As you can see from the photo on the right...it is very possible to grow award winning peppers. The one on the right weighed close to several pounds...and was nearly six inches across.
How did we do this? The answer is very simple.
Pay strict attention to the science. If you own an automobile, chances are you have a manual. Chances also are that you have read at least a couple pages of the manual, to learn how to change the oil etc. The point is, you took the time to understand the basics. With peppers, the same is also true. You need to take time to understand the basics.
We won't go into the details of the science of growing peppers here, since the web is already chock full of great information, but we will talk about a few things we have learned that we don't mind sharing, to help you build your own philosophy and planting guidelines.
Step one, get on the net, and read, read, read. What's the tip here? Read, and compile. Test what you read against what you believe, and be prepared to try new things. The internet will tell you what has been generally believed to be good basic nutritional information and planting guidelines for peppers, so take these numbers and use them to gain a solid working knowledge.
Step two, get a soil test! You have to know where you are starting from, what your foundational analysis is so you know what to do, how to plan and move forward. If you don't, it's absolutely the same thing as going to the doctor and asking for medication "because it hurts". He could give you medication, but it would be far, far more effective if you would tell him exactly what DID hurt, how long, etc. Then, he could prescribe something that you would know is targeted to your need. The same philosophy applies for fertilizers...if you don't know what you need, how can you possibly add anything and hope for it to be right?
Step three, study available hybrids. Every winter I have a great time poring over seed catalogs photographs...I am looking for certain traits in the photos, and have decent working knowledge of our local climate and soils, so both of these help me to take educated guesses on the types of hybrids to grow. Stokes Seeds, Burpee, and Reimer are some examples of seed companies with some very interesting offerings. Also, don't hesitate to call them and talk to their experts...tell them about your soil type, climate, and previous experience and let them make some recommendations.
Step four, learn about the idiosyncracies of peppers.
They can be difficult to germinate, are susceptible to bacterial soft rot (you gotta learn about this on the net), they need lots of breathing room, and wow are they heavy feeders, especially if you have heavy fruit set.
Step five, you must learn when you need to feed what. Huh? Well, for example, if you know that the plant needs a certain amount of nitrogen in the first 4 weeks of growth, you need to make certain that that is when you feed it. Also, for example, at fruit set, what nutrients will the pepper need? Guaranteed when you're feeding kids, you need a lot more of a lot of different stuff than when they're not around...so learn about the life cycle and nutrient needs.
In summary, become your own expert. Ask questions...in fact you can do so on our new blog. Click the Farm Blog tab at the top of the page, I'll do my best to answer!
Happy Gardening!
MILLION DOLLAR PEPPERS
