BELLS AND EGGPLANT QUESTIONS 101

Yup - what the girls said! Definitely look like they are happy. I wanted to plant someout this weekend and it rained all weekend again! I have never seen so much rain in Phoenix in all my life - lol. Not used to the wet weather. You all get snow - we get hammered with rain!

My main advise is don't plant out too early. Peppers like hot weather. I've always been told to wait until the nighttime temp. is at least 50-55* any cooler can disrupt the plant growth and its root system.
Lisa

Yeah, Lise, I just read that and made up my mind to keep them inside until the temps do their thing.

Which means I've got to start raising the fluorescent light shelves with some blocks, 'cause the peppers are growing at the rate of almost 3/8" overnight!

I'm having to raise the lights every evening when I get home and, I've run out of chain!

The other thing you have to be careful about is when it's scorching hot. They tend to get sunburned, so you will need to find some shade cloth or grow them behind something taller that can provide shade.

This year, I'm either going to grow them behind my tomatoes, okra, or pole beans.

lisa - exactly right. They will sit and sulk if it is too cool. Better off leaving them inside - lol. We get the best production in the fall here in the desert. They limp through the summer (even under the shade cloth) and give some good fruits, but really explode in the fall. I think it was Christmas time when I pulled my plants from last year. Had they been impressive varieties I would have kept them through the winter as peppers are perennial here, but wanted to make way for some new varieties.

We use a 40% Aluminet shade cloth. Here's a couple of pics when we first put the cloth up last year...

Close up - this stuff is not cheap but is excellent, especially here in the desert.

Kelly,
Everytime I look at the small boxes on the end of your bed, I think, "I could stack cinder blocks and grow something tall in the holes!"

And the fact that they'd get really warm makes me think that something oughta be okra! I could start my seedling and just train it up through. Instant trellis, too! Hmmmmmmmmm...

KELLY! Whats that tall plant right there in the middle of your picture? Yeah that tallest one, right above the bag of fertalizer/compost/stuff.

I wish I listened to you all about burning the pepper seedlings by leaving them out too long in the sun, I thought my plants were immune to the burning effects of the sun but now I know better. Anyways now I am going to try to grow my first eggplant tonight ok. If it grows you all send me some recipes for the old lady to cook them up...

Hi RATFOOD - it's corn - lol. The ants got more than I did, but it was fun to grow. I really don't have the space to plant in the density needed for good pollination, but 4/square foot gave me decent results. Now to figure out the ant problem. This year I am growing Strawberry Popcorn for the kiddos for fun.

that's weird I have never had problems with sunscald and pepper plants. Do you guys mean when they are seedlings or in the garden when they were mature plants?

Somebody answer that sunscald question, please! Ya'll have seen my peppers, and I don't wanna mess 'em up!

My plants themselves were ok, but some of the fruits that were exposed (ie: not covered by leaves) had sunburn spots on them. They were fine if you cut that part off;o)

Someone had good pics of it last summer - I think stephanietx???

My pepper seedlings all have burnt leaves because I didn't believe in hardening them off. The first time I put them outside was when they were about 2-3" tall and I left them out in the ferocious sun all day/that night/and most of the next sunny day.. I thought peppers loved hot sun, (like Pink sings: "Who knew?.....") Now I know that baby plants grown indoors are fragile little things that need to be slowly hardened off to protect them from our blazing brilliant star....

Thanks for the critical info!

Oh yes sorry about the confusing sun scald info, the medium and larger pepper plants ALL faired very well in our scalding 2009 heat wave. I was only talking about the babies with the heat stroke.

During the heat wave: My best habanero sort of went into hibernation during the extended 100 deg weather string. When the extreme heat wave finally ended (It was well over a month wasn't it?) that plant put out like a you know what. I never knew one habanero plant could have so many peppers on it at one time, it looked like a decorated xmas tree. The serrano's and banana peppers put out all through the heat. The jalapenos were a little here-and-there. The ones I didn't pick soon enough got purple/brown burn spots on them but the taste/heat didn't suffer, they were all still very delicious.... Purple beauty had fruit the whole time but I never picked it because I was eating all the serranos instead. Cukes didn't die but the spider mites had their way with them. Maters were disappointing to say the least. I have a feeling with this cooler weather we are all going to have bumper crops this year. Cheers folks....

Thanks for the clarification Ratty!

I noticed one pepper had some yellowing of the leaves this morning. I've been giving them a watering of MG and Epsom Salts once a week, and I'm overdue. Had to raise the light shelf under two blocks cause I ran outta chain. They keep growing overnight. They were a little wilty, but I'm attributing that to how tall they are. The stems are fattening up, but they're still top heavy for the stems.

And to think I have to keep them in at least another 2-3 weeks! They'll be trees by the time they get planted out! But, hopefully, they'll be NICE trees!

Linda

Linda - do you have any kind of air blowing on them? A small breeze from a fan will help to strengthen the stems!

Kelly,
You know, you need to stay outta my mind! It's unnerving! (SMILE, SMILE, SMILE)

I was standing there staring yesterday evening, thinking, "Hmmmmm, there's no real air circulating in this space, and I might need to hook up the fan to blow a breeze on these peppers, to keep the air circulating and make them stand up to some wind..."

GREAT MINDS DO THINK ALIKE!

Hugs!

LOL - it's those breeze vibes I've been sending your way. Finally made it to Texas! Whew!

Girl,
The only breeze I want right now is a one COOL enuf to bring the rest of my cabbages in! The temps are starting to fluctuate too much and the fruitlife is getting confused!!!

A thought dear Linda, I just checked the weather and we are about to have a nice warm streak. You might think about planting out with a milk jug covering it to keep it nice and toasty. Something like Ws'ing, just cut the bottom and the top of the top off the jug. So you have a 2 inch or so hole at the top. I'm having a serious think about doing this myself with the cucumber seedlings that are up.

Thanks, Sapphirestar19.

That's a great idea! Most of them will be going to other growers, but I was kinda leaning toward all the sunshine ahead. And, since I'll be planting out in my eBuckets, I can protect them with a cloche. I'm thinking along the lines of a 2 liter bottle.

QUESTION: For the final move, do I plant them out at the same depth or just a LITTLE bit deeper than they are now?

Thanks!

Glad to hear there is some warmth headed our way.

Well Linda, I have about 13 Big Berthas and 10 California Wonders under lights, but they seem to be "stuck" at < 2". I put them under lights about 2 weeks ago. They look pretty healthy, so I dunno...sigh.

During the heat of the summer, some of the fruits on my bell peppers got scalded. :( After the heat of the summer, everything was fine.

John,
How high are your lights, and are you feeding them? Also, how are you watering them?

My lights are staying no further than 1" from the tops, and I'm feeding them with a solution of MG and Epsom salts, roughly once every 7-8 days. All the cups are sitting in drip trays. I bottom water/feed by filling until there's about 1" of water around the bottom of the cups. Then, after a coupla hours, I pour off any excess. I gave them plain water in between the last feeding. I'll feed them again tomorrow night...

What kinda lights you using? I've got regular old fluorescent shop lights. No special bulbs.

Stopped by Lowe's and bought some MG...thanks, Linda. I thought the potting soil would be good enough for the seedlings but I've been neglecting them apparently. That reminds me, where are my kids?? I'll be back later...

This message was edited Mar 3, 2010 8:33 PM

John,
Those bells can EAT!

Hi Gymgirl,

RE: "...and I'm feeding them with a solution of MG and Epsom salts, roughly once every 7-8 days."

What does "MG" stand for ..??... Miracle Grow?

Thanks for starting this thread -- an interesting read. I feel like I'm way behind getting ready for spring planting after reading about all your seedling activities. However we're still having some pretty cold weather up here in N. Texas...but I hope to get going on some of my plantings too. I really want to grow some of those small, sweet peppers that you can buy in Costco. Not even sure what they're called, but we sure like them.

Jann

Jann ~ look for either a pimento pepper or a sweet red cherry pepper. I had good success with both last summer. http://www.growingpeppers.org/uncategorized/types-of-sweet-peppers



This message was edited Mar 5, 2010 7:29 AM

Needed to add ~ I was given Wonder bell pepper seed last season. They had crossed with a hot pepper and were a disappointment although delivered a large amount. On the other hand, the sweet & pimentos did well. They are smaller but I even used them as we would bells for eating/cooking. I brined some as pickled and they turned out well too. A good choice for me...

Jannz2,

MG = Miracle Grow!

Don't wait for the weather! Winter Sow your seeds in milk jugs NOW! You'll be ahead of the season (or, at least right on time!)

Don't wait -- PARTICIPATE!

And, since my bells are growing at (what I consider to be) an alarming rate, I'm seriously considering moving them outside this weekend under a HOOP HOUSE! Duh, I have all the components laying around. Just need to get the 4-6 plastic and I'm in business with some sunshine.

I'm gonna go find some Sterilite Underbed storage boxes and put all the cups in that with holes in the lid and in the bottom. Just sit em on my empty raised bed for a minute and cover it over with the plastic. It that's not enough heat for those bells, well, shoot!

Our night temps are slowly creeping upward to the 50s which is my recommended target temp to set out the bells anyway. Our daytime temps are moving into the low 60s. I think I can force this issue with the daytime heat buildup from the hoop house. What'd ya'll think on this idea?

LMK so our science experiment will get an "A+" for the season!

Does anything think that the small reds/oranges/yellow bells that Jannz2 is talking about at Sam's/Costo would come true from those seeds? I did read somewhere here that another DGer was successfully growing them (rather prolifically, too) from the saved seeds. It's certainly worth a try to grab a bag and harvest and plant the seeds!

Go for it, Jannz2!

Linda

Linda, your idea using the sterilite containers will probably work, just be sure to vent it well during the day. Temps under plastic can reach 90-100 quickly in sunshine.

I think I saw those peppers on a seed website that only offered heirlooms. If that's the case, they are open polinated and will come true.

Thanks, Ms. Robin,
I'll drill enough holes in the lid and the bottom for good air circulation. The container is more for the convenience of protecting them during the day, and transporting them at night, if necessary.

Actually, I'll be able to just throw a couple blankets over the entire container at night if the temps dip!

How cool is that? (Pun intended!)

Linda

I'm jealous reading about all of you southerns having seedlings ready to go out as soon as the weather settles. I was pretty ambitious and started mine way too early for my zone. Still have 6-8 weeks to go. These will all get moved from the house to a heated greenhouse in a couple of weeks though, so for now, I'm babying these along. I'm attempting to get extra early tomatoes and peppers.

MsRobin,
How cold is it out now? Couldn't you WS the tomatos outside like we did? Why the need to go to the greenhouse?

It's 47 now, but was 22 this morning. I did WS flowers. I just want extra early tomatoes and peppers for my market garden.

Linda - we have rain coming again on Sunday and a cool day. I think my window of opportunity has just presented itself to get my babies out into the garden. They are hardened off and chomping at the bit. Steady warm up starting next week. If I wait it may be too warm and more chance of transplant shock. We don't get many cool days from here on out until about, oh, October - lol.

On a side note - do y'all know anyone in/near San Antonio who might be willing to do me a huge favor?

I was thinking about planting my eggplant next week sometime, as we are still getting chilly mornings and evenings here in this part of FL. My greenhouse blew away and the handyman I hired to build me another took the money and ran, so, since I have 46 tomato plants I don't have the lighting or the protection to plant out too early.
joy

Kelly,
Contact BigBubbles! She's good people!

Thanks Linda... I posted over on the Texas Gardening Forum. I'll check her out!