer, less the seed donors.  i like to make my hot sauces in small batches that last a week or two in the fridge, so hopefully i can make them last.
 
todays offering, my first decent size scorpions and first yellow seven pots. still no ripe Carolina reapers but they are finally just starting  to turn, hence the want..... no,  need to finish a few off under artificial light
 
IMG_20151004_100435.jpg
 
Did the 30 min soak thing myself, plus soaking the leaves in soapy water, waiting, followed by a rinse.
 
Made a ring of Diatomaceous earth around the water tray below the 5 gallon bucket, as well as a ring on the soil at the edge of the bucket as the internet stated one could literally eat that powder though I suspect breathing it in wouldn't be a good idea. Not above using Pyrethin as a pesticide and monitoring for any sign of insects on the leaves and soil.
 
Most of the 100+ flowers have dropped in the week since I started this but I did wait a few days into the 6-9c nighttime weather. I do have hope for the remaining 16 to 20 pods but this is my first time growing. Did get a whole 170g of ripened peppers off the plant after I removed the unripened ones mid Aug (kinda wish I had left them on but was panicking about the late ripening and wanted to give the big established ones all the nutrients).
 
Lights would be a issue as I'm sure my landlords will not want to find out about the power consumption.
 
You can get a bottle of Diatomaceous earth for around $9 and it will go along way, looks like powdered flour.
 
Course this is my first time growing so any advice I give is libel to be wrong haha.
 
Oh and have ordered a 'emergency foil' blanket I found on online at walmart for $8 that might help with reflecting the light in the window for the winter is you were thinking of using a window for any of your plants.
 
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