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Post by paulf on Sept 16, 2016 10:00:04 GMT -5
after years of struggling with peppers, they are doing something unusual....turning colors as they ripen. I have fiddled with start times, growing practices and varieties to get ripe peppers here in southern Nebraska where I get told the growing season is too short for anything but green peppers. I get loads of those at the tail end of the season. This year some are already turning. In the photo are Giant Aconcagua, the long light greens and Orange Bell and Frank's Sweet. Now if frost hold off for a while the others will turn.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Sept 17, 2016 15:33:05 GMT -5
You've had some hot weather lately, right? I bet that helped a lot.
Congratulations!
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Finally
Sept 17, 2016 20:45:13 GMT -5
Post by paquebot on Sept 17, 2016 20:45:13 GMT -5
Biggest problem that most have is over-feeding. In poor soil, I've seen Giant Marconi produce 8" fruit on a 15" plant. I planted both sweet and hot in two locations this year. Home garden is way too rich and most peppers are a mass of foliage. Field garden was an unknown for fertility and got only some municipal compost. They are shorter plants but just one Margaret produced 12 sweet red peppers. On the flip side, Carolina Reaper in the field have not ripened anything. Same ones are home are in 10-gallon tree pots with mostly old horse manure and many red fruit.
Martin
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Finally
Sept 18, 2016 5:03:56 GMT -5
Post by daylilydude on Sept 18, 2016 5:03:56 GMT -5
paulf, I was gonna ask if you think you would have better luck with peppers by putting them in pots?
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Finally
Sept 18, 2016 9:07:38 GMT -5
Post by paulf on Sept 18, 2016 9:07:38 GMT -5
Paquebot and daylilydude: Interesting statements and questions. I have never really considered growing regular peppers in pots. I did grow decorative peppers in a pot for my wife and they really have done well. Actually it is two plants in one 5 gallon pot. Easter Egg and Black Pearl. They are both about three years old since we bring the pot inside over the winter. I also have potted an ultra-hot variety to give a daughter-in-law to grow.
Other than general soil fertility for the entire garden gauged by periodic soil tests, none of my plants get added nutrients during the growing season. I am an advocate in all of the gardening presentations I give that no extra fertilizer be added. Mostly this is because my focus is on tomatoes. If extra plant food needs to be provided my suggestion is for low N and higher P and K. But still I have been working for ten years to increase the general soil health in the garden. If it has become too fertile for good pepper growth, next year out come the big pots and I will give it a go.
In the past, I have tried tomatoes, specifically Dwarfs, in pots with little success. The plants were smaller but so was the fruit and production. All tomatoes are grown in ground for that reason. This year as always, the peppers are loaded with fruit. It is just most are staying green. I would love to have them all be as colorful as the photos in the catalogs.
Hot peppers grow very well for me and ripen nicely. Sweet peppers that I like better have not ripened except for this year. There are some turning and I love it.
So the saga continues. We will figure it out; I just hope I have enough years left.
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Finally
Sept 19, 2016 0:30:05 GMT -5
Post by paquebot on Sept 19, 2016 0:30:05 GMT -5
Another thing to mention is something that you should know and that is time. For sweet peppers, it's generally 21 days from green-ripe to red-ripe. I have grown probably 20 different sweet peppers over the years and have yet to find one that did not eventually produce a red fruit. Just took time.
The pot thing is definitely something to look into. I also have a hot Serre Demre in a 7-S pot and it's loaded. For both that one and the Carolina Reapers, there are drain holes in the bottom of the pots and the tap roots can escape. Those deep roots are mostly for water so it doesn't matter what condition the soil is under them as long as there is water to be found.
The 7-S pots have also proved well for most of the dwarf tomatoes. Grew 22 of them last year and all went into pots with 2 plants each. The pots were actually set several inches into the existing soil. Medium used was pure horse manure compost of 5 or 6 years. That was it for nutrients since the existing soil was community garden junk. What was in the pots was most important since that's where the feeder roots are. Same situation this year but less varieties.
Martin
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Finally
Sept 19, 2016 9:51:32 GMT -5
Post by september on Sept 19, 2016 9:51:32 GMT -5
Martin, what is a 7-S pot? I assume the 7 is 7 gallon, but what is the -S for? Thanks!
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Finally
Sept 19, 2016 13:51:59 GMT -5
Post by paulf on Sept 19, 2016 13:51:59 GMT -5
Perhaps it is a 7 gallon Series pot. 7 gallons pots come in different shapes, materials and thicknesses. Is this correct Martin?
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Post by paquebot on Sept 19, 2016 22:17:56 GMT -5
7-S is a 7-gallon squat nursery pot. They are "squat" because they are as wide as tall. These are 14" wide and 14" high. We found a place last year where we could get 25 for less than $100 which included shipping. They are deep enough so there is room for feeder roots which are within the first foot.
Martin
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