Germination temperature
Best 21-29 °C (70-85 °F); minimum about 16 °C (60 °F), maximum 35 °C (95 °F).
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Sweet or bell peppers are slow, warmth-loving plants. Start the seed in warm trays, grow strong seedlings for about six weeks and plant them out into rich, well-drained soil once nights are mild.
Best 21-29 °C (70-85 °F); minimum about 16 °C (60 °F), maximum 35 °C (95 °F).
About 6 mm (1/4 in).
About 6 days in warm, covered trays; longer in cool compost.
Not needed to germinate; bright light as soon as seedlings appear.
None needed.
Transplant 40-45-day-old seedlings.
Sow fresh, dry seed straight from the packet. Farms in Tamil Nadu treat seed with a fungicide before nursery sowing; home growers get the same protection from clean trays and a fresh, sterile seed mix.
Not needed. Pepper seed has a thin coat and takes up water easily.
Not needed. Cold treatment slows pepper seed rather than helping it.
Not needed. Warmth is what speeds germination; a heat mat or warm room does far more than soaking.
Keep the mix at 21-29 °C (70-85 °F). Below about 16 °C (60 °F) seed barely germinates. A heated propagator or heat mat helps in cool weather; in Indian summers simply keep trays shaded from direct sun.
About 6 mm (1/4 in), one seed per cell or in lines 2.5 cm (1 in) apart across a nursery bed.
Sterile seed mix or cocopeat in trays. For field nurseries TNAU uses raised beds 1 m wide; outdoors choose well-drained loam rich in organic matter.
Keep evenly moist, never soggy. Cover trays with plastic until seedlings emerge, then water gently with a fine rose.
Germination happens in the dark. Once seedlings are up, move them into bright light at 16-18 °C (60-64 °F) so they stay short and sturdy.
In TNAU protrays kept under polythene, seedlings come up in about 6 days. Cool compost can take much longer.
When seedlings have two true leaves, move each into its own 7.5-9 cm (3-3.5 in) pot, or space them 5-7.5 cm (2-3 in) apart in flats.
Plant out at 40-45 days (about eight weeks) after hardening off for one to two weeks. Wait until nights stay above 10 °C (50 °F). Space plants 30 cm (12 in) apart on ridges 45-60 cm (18-24 in) apart, or 45 cm (18 in) apart in garden rows 75-90 cm (30-36 in) apart.
Water weekly or more often in hot weather. Weed and earth up around the stems about 30 days after planting, and tie each plant to a sturdy cane before fruit sets.
Cause: compost too cool. Fix: keep it at 21-29 °C (70-85 °F) with a heat mat or a warm spot, and use fresh seed mix.
Cause: dry compost, temperatures above 30 °C (86 °F) or hot nights. Fix: keep soil evenly moist; in India grow the main crop in the cooler months.
Cause: blossom end rot, linked to uneven soil moisture. Fix: water regularly and mulch; affected fruit can be cut away and the plant keeps cropping.
Cause: aphids, red spider mite or whitefly, worst in dry or covered conditions. Fix: check shoot tips and leaf undersides weekly and raise seedlings under insect-proof net.
Cause: powdery mildew, dieback and fruit rot, which TNAU lists for capsicum. Fix: remove affected parts, avoid wetting foliage and follow local extension spray advice.
In temperate climates start seed indoors about eight weeks before the last frost. On the Indian plains TNAU sows from September to February and lists Arka Basant, Arka Gaurav and Arka Mohini among suitable varieties.
Work in plenty of well-rotted manure before planting. In pots, feed weekly with a high-potassium liquid fertiliser once flowering starts.
Pick when fruits are full-sized and glossy. Left on the plant they turn red, yellow, orange or purple and get sweeter, but fewer new fruits form.
Clip fruits off with sharp shears to avoid breaking branches. Picked peppers keep about a week in the refrigerator.
Start sweet pepper seeds in warm trays for strong seedlings and a long picking season.
The compost is almost always too cool. Pepper seed needs 21-29 °C (70-85 °F); at that warmth seedlings usually appear within about a week.
Yes. Use a large pot of rich compost, stake the plant, water so the compost stays evenly moist and feed weekly with a high-potassium fertiliser once it flowers.
Usually not. Most green peppers simply ripen to red, yellow or orange on the plant; ripe fruit is sweeter, while picking green keeps the plant producing.