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| How to grow peppers outside |
Peppers, especially hot pepper plants with their colorful fruits, are ideal for spot planting around a garden, providing contrast in flowerbeds, or brightening a container garden. When growing peppers in beds, avoid planting the peppers where other members of the nightshade family have been previously planted as they are subject to similar diseases. To prevent cross-pollination, hot pepper plants should not be planted near sweet or bell pepper plants.
Pepper planting pointers:
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When buying pepper plants choose those that are sturdy with deep green leaves and without fruit or blossoms.
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Choose a location in your garden, patio or home that receives morning sun.
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While full sun and heat are good for peppers, too much can damage the fruit. Protect from the intense afternoon sun with taller plants (or beans on a trellis), by planting them in a block no more than 1½ feet apart, or situating house or patio pepper plants so that they will receive filtered light in the afternoons.
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Transplant pepper plants to garden beds two to three weeks after the last frost and when the soil temperature is at least 65 °F (18 °C).
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When transferring pepper plants to a garden bed or container, do so in the evening or on a cloudy day to reduce the chance of sunscald.
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Keep the soil moist—not soggy—to encourage root development and prevent blossom wilting and bitter-tasting peppers. Use a mulch, such as straw, grass clippings or plastic mulch, to keep moisture in and protect roots.
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Ensure that the soil drains well, whether in a garden or container, so that the roots aren't sitting in water. Raised beds are helpful in poor-draining garden soil.
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Chili peppers like an acidic soil: 5.0-6.0 pH.
Hot Pepper Plants
Over half of the 200 varieties of hot pepper plants are indigenous to Mexico. They range in size from just 1/4 inch to 12 inches long. When choosing chili peppers for cooking, select only those that are firm with deep, vividly colored skin. A few of the best hot pepper plants for home growing are:
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'Anaheim TMR23'—high yielding hot pepper plants producing medium heat peppers good for stuffing
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Cayenne—prolific hot pepper plant producing wrinkly-skinned peppers that mature from green to brilliant red, sometimes even yellow
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Jalapeno—thick-walled hot pepper, typically used green for salsas and salads
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'Thai Hot'—very hot pepper, whose green and red fruits maintain their heat even when cooked.
Pepper Growing Tip
Whether you're growing peppers in a planter or garden bed, some simple items from your kitchen will help keep your pepper plants healthy:
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Add egg shells add calcium to the soil, and snails and slugs don't like crawling over them.
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Coffee grounds and tealeaves add nitrogen.
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Banana peels (chopped up) add potassium.
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Fish scraps add nitrogen and phosphorous.
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