Pepper is not without reason called the champion of vitamin C - it actually contains several times more of this element than even lemon, and it is also a source of iodine, calcium, magnesium and other substances. But growing it is not easy! This tropical crop is extremely thermophilic, capricious and difficult to pollinate. And the most delicate moment is planting pepper seedlings in the greenhouse, on which the entire future harvest depends. Let's take a closer look - and you can handle any variety!
Such familiar sweet and bitter peppers came to us from the American tropics, and therefore are still distinguished by increased requirements for heat, humidity and soil fertility. This - perennial, which is capable of producing full harvests for quite a long time, but in our region it is customary to plant it as an annual. And from the very time the seedlings are planted, it needs to create almost natural conditions.
We grow healthy and strong seedlings
It is better to start sowing peppers in mid-February. To grow seedlings separately, use purchased soil such as “Malyshok” or “Living Earth”. And then do everything according to the instructions:
- Step 1. Pour soil into containers at a height of 6-7 cm, make shallow grooves, and opposite make small signs with the names of the varieties.
- Step 2. Water the furrows with boiling water and begin sowing. To do this, make a distance of up to 2 cm in the rows between the seeds, and 4-5 cm between the rows themselves.
- Step 3. Moisten the spread seeds with water from a spray bottle and sprinkle 1 cm of soil. Spray the soil again and cover the container with a lid.
- Step 4. Place the container on the battery for 2-3 hours.
- Step 5. Now we move it to a warm place (26-28°C) and wait for the first shoots.
As soon as the first shoots appear, we move the container with the plants to the windowsill or to the greenhouse vestibule. It is now advisable to also use special supplementary lighting - phytolamps. Maintain a distance of about 15 cm from the lamp to the seedlings, and turn it on from 8.00 to 23.00. During the day, the air temperature near the seedlings should be within 20-22°C, and at night – 18-20°C.
During this period, beware of a common disease of pepper seedlings - black leg. Just follow these rules: do not over-moisten the soil, at the first shoots immediately transfer the seedlings to the sun, and on the same day reduce the temperature from 28°C to 20°C. And as the plants grow, water them between the rows. Water the peppers as the soil dries out.
To avoid getting elongated and pale seedlings, make sure that there is not enough light in the heat. After all, it is precisely because of this that plants stretch out - to increase their own skin area, which traps ultraviolet rays. Therefore, if the air near your seedlings reaches 25°C, then the illumination should be maximum, and you cannot do without special additional lighting.
But if there is none, then urgently lower the temperature to 18-20°C, which, of course, will slow down the growth of seedlings, but will not allow it to become pale and long, like spider legs. Although the pepper seedlings themselves, unlike tomato seedlings, are not too prone to stretching, and yet.
As soon as the seedlings grow, they will need to be pruned. An hour before this process, water the plants. For picking, use a teaspoon, carefully separating a row of peppers of the same type with the flat side. Try to injure the roots as little as possible.
Pour soil into a new container so that it is a little less than half, and lower the plant there. Next, fill the sides with soil up to the cotyledons, slightly squeezing the trunk. Now water also along the edges of the container, but for the first couple of days do not give water at all - this will allow the peppers to develop good root system.
And the root system is best developed in seedlings grown in 500-gram seedling pots and in peat tablets:
Preparing greenhouse beds for peppers
Because Greenhouse pepper is quite weak in terms of various diseases and pests; it is better to disinfect the soil for the beds in advance, and at the same time – the weed seeds. And prepare it correctly, in compliance with all the rules.
Disinfecting soil for garden beds
Here's what to do:
- Step 1. Defrost the soil and warm it to room temperature.
- Step 2. Remove all baking sheets from the oven and place them on the bottom oven grill, and on top - a bucket with soil, closed with a lid.
- Step 3. Turn on the oven at 90°C. Overnight, all living things in the soil will die, but the organic matter will remain.
- Step 4. In the morning, turn off the oven and open the cabinet door.
If plants in your greenhouse often get sick, also water the holes themselves before planting pepper seedlings with a pink solution of potassium permanganate.
And if the situation with diseases and pests is completely deplorable, then use it for growing peppers in a greenhouse modern method hydroponics:
Adjusting the pH level
But what peppers don’t like is acidic soil - be sure to check the pH before planting, because greenhouse soil can change greatly over the years. A typical situation: they took one substrate, checked it, the peppers grew and pleased the harvest for several years, and then - that’s it - they don’t grow and get sick.
And many people don’t even imagine what this could be connected with, because the varieties are the same, and the agricultural technology is unchanged, but in reality it’s such a subtlety. If you suspect that your soil is acidic, apply it as fertilizer. dolomite flour.
Fertilize with useful microelements
Additionally, add complex fertilizers to such beds - nitroammofoska or nitrophoska, or Kemira. If you are a follower natural fertilizers, then use rotted manure - fertilizer No. 1 for pepper, which is especially responsive to organic matter.
It is only important to distribute the fertilizer as evenly as possible over the surface of the earth and then carefully mix the soil with fertilizers and dolomite flour. But, if the stored organic matter for all this turned out to be not enough, then you can safely add it directly to the holes.
In addition, organic matter for pepper is good because it saturates the soil with beneficial active bacteria, which are released into the air carbon dioxide, which in turn is very important. Ordinary wood ash is also ideal for pepper as a fertilizer.
If your greenhouse peppers were not sick last year, then you can take compost from warm beds after harvesting as fertilizer for planting seedlings in the new season. And an excellent fertilizer.
Warming the soil before planting
Loosen the soil in the beds well and water it hot water. This way you can at least somehow imitate soil from the humid American tropics that is close to the nature of pepper. And, once in their native places, the pepper will begin to grow actively, and the hotter it is, the more active the stem will be forced.
Separately for the peppers, you can prepare a warm bed by laying manure or dry grass to a depth of 20-30 cm in the beds. And in addition, so that the peppers do not fry during the day and do not get cold at night, you can bury the following unusual heat accumulators in the ground:
Marking out pepper plantings: two rows or three?
To plant peppers in a greenhouse, make the following beds: width 80 cm, and row spacing - 30-40 cm. You can plant peppers in two or three rows - as long as it is convenient for you.
In general, how far apart from each other and according to what pattern to plant peppers in a greenhouse directly depends on whether the bushes will be short or tall. Thus, it is better to plant the “Winnie the Pooh” variety closer to the walls of the structure, where there is more light and taller varieties cannot be blocked from the sun’s rays. But plant such medium-growing ones as “Loyalty”, “Medal” and “Tenderness” right behind the short ones. And only closer to the middle - tall ones.
When planting only tall varieties, we make the bed in two rows - so that there is 40-50 cm between the plants. Moreover, try to dig the holes themselves deeper, because Such lumps will need a lot of nutrition, and therefore the root will grow large. Also increase the amount of compost and rotted manure - 1/3 of a bucket per hole.
For medium-growing varieties, make two rows. And finally, if you are planting only low-growing, early-ripening varieties, then make three rows with a spacing of 20-25 cm.
It’s even easier to regulate the distance between plants if you plant them not in beds, but in pots:
Planting seedlings: step by step
Pepper seedlings are planted in a greenhouse at the age of 60 to 80 days, depending on what variety you took and how skillfully you prepared the greenhouse.
If you plan to plant peppers in the greenhouse a little earlier than usual, and the temperature drops to 10°C, then heat-loving peppers will immediately delay their development by 10-15 days. This is unpleasant, but the seedlings will not die. In this case, you simply run the risk of being seriously late with the harvest date, and therefore plant peppers in the greenhouse only when the period of short-term frosts in your region has already passed, or you have thought reliable protection from them:
When planting in a greenhouse, do not bury pepper seedlings - after all, you have already done this when picking. Dig holes on the bayonet of a shovel; this is the most optimal depth for planting seedlings. Try not to plant seedlings in hot weather, and if you have to for some reason, then shade them.
Also, there is no need to pinch the top of the pepper seedlings, but the so-called crown flower in the first fork of the stem must be removed, otherwise the further development of the ovaries will be inhibited.
We create comfortable conditions
The most convenient way to shade and protect planted pepper seedlings in a greenhouse is with modern covering materials. Moreover, mini-arcs are not necessary under them - the materials are so light that they will not damage delicate plants. Just throw on the same lutrasil or spunbond like a shawl.
Modern covering material for beds will also warm the soil on cold nights:
You can feed the planted seedlings with both organic and mineral fertilizers:
- Organic: Soak 1 part mullein in 4 parts water for a week, then add another 4 parts, mix and add to the planted peppers.
- Mineral: for ten liters of water we take 10 g of ammonium nitrate, 10 g of potassium sulfate, 20 g of calcium nitrate and 30 g of double superphosphate.
Alternate such feedings every 10-15 days, and in the end you will get a wonderful harvest!
Problems after planting seedlings
So, you planted the seedlings on permanent place, and only pleasant chores for caring for juicy vegetables. But what is this: the ovaries have turned strangely yellow, some plants are beginning to wither, and something small is swarming on the rest! Miss this moment - you may be left without seedlings altogether.
Therefore, let's deal right now with the most annoying and unexpected problems after disembarkation. The thing is that any transplant for seedlings is a significant stress, not to mention accidentally damaged roots and a sudden change in microclimate.
- For example, if the cotyledons began to turn yellow, this is a sure sign that the seedlings clearly do not have enough nutrition. A simple solution is to feed it with the “Ideal” universal fertilizer and increase watering.
- If you have become coarse, the stems are “stiff”– this is the influence of temperature changes and certain errors in watering and fertilizing. But what threatens the fact that the stem seems to have become stronger? Is it bad? Of course it’s bad: while the pepper grows, its stem will always thicken a little, each time adapting to new weight bush. But now it won’t be able to thicken normally, because... woody. As a result, when expanding, the stem will simply crack, which is already fraught with various diseases and the risk of breaking the bush. Moreover, such a trunk does not allow food and moisture to rise well, as a result of which the yield also suffers.
- Greenhouse peppers are afraid of root rot. That’s why you can’t pick it like an ordinary vegetable, at the stage of two true leaves - because this plant will immediately stop growing, begin to wither and quickly succumb to a fungal infection.
That is why it is so important when growing and planting pepper seedlings in a greenhouse to provide it with a constant, even microclimate without any stress or unexpected conditions.
Growing peppers in greenhouses allows you to get a harvest earlier than in garden beds open ground or continue their growing season even after the autumn cold has arrived. Greenhouses make it possible to grow this heat-loving crop even where the climate is unfavorable, for example, in Siberia. Let's consider when and how to plant peppers in a polycarbonate greenhouse and how to care for them after planting.
The timing of planting pepper seedlings in a greenhouse may vary. On average, it is planted in mid-May, but you can more accurately determine the time by air temperature. It should not be lower than 10-12°C, but it can be higher. In the central zone, this temperature is established in early to mid-May, in more northern regions - at the beginning of summer. You can plant pepper seedlings in a greenhouse when they are 2 months old.
Preparing the greenhouse and beds for peppers
The best predecessors of this crop in closed ground are cucumbers or greens; after nightshades (tomatoes, eggplants), it is not advisable to plant peppers in a greenhouse, so as not to expose them to the risk of contracting common diseases. It is necessary to wait at least 3 years, as dictated by the rules of crop rotation.
To speed up the warming of greenhouse soil, you can build inside it warm beds. To do this, in the fall, the soil in the greenhouse is removed to a depth of 0.3 m, the bottom layer is laid out from twigs, garden residues, leaves, straw, grass, covered with earth on top and watered. When snow appears, it is brought inside the greenhouse and scattered on the soil.
Ordinary beds, not warm, are dug up and fertilized, introducing organic matter into them - humus (1-2 buckets per square meter) and ash (0.5-1 kg). If the soil is acidic, then chalk, lime, and dolomite flour are added to it. The amount of substances is determined depending on the acidity.
In the spring the soil is leveled. If fertilizers were not applied in the fall, then they do not use organic matter, but mainly mineral fertilizers. Lime, if it was not added in the fall, is added to the soil in the spring at least 2 weeks before planting the seedlings, and preferably a month before.
Planting patterns for bell peppers
In addition to temperature, the growth and development of pepper in greenhouse conditions affects the feeding area. It should be sufficient so that the plants do not experience a lack of nutrients. The planting scheme for a particular variety or hybrid is often recommended by seed producers and indicated on the packaging. The approximate distance between sweet peppers when planted in a greenhouse in a row should be:
- 0.4 m for tall varieties;
- 0.25-0.3 m – for short people.
When planting pepper seedlings in a greenhouse, row spacing should be at least 0.5 m, and preferably 0.7-0.8 m, so that it is convenient to care for the plants.
Place the peppers in small greenhouse 3x6 can be on 2 or 3 beds of 1 m and 0.7 m wide, respectively. When staggered, peppers are planted according to a pattern of 0.25 by 0.25 m or 0.3 by 0.3 m. This way you can save greenhouse space without damaging the plants themselves.
The sequence of planting seedlings step by step
To plant seedlings in a polycarbonate greenhouse, choose a cloudy day, morning or evening - the time when inside comfortable temperature and the plants will not be exposed to direct sunlight. Before planting pepper seedlings in the greenhouse, water it to make it easier to remove the plants from the pots.
Disembarkation sequence:
- In the beds, holes are made with a hoe at a selected distance from one another. Their width and depth should be greater than a lump of earth with plant roots.
- Water the hole.
- If fertilizers were not applied when preparing the soil, then they can be placed in the holes and when planting peppers - 1-2 tbsp. l. nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus or 2-3 handfuls of humus and 1 handful of ash.
- The pepper is buried up to the root neck; there is no need to go lower.
- Sprinkle with earth and compact it a little. Water, spending approximately 1 liter of liquid per hole.
The surface of the ground near the planted bushes is covered with mulching material - straw chaff, hay dust.
Caring for sweet peppers after planting in a greenhouse
Growing peppers in polycarbonate greenhouses involves watering, loosening and fertilizing. Plants need care immediately after planting in the greenhouse.
First of all, newly planted seedlings need water so that they can take root. Therefore, you need to water the plants with small portions of water, but often, so that the soil always remains moist. It is important at this time to use such an amount of water for irrigation so that the soil is not wet, but does not dry out. The water must be separated from chlorine, which pepper does not like. If possible, it is better to use a well or rainwater. It must be warm; cold cannot be used. Humates can be added to it to stimulate plant growth.
Water the plants in the evening or morning so that the peppers can use as much moisture as possible before it begins to evaporate. You can pour water from a hose, watering can, or lay out drip irrigation hoses in the greenhouse and set up the system so as not to water manually.
After each watering, if there is no mulch, the soil around the plants needs to be loosened in order to make it breathable and destroy weed seedlings. It is necessary to loosen carefully, trying not to damage the plants or touch the roots or stem. If, while the seedlings are taking root, it is already quite hot outside, then to protect the plants from overheating, the greenhouse must be frequently ventilated or covered with a special mesh.
Peppers are fed 2 weeks after planting with a solution of saltpeter or slurry. Saltpeter is diluted in the amount of 1 tbsp. l. for 10 liters of water. You can also use potassium nitrate in the same amount. Slurry is prepared by diluting raw materials in a ratio of 1 to 10, that is, 1 kg of farm animal manure is diluted in 10 liters of water. If bird droppings are used, then they take it in a different ratio - 1 kg per 15 or 20 liters.
An herbal infusion is also suitable for the first feeding. It can be prepared from spring plants– young nettles, dandelions, weeds. You need to fill the barrel 1/2 or 2/3 with grass, pour warm water and leave to ferment for about a week.
It will be useful to water the pepper with an iodine solution, which is not only necessary for growth, but also for the prevention of fungal diseases. To water the peppers, prepare an iodine solution in a weak concentration - just take 1-2 drops of pharmaceutical tincture per 1 liter of warm water. You can add 100 ml of whey from sour milk to it.
Yeast infusion is also suitable for the first feeding. It is a source of vitamins and many microelements. They develop the root system of plants and above-ground mass, and also promote the activity of soil microorganisms.
When the peppers take root, which will happen in about 1-1.5 weeks, pegs are placed near the tall ones, to which they will be tied in the future. Representatives of low-growing varieties usually do not need support.
Sweet bell peppers require a lot of attention. If the crop does not receive enough of it, the plant begins to wither. In order to decide how to properly care for sweet bell peppers in a greenhouse, you need to do some research or use the experience of others.
For getting good harvest it is necessary to take into account each stage of pepper development in greenhouse conditions: from planting in the greenhouse to harvesting the crop and seeds.
Follow the scheme for planting pepper seedlings in the ground
- When the seedlings grow to 20-30 cm, the pepper needs to be tied up.
- You definitely need to remove the first flowering, then you have a chance to get large quantity fruits
- When forming a bush, it is necessary to determine its layout. If you choose to form one stem, then you should leave one of the strongest shoots and remove the rest.
- The plant needs constant loosening of the soil: the earth is enriched with oxygen, which the roots readily absorb.
The soil in the greenhouse must be loose
- Regular watering will provide moisture to the entire plant.
- Maintenance is important temperature regime for all varieties of pepper. Optimal temperature when planting, 22°C during the day, and when fruits ripen, 25-27°C.
The temperature in the greenhouse must be kept within acceptable limits
- Lighting affects the speed of plant development: with a lack of lighting, the stems become elongated and the fruits take on an ugly shape.
Important! Use a polycarbonate greenhouse to grow peppers; it does not allow direct passage sun rays, but dissipates them. There will be no burns on the plants.
Pepper differs from all other crops grown in a greenhouse in that it can signal its illness by changing color. Pay attention to this Special attention. If the pepper leaves change color, it means the plant is not doing well.
Pay attention to the leaves of the pepper - you can see the deterioration of the plant’s condition from them.
Never plant seedlings in cold soil (temperature below 14°C): the roots will not take root and the plant will die. The optimal soil temperature for planting pepper seedlings is 15-17°C.
Very often, caring for peppers in a greenhouse is made difficult by insect pests:
- May beetle larvae;
- whitefly;
- thrips.
Feeding and watering sweet peppers after planting in the greenhouse
Feeding sweet peppers in the greenhouse is carried out after the first flowering. Peppers love rotted manure. Take care of this in advance - even before germinating the seeds. Fresh manure is highly acidic, and if you add it to the ground, it will burn the pepper roots and kill your seedlings.
Feed the plants organic fertilizers
It is best to use a comprehensive organic fertilizer made with your own hands. To do this, you need to finely chop and dry 4-5 kg of a mixture of plants (Coltsfoot, nettle and dandelion), add 10 tbsp. l. birch ash (it contains the largest amount of potassium), 1.5-2 buckets of cow manure and water. Mix the resulting mass well and place it in a large container. Fertilizer for peppers in a greenhouse can be applied after 10-14 days.
On initial stage plant development needs nitrogen fertilizers, the field of appearance of the ovary is in phosphorus, and at the stage of fruit ripening, potassium fertilizers are applied.
Mineral supplements must be applied strictly according to the scheme
Caring for pepper also involves watering it. Do not pour water on top of the pepper, after which the plant begins to curl its leaves. Use the root method, or better yet, install a net in the greenhouse drip irrigation. This will make caring for the pepper easier.
Advice. Water the peppers frequently, but in small quantities. For the lack of moisture, the plant will repay you by dropping the ovaries and flowering.
Water the peppers in the morning so they have time to absorb all the moisture before it gets dark and the temperature drops. When the temperature drops during the day in the greenhouse, reduce watering so that the air and soil do not become waterlogged.
Attention! It is on waterlogged soil that pathogenic bacteria and fungi develop.
Formation and garter of a bush
When the first fork appears on the plant, all lower leaves and buds. So that the plant at the stage of growing tops does not give up nutrients for the development of these buds. Depending on the variety, the bush is formed into 2 or 3 stems. To do this, leave 1 or 2 of the most powerful stepsons, from which additional branches are then formed. The remaining shoots are removed.
Watering plants should only be done at the roots
There is no need to spare the leaves. The plant's nutrition is distributed evenly to all areas: stem, leaves and fruits. The goal of any gardener is to collect the largest number of fruits, and when a leaf is removed, substances are redirected to the fruits, they develop faster and become much larger.
Peppers are planted every 7-10 days. You can remove no more than 3 shoots per day so as not to cause severe stress to the plant.
Advice. Remove the shoots in the morning, so the plant can regain its strength before the onset of cold weather in the evening.
Remove the stepsons, leaving 1-1.5 cm stumps so as not to damage the main stem. Treat your tools after pruning each bush.
Gartering a pepper bush is necessary so that the plant does not break under its own weight.
It is easier to care for tall peppers in a greenhouse after they are tied up. The plant will not bend to the ground and shade neighboring bushes.
It is better to tie the garter to trellis structures, which must be installed before planting peppers in the greenhouse. When tying, you need to be very careful; any damage to the stem can develop into rot and destroy the plant.
The trellises look like stairs. On wooden frame 3-4 transverse steps of twine or wire are tied, and the plant rests on them.
To save effort and money, use a garter to stakes. To do this, drive wooden sticks directly next to the bush, and tie the main stem with a simple cotton ribbon 2-3 cm wide so that it does not eat into the plant.
Secrets of gardeners: getting a big harvest
Some gardeners have secrets for caring for peppers in greenhouse conditions. They are reluctant to share their knowledge and pass it on from generation to generation.
Hardening off pepper seedlings is the most important stage in growing sweet peppers
For seedlings:
- Be sure to harden off the seedlings. To do this, take the pots with it to the balcony or unheated veranda several times at night.
- Treat the seedlings with potassium salt a week before planting. It stimulates plant growth.
To speed up fruit ripening:
- When one fruit reaches required size, it must be removed immediately. It can ripen outside the bush, but the rest of the fruits will not ripen until this is done.
- The plant needs constant monitoring. It is necessary to promptly remove diseased and dried leaves from the plant.
- It is imperative to cut off barren shoots to reduce their consumption of nutrients that flowering and ovaries need.
Always remove ripe fruits in time so that they do not overload the plant.
Caring for peppers affects not only the growth of the plant, but also its taste. When pollen falls from the stamens of a flower hot pepper into the sweet pistil, an ovary is formed, the fruit of which has a taste like that of hot pepper varieties. This happens when an insect flies into the window during ventilation. To prevent peppers from cross-pollination, it is not recommended to plant hot and sweet pepper varieties in the same greenhouse.
Collecting fruits and obtaining seeds
The volume of the harvest depends entirely on the amount of effort the gardener spends on caring for the plant. If you do everything correctly and follow the instructions, the pepper will reward you with a bountiful harvest.
Harvesting is carried out when it is technically ripe. This means that the fruits must take on the shape, size and color stated in the description of the variety. Do not leave the fruits on the plant for too long - remove them immediately. The ripened fruit is removed along with the stalk, sharp knife or scissors.
With proper care, sweet peppers in a greenhouse give a rich harvest
The first fruits ripen 25-30 days after the formation of the ovary, and after another week the entire harvest can be harvested.
To obtain seeds, select several of the largest fruits located on the 3rd tier of flowering. They are removed after harvesting the entire crop. If new flowers and ovaries appear on the plant after harvesting, they are also removed, giving all the nutrients to the maturation of the seeds.
The fully ripened fruit is cut off and stored in paper until it is completely dry. Next, the seeds are removed and placed in paper bag. They have the best germination in the first 3 years. At this time they need to be germinated and sown.
Pepper – quite demanding vegetable crop. However, despite the difficulties of creating optimal conditions for growing this vegetable, pepper has been and remains a favorite plant of many gardeners.
In order to grow seedlings for a greenhouse, you first need to sow the seeds in special pots. Pepper seeds are selected and disinfected in a 1% solution of potassium permanganate, after which they are washed and treated with a growth stimulator. The seeds are dried and after that they can be sown in the prepared soil.
The soil with the addition of peat and humus in pots should be well fertilized and moistened. Peppers are sown in grooves to a depth of no more than 1.5 cm. The temperature for seed germination should be quite warm, 25-27 degrees Celsius. But as soon as the first shoots appear, it needs to be reduced by 10 degrees so that the seedlings do not quickly begin to grow, but gain strength. After a week, increase the temperature to 22-26 degrees and then maintain it throughout the growing season.
Feeding is important for plants, but it can be applied when several leaves appear on the stem. Apply fertilizer better in the morning While the sun is not shining strongly, after fertilizing, water with plain water.
You can prepare the fertilizer yourself - for 10 liters of settled water, take 30-40 g of superphosphate, 10 g of potassium salt and 5-8 g of ammonium nitrate.
After the fifth leaf appears, the seedlings need artificial light with a blue spectrum - you can use special lamps for greenhouses. 12-hour lighting for seedlings is very important during the growing stage.
15-16 days before planting seedlings in the ground, you need to start hardening the pepper with sunlight. To do this, you can take the boxes with seedlings out onto the balcony or place them on windows on the south side so that the sun can heat the plants for as long as possible.
7 days before planting, all seedlings can be fertilized with potassium fertilizer, and a couple of days before, the leaves of sweet pepper can be treated with Elina solution for resistance to various diseases.
Before planting peppers in the soil, you need to make sure that the seedlings must be more than 55 days old and have at least 12 bright green leaves on the stem. Perfect time for planting in a greenhouse - April, when the soil under the polycarbonate has warmed up to +15°C.
The soil in the greenhouse also needs to be fertilized with humus or compost, but not with fresh manure! You can begin to plant bell pepper seedlings in fertilized soil.
Planting and its density depend on the height of the plants:
- The distance for tall varieties of sweet peppers is 35 cm;
- Medium-sized peppers – 25 cm;
- For low-growing and early-ripening peppers, the distance should be 15 cm.
Greenhouse beds are placed at a distance of at least half a meter from each other, optimal width the bed itself is a meter.
Sweet peppers in the greenhouse: caring for seedlings after planting
To get a good pepper harvest in a greenhouse, you need to provide it with timely watering, heating and access to sunlight. Pepper loves heat, so you need to protect it from drafts and wind.
With a lack of moisture, peppers appear brown spots, the leaves wither and turn yellow, and the flowers fall off. Frequent watering can also be harmful; from too much water in the soil, the roots of the plant begin to rot and the plant dies.
The greenhouse should protect the pepper from temperature changes, but it should not be too hot inside the structure. The optimal temperature is 20-27 degrees Celsius.
Pepper is very popular with some pests - caterpillars, aphids and spider mite. Therefore, it is important to inspect the plants as often as possible and at the first signs of insects, you need to treat the seedlings special drugs.
During the entire growing season, peppers require feeding only twice. The first time you should apply fertilizer 14-16 days after transplanting bell pepper seedlings into the ground, the second time – a month after that.
Bird droppings are considered an economically and environmentally beneficial fertilizer, but you can also use Pantafol or Maxicrop fertilizer.
For the proper development of a sweet pepper bush, pinching is used - removing excess young shoots from the pepper stem. It is also recommended to remove diseased, dry and wilted leaves.
A change in leaf color to blue or red is considered a symptom of phosphorus deficiency, which must be replenished by fertilizing with phosphates. In this case, the temperature under the shelter should be above 20 degrees.
A lack of potassium affects the slowing of seedling growth, wilting and drying of leaves or the fall of the ovary. IN in this case plants need special fertilizer.
Experienced gardeners advise loosening the soil as often as possible so that the roots of the plant receive oxygen for better growth and development.
How to care for peppers in a greenhouse: features of pinching
If there are many shoots on the pepper stem, the density of the leaves may cause poor light access to the fruit. To solve this problem, stepsoning is used.
Pinching is the removal of young branches along with leaves and inflorescences from the main stem of pepper.
Timely removal of shoots will increase the yield and development of larger peppers.
When forming low varieties of bell peppers, you need to pinch off the top of the plant to make the bush more compact. If the branches grow too close to the ground, they can be cut off.
Pinching is not recommended if pepper seedlings are planted at a large distance from each other; peppers like to have leaves and branches in contact with neighboring plants. It is also better to remove shoots if the pepper has reached a height of 35 cm, and when the first formed ovary appears.
Pruning should be done with a sharp object, which should be treated with a disinfectant after each pepper bush. If one of the plants is infected, the entire planting of peppers can be destroyed.
When removing stepsons, do not forget that you need to leave 5 pieces on the stem. Leaving the most successful shoots at the top, the lower weak ones need to be removed. Excess leaves that block sunlight from reaching the fruit are also removed.
Greenhouse conditions and pinching:
- For a sick plant, pinching will become stressful, which can lead to its weakening. The pepper will begin to dry out or turn yellow, which can lead to the death of the plant.
- High humidity in the greenhouse provokes the appearance of new shoots on the pepper. The bush becomes dense and does not receive enough air for ventilation. Humidity can lead to diseases in peppers - white and gray mold, soft bacterial rot.
- In the absence of regular watering in the greenhouse, it is advisable to leave the lower leaves, they will cover the ground and retain some moisture.
In places where the ovary has not formed, shoots may appear again, so every 2 weeks it is worth inspecting the pepper for the presence of new shoots. When they appear, they must be removed so that new branches do not interfere with the fruits’ proper development.
Sweet pepper planting and care in a greenhouse: diseases and pests
Even with a lot of effort, sweet peppers in a greenhouse are susceptible to various diseases. Pepper diseases are very diverse, but none of them can be ignored.
The most famous scourge is considered to be aphids, which feed on the sap of the plant and lay eggs on the leaves. When aphids appear on one plant, they quickly spread to neighboring bushes. These small pests are very difficult to remove. You can treat the plant with special preparations - “Funfanon”, “Keltan”, “Karbofos”. You can also use traditional methods– spraying with a soap solution or a mixture of ash, water and soap. These solutions need to be sprayed on bell peppers every morning until the pests disappear.
Spider mites live on the inside of the leaf. To get rid of the scourge, you need to spray the pepper with a solution of a glass of onion in 10 liters of settled water with the addition of a spoon of liquid soap.
Slugs, which leave holes in leaves and spoil fruit, are afraid of quicklime. The drug “Commander” or manual collection of insects from pepper leaves will help get rid of the Colorado potato beetle.
In order not to cause bell pepper disease, you need to periodically inspect the plant itself and the fruits and, at the slightest sign of disease, start effective treatment to save the harvest.
The main problem of sweet peppers is rotting and wilting, which can be caused by a number of diseases.
Diseases of bell pepper:
- Verticellosis;
- Phytoplasmosis – curling and drying of pepper plants and fruits;
- Late blight - the appearance of dark spots on leaves and fruits;
- Black leg - damage to the root stem, its rotting and death of the plant;
- Blossom rot is the rotting of peppers right in the garden during ripening;
- Gray rot affects fruits that rot very quickly.
Disease prevention is about choosing the right seeds for seedlings, a good place for planting and proper care of the plant. To protect the plant from diseases, it is recommended to treat peppers in the greenhouse with Privikura solution once every 30 days.
Caring for peppers in a greenhouse (video)
To grow a full-fledged healthy harvest, you will have to work hard. However, the efforts made will be rewarded with large, bright, juicy fruits, which are suitable not only for eating raw, but also for canning for the winter.
Heat-loving pepper requires proper care, otherwise you won't get it high yields. Moreover, in most regions of Russia, due to the harsh climate, this crop is grown in greenhouses, under shelters.
Open ground is a privilege of the southern regions, where you don’t have to limit yourself in choosing varieties of sweet peppers. For middle zone and even more so, in areas such as the Urals, North-West, Siberia, it is recommended to choose early-ripening varieties that are resistant to the vagaries of the weather. But in a favorable season, gardeners in these regions also harvest good pepper harvests from open ridges, provided the correct agricultural technology is used.
Pepper is a crop with a long growing season, so it is grown through seedlings, and only then is it decided to plant it in a permanent place. You can grow it directly in the beds, choosing a sunny place protected from the winds, you can cultivate it under arches with film or non-woven material. It all depends on climatic conditions, variety, and care. We will talk about the features of care both in the open ground and in the greenhouse.
Rules for care after planting in the ground
Deciding to grow peppers in beds under open air, are determined in advance for it appropriate place and prepare the area.
Site selection and soil preparation
The ridges should be located in a well-lit area, with only slight partial shade allowed. The soil is fertile, loose, moisture-absorbing and breathable. Pepper likes to grow on neutral or slightly acidic soils, but ridges with acidic soil not suitable for culture.
ON A NOTE! The optimal acidity level is 6.2 – 7.0 pH.
To neutralize acidity in overly acidic soils, add wood ash, add fluff lime. Change acidity alkaline soils Adding moss will help (it is better to take it from peat bogs). 
The ridges are dug up in the fall, and then rotted manure is added (about 5-6 kg per square meter). It is recommended to add phosphorus and potassium additives during spring digging.
It is required to observe crop rotation, returning the pepper to the same place no earlier than after 4 years. It cannot be grown after crops such as:
- potato;
- eggplant;
- tomatoes.
These are all crops related to peppers, part of the vast nightshade family. They have the same diseases, so there is a high risk that the pepper may “catch” some kind of infection of the vegetables that grew on this ridge before it. But grow it after pumpkin, legumes, all types of cabbage, and cucumbers.
Transplanting
Peppers are planted in the ground only when stable warm weather. The soil should warm up to +14ºC…+16ºC (indicators at a depth of up to 10 cm), and in many regions this time comes only in early June. You can also plant the crop in the last week of May; here everything depends on the weather in a particular season and climate.
Typically, in the North-West and Siberia, gardeners do not take risks, and if peppers are planted in the greenhouse a little earlier, then there is no need to rush into planting them in open beds. A few days will not be critical, but your seedlings will not be exposed to possible cold snaps. 
For more successful adaptation, the peppers begin to harden approximately 10-14 days before the “move.” They are accustomed to temperatures at outdoors, sun rays. First, the peppers are taken out for about 15-30 minutes, gradually increasing the time spent in the air to several hours.
ON A NOTE! Hardening will ensure rapid adaptation of seedlings during transplantation, and the plants will not experience stress.
When planting, it is advisable to use the transfer method, removing the peppers from containers (cups, boxes) along with a lump of earth. If the seedlings were grown in peat pots, V homemade cups made of paper, then it is planted in the holes right along with them. The seedlings should be approximately 55-60 days old.
Holes are made on the ridge, maintaining the distance and planting pattern. It is recommended to grow peppers taking into account the characteristics of the variety and plant height:
- for low-growing plants, you can leave up to 20 cm between plants;
- medium-sized peppers grow from each other at a distance of up to 30-35 cm;
- tall varieties and hybrids will need to be left from 40 to 60 cm.
Typically, low varieties of peppers are grown on beds, but in any case, it is important to take care of installing supports in advance. The holes are shed with warm, settled water, and the moisture is allowed to slightly absorb into the soil. Then the plants are planted in the holes, making sure that the root collar is at soil level. It is not recommended to bury peppers; it is advisable to plant them at the same level as they grew in pots.
IMPORTANT! If you plan to collect your own seeds from peppers, take care to isolate the varieties. It is also necessary to plant sweet and hot peppers away from each other.
The soil near the stem is carefully compacted; you can immediately, or after a day or two, the surface of the soil can be mulched with hay, rotted compost, bark, or chopped straw. 
Protection from cold and heat
To plant the crop, it is advisable to choose a cloudy day so that the sun does not burn the plant in the first hours. If this is not possible, schedule work in the evening. After planting, the peppers need to be slightly shaded, and here the best option will use non-woven material.
This material will provide the planted seedlings with comfortable conditions, protect them from the hot rays of the sun, and, if necessary, protect them from cold weather. Many gardeners specially install arcs on the beds, and then cover them with agril, lutrasil, or spunbond.
The peppers are not watered for about a week, and only after 6-7 days can the soil be irrigated with water. But it all depends on the weather and the condition of the plants themselves, the recommendations are conditional, and so you need to navigate each specific situation in my own way.
Watering
In order for the pepper fruits to be juicy and tasty, you need to organize correct watering. This is especially important for plants in the garden, since there is no schedule for rain and it is necessary to carefully monitor the condition of the plants and soil moisture.
If there is regular precipitation, then you can do without watering. Usually, peppers are watered once every 5-6 days; after the ovaries appear, you can water more often, but only as the soil dries out. For those who, due to their work schedule, can only come to the site on weekends, it is recommended to mulch the soil. This will protect the plants from drought, ensure a normal level of moisture in the soil, and get rid of weeds. The mulch layer is made from 6 to 10 cm, and as the thickness decreases, mulch (hay, sawdust, peat) is added. 
ON A NOTE! Pepper bears fruit in waves. Therefore, after the first wave and harvesting of fruits, you can take a short break in watering, and then, when following colors and ovaries, they are renewed.
Water only with warm, always settled water. In case of frequent rains, loosening is carried out to prevent moisture from stagnating in the soil.
Weeding and loosening
If there is no mulching, the soil near the peppers must be carefully loosened. Since most of the root system is located in the top layer of soil, they loosen the soil very carefully, trying not to touch the roots of the plant.
After watering, a crust forms on the soil; it slows down the penetration of air into the ground, which negatively affects the roots of plants. Light regular loosening destroys the crust, provides oxygen access to the soil, and promotes better development pepper roots, and therefore the plant itself.
Some gardeners, during the period of buds appearing and mass flowering of pepper bushes, hill them up. Loosening is not only about destroying the crust, but also getting rid of annoying weeds. In open ground (especially after rain), weeds grow very quickly, and without weeding they can choke out the peppers. So you should regularly loosen and weed the plantings, and even better, use mulch. 
Top dressing
With well-fertilized soil on the ridges, the pepper will have enough nutrition for the first time. But it is still recommended to then carry out several feedings. Typically, plants are fed 3-4 times per season using organic matter, wood ash, complex fertilizers or ready-made compounds.
The first time feeding is carried out no earlier than 12-14 days after planting in a permanent place. You can take mullein diluted in water or bird droppings (1:10 and 1:20).
During the flowering period of the crop, superphosphate and potassium humate are suitable. If you use superphosphate, it is recommended to grind it first. For the third feeding (14 days after the second), ash is infused; you can also feed the peppers with superphosphate infusion. In proportions: take about two glasses of ash per bucket, two tablespoons of superphosphate are enough.
IMPORTANT! Do not exceed the dosage of components, especially nitrogen.
An excellent “lunch” for peppers is an infusion of herbs, for which nettle is most often used. It is necessary to chop the plants, put them in a tank (up to half), fill with warm water to the top and close. Leave for about 3-4 days, then dilute the infusion with water (liter per bucket) and water the peppers. The same infusion is suitable for eggplants and tomatoes. You can add ash to the composition. 
By observing the plants, you can determine which components are missing in the nutrition of peppers. With a lack of nitrogen, peppers grow poorly, the leaves are small, light green, with a gray matte tint.
If there is a deficiency of potassium, the leaves of peppers begin to dry out and curl, but if there is little phosphorus, then the leaf blades will become covered with purple spots on the underside. With such changes in leaves, it is urgent to fertilize with suitable fertilizers.
Wood ash, in addition to fertilizing, is also used to repel pests and as a preventive measure against various diseases. In open ground, peppers are harmed by aphids and spider mites, and in the evening they are attacked by slugs. Garlic infusion for spraying, ash infusions and dusting, mustard powder and a mixture of ash and tobacco dust, scattered between the rows - these are simple, but sufficient effective ways prevention and control of pests.
Caring for peppers in a greenhouse
With a short and cool summer in open ground, it is difficult to provide pepper with good conditions. If there is no heat, then it is difficult to hope for a good harvest of this capricious and very heat-loving crop. Greenhouses help out, in which gardeners even in regions such as Siberia and the North-West get very good results 
Agricultural technology for sweet peppers in greenhouses differs little from caring for plants in open ground. The basic techniques are the same, but the following must be taken into account:
- Regular watering (in a greenhouse, providing plants with moisture falls entirely on the gardener);
- Ventilation of shelters. In greenhouses on hot days the temperature can be very high and the humidity can be just as high. Pepper grows poorly in such conditions, so it is necessary to open the vents, doors, and windows, carefully ventilating the plantings.
- Needs to be replaced every season in greenhouses upper layer soil, be sure to disinfect the soil and all supports of the shelter. When greenhouses are used for many years, harmful microorganisms accumulate inside, which can be detrimental to plants. Therefore, greenhouse treatment special compounds for disinfection is mandatory for everyone.
- It is convenient to grow tall peppers in a greenhouse using trellises as supports. Wire is pulled over the frames, twine can be used, and as the peppers grow, they will rest on such structures. If you don’t want to use trellises, then make stakes and tie the pepper stems to them with a wide cotton ribbon.
IMPORTANT! The stems and branches of sweet peppers are fragile. It is necessary to tie them up very carefully, and you should not use ropes or twines that can cut the stem.
- If you prepare your own pepper seeds at the end of summer, then the hot and sweet varieties are immediately planted in different greenhouses.
- When growing tall peppers in greenhouses, it is necessary to form the plants. They are pinched, excess side shoots, lower leaves, and the central (crown) bud of the plant are cut off.
- The wave-like nature of the harvest also determined the characteristics of pepper harvesting. It is advisable to harvest the first fruits in greenhouses at the stage of technical maturity. This makes it possible for subsequent fruits to form and grow, and in general, to increase productivity. The second wave of fruit can be left to ripen on the plant.
Frequency of watering in the greenhouse
For plants in a greenhouse, it is necessary to provide comfortable growing conditions:
- sufficient amount of moisture;
- warm;
- lighting;
- nutrition.
On the ridges there may be enough rainfall for the peppers; in the greenhouse they are watered 1-2 times every 7 days. It is recommended to follow the watering schedule, increasing the volume of water during the flowering period. But it is important to prevent excess moisture in the soil, since in conditions closed space The air humidity in the shelter immediately increases.
ON A NOTE! The watering rate is 10 liters per square meter. But they take into account the condition of the plants, soil type, and weather conditions.
After watering, it is necessary to ventilate the greenhouse and loosen it the next day. And again, as in open ground, mulching the soil is recommended to obtain higher yields. If possible, you can install a drip irrigation system in the greenhouse. 
Water the peppers very carefully, trying not to get on the leaves and ovaries. The water temperature is about +22ºC, and regardless of where the water comes from - a well, a reservoir, rainwater, it must be settled. Excess moisture in the soil leads to the appearance of diseases in pepper, and this is always extra hassle, the use of various drugs and possible crop losses. Compliance with the irrigation regime and all agricultural techniques will eliminate problems.
Application of fertilizers for peppers in a greenhouse when growing in a greenhouse
One more an important condition To obtain a harvest in a greenhouse is to fertilize the pepper. Properly organized nutrition of the crop, when the peppers have enough of all elements, ensures the normal development of the crop and helps increase immunity. Peppers in the greenhouse are “fed” 3-5 times per season, taking into account the fertility of the soil and the condition of the plants themselves. Tall, productive hybrids require more nutrition, so you need to prepare mullein in advance (you can use poultry droppings) and complex fertilizers.
Just as in open ground, the first fertilizing is done with organic matter and no earlier than two weeks after planting the peppers. It is also permissible to use urea (make an aqueous solution, 4-5 grams per bucket of water), dry nitrophoska.
For the second feeding, you need to take phosphorus and potassium fertilizers and use an ash solution. It is carried out during fruiting, strictly observing the dosage of all components. It is advisable to combine fertilization and watering for better absorption of nutrients by pepper. 
They also give a good effect foliar feeding pepper by leaves, so many gardeners use:
- urea solution (one teaspoon per bucket of water will be enough);
- superphosphate (treated with the composition in a bucket of water - two teaspoons);
- boric acid (take a bucket of water and dilute one teaspoon of the product in it).
Foliar feeding is especially convenient if plants require the addition of microelements. When applied at the root, they are absorbed more slowly and worse, but when peppers are processed by leaves, results are achieved faster. If the peppers grow normally, bloom, and produce a harvest, you can do without spraying. The recommendations are intended to help in organizing proper care, as well as in case of any difficulties.
Compliance with all the techniques, the optimal temperature regime, and knowledge of some of the characteristics of the crop will allow you to grow a pepper crop even in regions of risky farming. By the way, the experience of many summer residents only confirms this.
