Learn All About Starting Peppers Indoors With This Best Guide!
Starting peppers indoors is an absolute must since they grow like a breeze but they aren’t very easy to start. This is so because a lot of factors make pepper growth a little fussy and make the plants require some extra pampering. We are here to help you with all of it, so instead of panicking, continue to read.
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A little history of the pepper plants
Peppers were grown in their native lands of West Indies, Mexico, South America, and Central America for a time as long as before Christ was born. It was then exposed to the rest of the world by the medieval centuries explorers like Columbus and others who first took it to the European land for being sold in the markets. Very soon, the cuisine cultures all around the old world got revolutionized with the introduction of peppers as the people became so fond of the smell and taste of it.
Pepper soon began to be widely cultivated in all of Europe, Africa, and Asia. To date, the popularity of peppers hasn’t degraded by any bit rather increased only to the extent that a lot of its cultivars have been introduced as well as many of them have become ‘exotic’ spices now.
About growing peppers at home
Peppers are such a versatile veggie that every gardening enthusiast can get easily excited about witnessing the process of their growth first hand. There are a few important things that affect the success rate of growing pepper at home-
- Local climatic conditions
- Variety of the pepper
Having said that, the hot peppers are relatively easier to start but the same is not the case with sweet peppers. Also, the former has a longer maturity period than the latter. This means that a lot of factors play role in the successful growth of peppers and ultimately it comes down to the right execution of the way peppers must be grown.
For the beginners learning about starting pepper indoors, it would be better to use some of those varieties that are relatively easier to grow like Brush Belle Hybrid, Big Daddy Hybrid Bell Pepper, Milena, Orange Sun, Golden California Wonder, Gypsy, Lipstick, etc. However, we don’t mean to discourage you from growing the pepper variety of your choice as the key part of the process is to go about it correctly. If you do that, then there are high chances that you will get the best and worthy results.
Key aspects of pepper growing
Peppers grow nicely enough but it can get a little fussy to make them give great produce. Here are some of the things to know before you start growing peppers:
Basic requirements of pepper to grow
Here are the essentials of pepper growth process:
Method of growing pepper plants
Expect the results of starting pepper seeds to be different but the positive point is that you need to follow the same set of instructions for growing any kind of pepper. Here is a guide for growing peppers at home.
Right time of starting seeds
A lot of people remain confused about when to start peppers indoors. For that, you must check the last date of spring frost in your area and then calculate 8-10 weeks before that. This is the right time to start the pepper seeds which usually falls in January or February.
The right method of starting seeds
A good idea is, to begin with testing the seeds some weeks before beginning actually. Just put some pepper seeds on a damp towel, cover it, and keep it in a warmer location. If they sprout in a week nearly, then they are good to do with.
Follow these steps once you are ready:
It would be around one to two weeks when the seeds will germinate if everything goes right.
The right method of changing pots
Once the sprouts emerge, transfer them to slightly bigger pots and feed them every day till the true leaves emerge. After that, take a bigger pot and fill fertilizer rich soil in it, and move the plants in it. You may also thin the plants at this stage to make them 4 inches apart for letting the strong ones grow stronger.
All of this has to be accompanied by hardening the plants 10 days before transplantation. This involves increasing their exposure to outer conditions gradually.
The right method of transplanting
Make sure you have amended the garden soil with some aged compost or a good fertilizer before you put the young pepper plants in it as that will boost their growth. The right time to move out the plants shall fall somewhere 2-3 weeks after the frost has its last date. The night temperature mustn’t be lesser than 55 degrees F.
Put the plants into the garden bed evenly spaced at about 18-24 inches.
Caring about the pepper plants
Starting pepper indoors will only result well if the right care is meted to the plants at all stages. Here are the best tips for the aftercare of the plants:
Conclusion
This was all about starting peppers indoors as that is the best option to go with. The main need for growing peppers is that every step of the process must be tightly controlled and supervised and if you follow this guide rightly, we assure you that you will get the best results.
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