How to Grow Bell Peppers

by Vidura Randeepa

3 Materials

1 Hour

Easy

Site Selection

Peppers thrive when temperatures are warm. Ideal temperatures are 70F to 80F during the day and 60F to 70 F at night. Before plant peppers outdoors, it’s important to be absolutely certain that the chance of frost is long gone. A frost will either inhibit pepper growth, kill the plants altogether, or leaving you with bare plants. Pepper plants should be placed in the soil 46-60 cm. These plants will enjoy being planted near your tomato plants. The soil should be well-drained and amended before you put them into the ground.

Planting

Plant seeds about 1⁄4-inch deep. Even though peppers can tolerate slightly alkaline conditions near 7.5 they grow best in soil with a pH between 6.2 and 7.0. For in-ground gardens, mix several inches of compost Soil in with the top layer of the existing soil. A lavish amount of organic matter helps the soil retain moisture.

To encourage branching, pinch out the growing tips when plants are about 20cm tall, which should lead to more fruit.

Harvesting

As the branches of peppers are often brittle be careful when breaking the peppers from the plants. You can use a sharp knife, hand clippers, scissors, or pruners can be used to cut peppers from the plant to avoid excessive stem breakage.