How to grow chili peppers at home: care features

Hot chili peppers are a great addition to a variety of dishes. The name, by the way, is not related to the country of the same name, but comes from the Aztec word for red.

Chili peppers are sometimes confused with black peppercorns, but they are completely different cultures. OBOZ.UA figured out how to grow this spicy red crop at home.

When to start planting

Sowing seeds for seedlings can begin in February-March or even in January-February in regions with a warm climate.

Planting in the open ground takes place during the budding period, when the average daily temperature rises to +15 +17 ℃. The soil should be light and permeable.

How to water the pepper

Chili peppers need abundant and frequent watering, especially during flowering and fruiting. So make sure that the soil in the garden does not dry out, otherwise you can't expect a good harvest. In the summer heat, you will need daily watering, and in drought, you will even have to water the beds twice a day.

How to fertilize peppers

At the beginning of the growing season, fertilizers containing phosphorus and magnesium should be applied to the soil. During fruit ripening, the amount of nitrogen should be reduced.

How to plant peppers

You can purchase a ready-made soil mixture, or you can prepare it yourself by mixing non-acidic high-moor peat, humus, and river sand in equal proportions.

The seeds should be prepared for planting: dip them in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for 30 minutes, wrap them in a damp cloth and wait at a temperature of 25 ℃ until they begin to hatch.

Then the seeds with sprouts should be placed in moist soil to a depth of 5-10 mm. The distance between them should be at least 5 cm.

It is best to sow the seeds in peat pots or ordinary containers, which should then be covered with foil or glass until germination.

When to plant in the ground

At the stage of formation of the first buds in seedlings, you can plant peppers in open beds. Make sure that the average daily temperature is set at 15-17 ℃.

On the bed, you need to make holes at a distance of 30-40 cm with row spacing of 60 cm. Peppers are also planted in a nesting method, according to the 50x50 cm scheme - in this case, two seedlings should be placed in one hole. The depth should be such that the seedling sinks into it to the root neck.

Additionally, you can put one tablespoon of mineral fertilizer in each hole and mix it thoroughly with the soil. Then carefully remove the seedling with the earthen lump from the pot and transplant it into the garden. The last step is mulching. Mulch the peppers with peat and tie the bushes to supports if necessary.

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