Contents

Most Things about Growing Pepper Plants with Coco Peat:

The Variety of Pepper Plant

Sweet peppers

California Wonder bell pepper
Orange bell pepper
Jimmy Nardello sweet pepper
Golden marconi
Mini bell pepper
Sweet banana pepper

Hot peppers (from least to most heat)

Poblano pepper (ancho)
Lemon spice (yellow) jalapeno
Santaka chile pepper
Habanero orange
Scotch bonnet
Ghost pepper

Planning a Garden of Pepper Plants

Plants should be spaced 46-61 cm apart, stem to stem, with larger kinds requiring additional space. Just make sure your growth area isn’t overcrowded by mid-summer.

Container plants are easier to transport, have better control over nutrients and watering, and are ideal for apartment or condo life. They do, however, necessitate more frequent watering, and high-quality potting soil can be costly.

In-ground plants are ideal for large harvests, require little or no packaged potting mix, and require less regular irrigation. However, they remain in the same location after transplanting, and their leaves might be attractive to rabbits and mice when first planted.

See more:

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Temperature to Growing Pepper Plants

Most of the common pepper varieties in North America grow best in warm weather between 21-27°C.

Pepper plants are not cold hardy, so wait until the winter weather has passed before planting peppers outside. When the nighttime temperatures are reliably above 50°F, we normally transfer our pepper plants outside.

If you live in a cold area, you will most likely need to start seeds inside or buy started plants in the spring.

Planting seed

Planting peppers indoors is frequently important when starting from seed. You may be allowed to seed outside if you reside near the equator.

Plant pepper seeds inside about 6 weeks before the last risk of frost in colder locations. The plants should be ready to go outside approximately 2 weeks later, making the entire time from sowing to transplanting outdoors 8 weeks.

Buying Pepper Plants

If you want to grow starting plants, consider plants that appear healthy. Look for plants with lush, green leaves and avoid those with dark areas or yellowing leaves.

You can also inspect the root ball by carefully removing the plant from its growing container. It is possible that the roots are root bound if they appear dense and knotted. Look for plants with roots that are just beginning to reach the substrate’s surface.

Always buy plants when you are ready to transplant them. Again, this means that overnight temperatures are consistently above 10°C and rising.

Spacing in the Garden

Some pepper cultivars grow broad and bushy, while others remain slender. Ghost peppers and other C. chinense kinds are typically the largest, while jalapenos and other C. annuum variants are frequently smaller.

In short, pepper plants should be spaced around 12 cm apart, stem to stem. Allow 60-100 cm between rows to allow enough space to stroll between and collect your plants.

Caring Work for the Pepper Plants

Fertilizer Work

Use an all-purpose fertilizer on potted plants. This is especially critical during the early stages of development. This guarantees that the plants grow to their full potential, with plenty of lush green foliage.

It’s worth noting that high-quality potting soil usually has enough nutrients to last for several months. Check your bagged soil to see whether more fertilizer is required.

Before transplanting in-ground peppers, enrich the substrate with a slow-release granular fertilizer. Use the recommended amount of granular fertilizer per 10 meters, which is usually approximately 1kg. Work the fertilizer into the top 2-5 cm of substrate with a rake.

Compost is also beneficial to garden bed soil. In the fall or early spring, make your own compost from simple components such as yard clippings and dry leaves.

We propose lowering nitrogen levels around midway through the season. You can either cease fertilizing entirely or use a blooming-stage fertilizer.

Irrigation Work

Pepper plants prefer damp soil that is evenly hydrated. Try to keep the soil from being too wet or too dry. Only water when the first 5-7.5cm layer of soil is dry.

Allow potted plants to drain and make sure your garden beds drain adequately to avoid overwatering. Raised beds are designed to have good drainage, whereas in-ground beds can vary. If your garden drains poorly, plant peppers on mounds rather than flush with the ground.

Because bagged soil dries fast, potted plants will require more frequent watering. Apply a thick mulch of straw or grass clippings to retain moisture for a longer period of time.

Harvesting Work:

Your peppers should begin to ripen 60-90 days after transplanting outside, depending on the variety of plant. You may have to wait 120+ days after transplanting rocotos or any of the superhots!

When completely mature, all peppers change color. Wait for full ripeness before picking seeds for next year’s planting. Other varieties are typically selected early for a crunchier texture and more vegetal flavor.

Potting Mixing Work:

The quality of your potting mix can make or break your entire growth. Your peppers will suffer if the right balance of aeration, drainage, and water retention is not maintained.

A good rule of thumb for homemade potting mix is to include roughly 1/3 compost or other organic material, 1/3 drainage and aeration material (like perlite or vermiculite), and 1/3 water retention substance (like coco coir/peat).

Making your own growing medium is usually the most cost-effective option, but make sure you use high-quality components.

For the Usage of Coco Peat in the Growing of Pepper Plant

The first step of preparation work might differ depending on the type of coco peat purchases. If you have gotten the buffered product- which means that it’s been provided with necessary additions, and you can just get straight to growing with it. If the product is a brick, we have a how-to guild on how to re-hydrate it. And if the product is a ready-to-use loose (non-compressed) one, you can skip the first step.

Growing on coconut coir will necessitate the use of a pH testing kit. You can also acquire an EC or PPM meter to test how concentrated your nutrient solution is, but if you use your nutrients sparingly (below full strength as specified on the bottle), you’ll be good without one.

To begin generating your nutrition solution, you’ll need either reverse osmosis water or normal tap water. Use a hydroponic PH-down solution to decrease your pH to between 5.5 and 6.5, most especially 5.8 to 6. After reducing the PH of your nutrient solution, you can add your hydroponic nutrients in a conservative manner, i.e., use somewhat less than the bottle directions.

Mix everything thoroughly and allow the nutrient solution to reach room temperature; you don’t want to shock your plant’s roots by adding too cold or too warm nutrients.

Now, if you use reverse osmosis water, you need to add a small dash of CalMag to your water since coco peat has a strong affinity for calcium, which may or may not result in a calcium deficiency in your plants. If you have exceptionally hard water, you probably won’t need to add any calcium supplements to your diet because hard water is already high in calcium. This is the method suggested using: half a teaspoon or less of Epsom Salts every other time you produce a nutrition solution.

Before you go:

Thanks for making it this far. We are Coco Coir Global, a coco peat manufacturer from Vietnam that produces and provides coco-bases growing products that ships globally. Come, take a look around our website, see if there is anything that might pique your interest.

Good luck growing!