Growing Capsicums (aka peppers or bell peppers)
Capsicums and chilies belong to the same family. October to January are the best months for growing capsicums in New Zealand. The most important factor is warmth – they do best with soil temperatures above 15 deg C. There are lots of different colours – yellow, orange, chocolate as well as green and red. They all start off green and then change colour as they ripen.
Growing Capsicums
Conditions
I recommend buying four seedlings for each self-watering GreenSmart pot. Choose plants that have got good strong stems then remove the plants from pots and soak in a bucket of water for a couple of hours. Add some seaweed fertiliser to the water. Ensure that you prepare the GreenSmart planter with a good rich mix of potting mix and fertilisers like sheep pellets, Yates Dynamic Lifter, worm poo, well-rotted horse manure. Bury the plants up to the level of the lower leaves. The plants will grow up to about 50 cm in height so push some stakes into the soil when you plant out the seedlings.
As the growing capsicums get taller, tie them onto the stakes as capsicums don’t like windy conditions. Ideally, position the pot against a north facing wall. If you have got a hot house, then start the growing capsicums in the hot house and shift them outdoors when the weather is consistently warm.
Capsicums like well drained soils so are ideal for growing in GreenSmart self-watering planters.
Fertilisers for Growing Capsicums
When the plants begin to form flowers, add additional liquid fertilisers into the water reservoir every two weeks. Eg worm wee, seaweed concentrate, comfrey tea.
If your plants develop plenty of foliage but not many capsicums, it is a sign of too much nitrogen.
Use diluted (1: 200) seaweed concentrate as a foliar spray.
It is available on our website here >
Pests and Diseases
Generally, capsicums don’t attract many diseases. Blossom end rot is indicative of a calcium shortage (either not enough in the soil or not being transported into the plants). It is also caused by inconsistent watering.The continuous self-watering process helps avoid this problem.
Companion Plants
Basil, parsley and tomato plants
Harvesting
Green capsicums have got a sharper tangy flavour. As they develop more red/yellow colours the flavour mellows and sweetens. Cut the capsicums off, rather than breaking them from the plant.
Happy gardening – it’s good to grow,
Bill.
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