How to properly grow bell peppers in a greenhouse?

One of the popular vegetable crops on personal plots is bell pepper. To get the vitamins you need after a long winter, every gardener or summer resident is always looking for ways to get a harvest of vegetables earlier.

Pepper heat-loving plant and does not grow very well outdoors.

To solve this issue, you don't have to invent a bicycle, this is a well-known greenhouse growing method that speeds up the process of obtaining a crop. And so, the postulate can be distinguished: bell pepper - cultivation in a greenhouse, a guarantee of high yields!

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Variety selection

Indoors you can grow a wide variety of varieties, differing in the size and color of the fruit, their shape and flavor shades. Bell peppers can be conical, elongated, oval, or spherical, with colors ranging from dark green to pale yellow, red, or orange. The size fruit fluctuates from 1 to 30 cm in length.

Plants are divided into groups according to maturity and size of the bush. Choice this or that option depends on the type of greenhouse and climatic conditions of a particular region.

In areas with a temperate climate, very early and early peppers can be grown in a film greenhouse without additional heating. Their ripening period is from 90 to 110 days after the appearance of the first shoots.

Desirable to choose plants with compact or medium spreading bushes suitable for confined greenhouse spaces... In heated winter greenhouses, you can grow any varieties, focusing on the taste, appearance and juiciness of the fruit. It is possible to plant peppers with different vegetation periods, allowing harvests until late autumn.

In addition to early maturing varieties it is recommended to try later, the period of growth and maturation of which lasts up to 150 days. Late-ripening peppers are distinguished by a very interesting taste, increased juiciness and large fruit size, moreover, they are rarely found on sale.

Among the popular varieties and hybrids:

• Early ripe: "Ilya Muromets", "Orange Miracle", "Green Miracle", "Toad", "Tenderness", "Gambler", "Winnie the Pooh", "Ruby Stars". Suitable for plastic greenhouses, pest resistant.
• Medium early: "California Miracle", "Swallow", "Firstborn of Siberia", "Night", "Golden Rain", "Gift of Moldova". Medium early varieties and hybrids have small fruits, the yield in the ground is low, in greenhouses it increases significantly.
• Mid-late and late: Garden Ring, Albatross, Paris, Lyudmila, Sailor, Vivaldi, Figaro. They are practically not grown in the open ground of the middle lane, they give good yields in heated greenhouses. The fruits have a long shelf life and are impressive in size.

Greenhouse requirements

Shelter for pepper can be heated or without additional heating... An unheated greenhouse is suitable for early maturing varieties, it allows you to achieve a good and fast harvest in regions with a temperate and warm climate. Such greenhouses build without foundation, on wooden or metal frames.

A cold greenhouse can be covered with foil or glass. Some growers use disused window frames. The approach is economical, but such a greenhouse will have to be repaired before the start of each season.

Capital winter greenhouses more practical build on a solid foundation, it is possible to sink into the ground by half a meter. Welded metal structures with anti-corrosion coating are used as a frame.

Winter greenhouses cover double layer of polyethylene film, tempered glass or polycarbonate... The latter option is considered the most durable, but it is more expensive.

The structure must be equipped with vents, a double door and lamps for illumination. You can heat the greenhouse using boilers or wood-burning stoves. The drip irrigation system is used only in expensive industrial greenhouses, in simpler watering is carried out from buckets or hoses, directly under the root plants.

Peppers can be grown together with other warm and moisture-loving crops. Ideal neighbors for them are cucumbers and radishes. Bell peppers undesirable to plant together with herbs and tomatoes. No less dangerous neighbor - bitter pepper... When placed in the same greenhouse, pollination is possible, sweet fruits will acquire an unpleasant bitter taste.

Growing features

First stage - selection of seeds for sowing... They should be fresh, two years after harvesting, the germination of seeds decreases sharply.

Before sowing, the material can be soaked for 10-12 hours in a growth stimulant solution. After that the seeds are washed and wrapped in a damp cotton cloth for pecking.

For greenhouse cultivation, seeds can be sown in peat pots or boxes. Planting is carried out in February or early March, since the germination period takes at least 7 days, and often lasts up to a month. The seed placement depth should not exceed 10 mm. The container with seeds is covered with glass or foil and placed in a warm, well-lit place.

Seedlings can be grown in an apartment or in a year-round heated greenhouse. For successful germination of pepper seeds need good humidity and temperature 20-25ºC... After the appearance of entrances, the temperature in the room is lowered, the plants begin to harden, removing the glass for certain periods of time.

2 weeks after the appearance of the entrances, the seedlings watered with solution complex mineral fertilizers... At the age of 2 months, the grown peppers are quite ready for transplantation to a permanent place in the greenhouse. Plants are placed at a distance of 30 cm from each other.

The soil should be light enough, neutral acidity. It is recommended to add peat and sand to the garden soil. The soil necessary good loosen and add ash to it, humus or mineral fertilizers (potash, superphosphate).

It is not recommended to apply fresh manure, it can lead to massive fall of flowers and excessive overgrowth of bushes.

The basis of care for peppers - timely watering warm settled water. Watering is carried out only at the root. Plants are very moisture-loving and do not tolerate even short-term drought. Open containers of water and frequent watering of the floor and glass will help maintain the humidity level in the greenhouse.

Occasionally the greenhouse needs to be ventilated... The ideal temperature is 18-25ºC, a sudden cold snap or exhausting heat is equally undesirable. Plants also do not tolerate average daily temperature drops.

Pepper loves frequent and abundant feeding. Some growers add a mild mullein solution each time they water. Balanced mineral complexes can also be added to the soil. After a year intensive exploitation topsoil in the greenhouse you need completely replace, this contributes to higher yields.

Bell peppers do not tolerate heavy, caked soil, reacting with slow growth and lack of ovaries. At least once a week, it is necessary to loosen the soil between the plants, providing oxygen to the roots.

If there is no possibility of regular loosening, the soil needs to be mulched humus, sawdust, straw or sunflower seed husks.

A watering hole is left around each plant. For the correct development of the bush and the formation of ovaries, it is necessary to regularly remove the leaves on each plant. No more than 2 strong lateral shoots are left on the bush, the rest are pinched.

Necessarily leaves and shoots are removed below the main branching zone. This technique promotes correct insolation, the plant does not waste energy on building up green mass, concentrating on the formation of ovaries.

Pepper bushes are very fragile and easily damaged during processing. For greenhouses it is better to choose compact plantsthat do not have sprawling lateral shoots. Elongated stems must be tied up, otherwise they will break under the weight of the fruit.

The harvest time depends on how long they are going to be stored. For transportation and sale peppers of technological maturity are ideal... At this stage, the fruits are fully formed and range in color from green to yellowish.

Peppers of full physiological maturity have a bright color, which is fully consistent with the variety, and a pronounced taste. Such fruits must be eaten immediately, they cannot be stored. The harvest is removed in the morningby carefully cutting or plucking the fruit along with the short stalk.

Delicious and juicy bell peppers are quite unpretentious. With a well-equipped greenhouse, adherence to the irrigation and feeding regime, even an inexperienced grower will be able to achieve excellent yields... Having received good results, you can start experimenting with varieties and even breeding work.

For helpful tips on growing peppers in a greenhouse, see the video below:

Today it is difficult to imagine modern polycarbonate greenhouses without beds of pepper. It's not for nothing that this vegetable is so popular all over the world. It is not only rich in colors, but also has a number of useful properties. And they use it both dried and fresh and canned. Add to sauces, first and second courses. You can't count everything. But the most delicious is the one that you have grown yourself. This is quite easy to do, knowing the agronomic techniques and needs of the pepper.

Choosing a variety for planting

So what should you look for when choosing a pepper variety? Ripening terms:

• early;
• medium early;
• late.

Sweet peppers are almost indispensable in many dishes.

In order for the pepper to be present on your table as long as possible, it is worth purchasing pepper seeds with different fruiting periods for growing.

The second factor is the height and spreading of the plant. Indeed, in a polycarbonate greenhouse, the planting area is limited, and you want to get more harvest, which means you should choose compact varieties.

If you are planning to stuff your peppers, then pay attention to the intimacy. For these purposes, it is better to choose varieties with 2-3 chamber fruits.

Pay attention to the disease resistance as well as the growing region. The zoned varieties are guaranteed to give you a good harvest.

Important! All pepper seeds within the same variety must be the same size. Throw away small seeds. The correct color of the seeds is yellow, the gray ones may not be viable.

All varieties have a different color, fruit shape and weight. Peppers are sweet and hot. Here, as they say, you choose the taste and color.

Sweet pepper "Alyonushka"

Here is a list of well-established sweet varieties for greenhouses:

• orange - Eagle F1, Orange Wonder;
• yellow - Fiesta F1;
• red - Ferrari F1, Alyonushka, Atlant;
• purple - Cardinal.

Spicy varieties contain the phenolic compound capsaicin, which is found in the seeds, veins, and skin of the fruit. There is no capsaicin in sweet varieties.Popular varieties:

• Elephant trunk;
• Little Prince;
• Fiery volcano.

Important! Pepper is a cross-pollinated plant, so you can not plant sharp and sweet varieties next to it.

Seedling soil mix

Each vegetable has its own requirements for the composition of the soil. Pepper does not like acidic soils. The soil must be balanced with normal moisture (the soil compressed in a fist should not crumble and stain your palm with dirt). You can buy ready-made pepper mixes in the store, or you can make yourself.

The first rule of growing peppers in a greenhouse is the preparation of fertile soil

There are several proportions:

1. Leafy soil, compost and sand in a ratio of 1: 1: 1.
2. Sod land, leafy soil, humus and sand - 3: 3: 3: 1.
3. Peat, sod land, humus, stale sawdust - 4: 2: 1: 1.
4. Sod land, mature compost - 1: 2.
5. Sod land, purchased soil for seedlings, sand - 1: 1: 1.

Important! You cannot take soil from the beds where peppers or other nightshades have already grown - you can bring diseases into the greenhouse and destroy the seedlings.

Sowing seeds for seedlings

Now you need to prepare the seeds for planting. First, they need to be etched with a 1% solution of potassium permanganate for half an hour, and then soaked in warm water for several hours until they swell. Growth stimulants can be added to the water.

Important! Seeds that have floated to the surface should be removed - they will not sprout.

The root system of pepper is very poorly restored in case of damage, which entails inhibition of plant growth, so it is better not to pick the seedlings, but immediately sow them into individual containers. As the culture grows, transshipment is carried out in the future, that is, the plant is transplanted into a large container without disturbing the root system.

Quality sweet pepper seeds

Seeds are sown in small pots with a diameter of 5-8 cm to a depth of 1.5 cm. Sow two seeds in one pot, then, when shoots appear, the weak plant can be removed. After planting, the pots are covered with glass or foil, which should be removed after germination.

It is now important to monitor the temperature. Before emergence, it should be about 25 ° C, then the temperature should be reduced to 20 ° C, and at night to 13 ° C. After sprouting, the temperature should be 26 ° C during the day and 15 ° C at night.

After the appearance of two leaves, the first feeding should be done. For 1 liter of water, 0.5 g of ammonium nitrate, 3 g of superphosphate, 1 g of potassium salt. The second time the plants are fed after 14 days with the same composition, doubling the dose. Two days before planting the seedlings in a permanent place in a polycarbonate greenhouse, the last feeding is done with an increase in potassium fertilizers to 8 g per 1 liter of water.

Sweet pepper sprouts

Important! Plants should be watered only with warm water. Waterlogging is unacceptable - the seedlings can get sick with a black leg.

Light, the main thing that seedlings lack. The lighting rate is 15-16 hours a day. Plants thrive at 8000 lux. Use additional lighting with cold fluorescent lamps (fluorescent lamps) or pink phytoluminescent lamps.

Planting pepper in a greenhouse

The planting pattern depends on the type of pepper. This information is usually indicated by the manufacturer on the seed packaging. There are general recommendations for planting plants.

1. For tall varieties, the distance between bushes in a row is 35 cm, row spacing is at least 70 cm.Approximately 4-5 plants per 1 m2
2. For low-growing varieties, the distance between plants in a row is 25 cm, row spacing is at least 70 cm. Somewhere 6 plants per 1 m2

Near each bush, reinforcement or a wooden stake should be inserted, to which it will be possible to tie up the trunk in the future, so that it does not break when loaded with fruits. You need to tie it up with a rag or soft rope in one turn.

Having planted the plants, immediately prepare a support for them.

Pepper seedlings should be planted in the holes, having previously watered them with warm water at the rate of 2 liters per hole. Try not to damage the roots of the plant.After planting, you need to mulch the root circle with compost, peat or rotted sawdust so that the soil does not dry out.

Important! When planting, do not deepen the root collar of pepper seedlings, it should be at the level of the soil surface.

In the future, until the end of the growing season, the temperature in the greenhouse should be stable within 20-26 ° C. If the temperature is much higher for a considerable time, then the pollen of the plant becomes sterile, pollination does not occur and the yield decreases sharply. At temperatures below 16 ° C, the pepper freezes.

Watering and nutrition

Before flowering, watering is done once a week. In hot weather - two. During flowering and fruiting, watering is carried out in hot weather every other day, and in cold weather - once every 3-4 days. Based on 15 liters per 1 m2. The water must be warm and clean, otherwise the plant stops growing, respectively, the flowering is delayed. If you are taking water from a well, let it warm up first. It is good to combine plant feeding with watering.

Drip irrigation is ideal for peppers.

A couple of weeks after planting the seedlings in the greenhouse, you need to feed the plants with a mixture of carbamide and superphosphate, two tablespoons per 10 liters of water.

During flowering, 10 liters of water, one teaspoon of carbamide and superphosphate. Consumption per bush is about one liter. Closely monitor the condition of the leaf apparatus of plants, any changes may indicate a lack or excess of nutrients.

1. If the leaves of the pepper begin to curl around the edges, then this may indicate a lack of potassium.
2. The underside of the leaf takes on a purple hue - a lack of phosphorus.
3. The leaf becomes grayish dull, which means that the bush does not have enough nitrogen.
4. The ovary does not appear, and the bush grows violently - there is an excess of nitrogen, you need to water it with ash infusion.

A plant suffering from a lack of potassium in the soil

Important! During the season, feeding is done 3-5 times.

Pepper shaping

The harvest of pepper largely depends on the correct formation of the plant. Basically, pinching and removing excess shoots and ovaries is required for tall varieties. In stunted ones, as a rule, the lower shoots and barren ones are removed. Dwarf varieties rarely form, mostly done with a thickened planting in order to improve lighting and ventilation.

Formation should begin when the plant reaches a height of about 25 cm. During this period, intensive branching occurs and the first flower bud (crown) is formed, it must be removed. This manipulation stimulates the plant to form new branches.

Pay attention to the formation of the pepper bush - the plant will give you a greater yield

Most often, peppers are formed into several shoots, leaving the strongest ones that grew from the first fork; on the rest, you need to pinch the growing point by removing the top. These are skeletal shoots, they are the basis of the bush.

Skeletal shoots also branch and form a so-called "fork", in the center of which a bud is formed. Now you need to repeat the operation: leave a strong shoot, and pinch the weak ones above the flower bud. We do the same with further branches. All branches and buds that grow inside the bush should also be removed - they thicken the bush, deformed fruits can form from these buds.

Leave up to 25 fruits on each bush. Remove shoots and leaves that develop below the ramification of the main stem, as well as diseased and damaged ones.

If there is little light in the greenhouse, apply additional lighting

When growing peppers in a polycarbonate greenhouse, the amount of light directly affects the formation of ovaries and the growth of fruits. Ovary and buds can fall off when there is a lack of light, especially in cold weather. Therefore, you need to regulate the number of leaves on the plant:

1. When the fruits of the pepper have reached biological ripeness, it is necessary to remove the leaves on the main stem.
2. Remove the leaves below the second brush, after picking the fruit.
3. The last removal of leaves is carried out one month before the end of the growing season.

About 1.5 months before the end of the growing season, you need to pinch the tops of the shoots so that the plant directs all its forces to ripen the fruits.

Important! All shaping operations are performed only with healthy plants, otherwise the pepper may stop growing and die altogether.

Diseases pests of pepper

Like any vegetable, peppers also have pests and pathogens that can easily rob you of your harvest. But whoever is forewarned is armed, and the enemy should be known by sight. Consider the most common diseases of peppers in polycarbonate greenhouses.

To prevent diseases from developing, treat pepper bushes with insecticides in a timely manner.

In greenhouse conditions, peppers can infect various diseases:

1. Bacterial - black spot, bacterial cancer.
2. Viral - mosaic of leaves, internal fruit necrosis.
3. Fungal - late blight, black leg, gray rot.
4. Mycoplasma - stolbur or phytoplasmosis.

Pepper can be damaged by insects: scoops, spider mites, beetle larvae, Colorado potato beetle, aphids, whitefly, thrips.

Important! Destroy plant debris at the end of the season and choose the disease-resistant varieties that are most common in your area.

Planting pepper seedlings: video

Growing pepper in a greenhouse: photo

Growing sweet peppers in greenhouse conditions is a guarantee that you will get a harvest. But will he be rich? Necessarily! If you provide the plants with proper care.

Pepper is a thermophilic culture brought to us from America in the 17th-18th centuries. However, it did not take root with us right away: after all, the climate in most of the country is not mild. A solution was found very quickly: sweet peppers began to grow indoors.

It is important to understand that not all outdoor pepper growing tips are suitable for greenhouse conditions. For example, you need to take into account a special watering scheme, do not forget about pinching, garter and other points.

Pepper can be grown in plastic, polycarbonate and glass greenhouses.

We will tell you in detail about the features of growing peppers in a greenhouse so that you can harvest a good harvest without problems.

Bell peppers are a demanding crop

Your task is to maintain an ideal microclimate in the greenhouse.

Pepper contains a large amount of vitamins - C, B1, B2, B9, P, PP; it also contains potassium, sodium and rutin

Pepper is quite picky about the following factors:

• Air temperature. Optimal - 23-26 ° C.
• Air humidity. Peppers will be comfortable with a humidity of about 70-75%. Fluctuations in humidity are destructive: flowers and ovary fall off, fruits become smaller.
• Illumination. Pepper doesn't like shade. If the plant does not receive the required amount of light, it will “express” its protest by slow growth and weak ovary. Therefore, do not plant the peppers too thick.
• Soil fertility. This crop grows very well in light, neutral soils enriched with organic matter. But heavy clay soil is clearly not for her.

Peppers, like tomatoes, need a garter. Before planting seedlings, prepare a trellis - where you will plant peppers, pull the wire at a height of about 2 m. Subsequently, it will be necessary to attach ropes to it to tie the bushes.

Greenhouse watering and mulching

Water the plants every 5 days at the rate of 1 liter of water per young plant and 2 liters per adult. The ideal time is morning (from 9 to 11 o'clock). Use rainwater or settled warm tap water (you can put water in large black tanks - there it will settle and heat up).

Water the pepper only at the root (you can use drip irrigation). Do not let water get on the leaves. Always ventilate the greenhouse after each watering. And every other day, loosen the soil, weeding the plants in parallel.

Straw is one of the most popular and affordable mulching materials

To prevent the soil in the greenhouse from overheating and evaporating less moisture, it can be mulched with a 3-4 cm layer of sawdust, straw, compost or humus. But this is far from the only purpose of mulch.

Mulching has many benefits:

• the ground always remains loose;
• the roots receive a sufficient amount of oxygen;
• weeds grow slower.

By the way, it is important to ventilate the greenhouse every day. There is no need to create drafts - it is enough to open the vents or doors from one side. If there is unbearable heat outside, remove the film from one side of the greenhouse during the day.

Top dressing sweet pepper

Pepper is in dire need of mineral dressing, so feed the bushes with complex mineral fertilizers 1-2 times a month (15-20 g of potassium chloride, 40 g of superphosphate and 20 g of ammonium nitrate per 10 liters of water), combining top dressing with regular watering.

Apply fertilizer for the first time 2 weeks after transplanting.

Fertilizers can be applied 2 weeks after planting, combined with watering and loosening

Periodically, you can replace mineral fertilizers with organic matter, which is also very beneficial for plants. Dilute the rotted manure with water (3: 1). Insist in the greenhouse for 3 days. Then dilute the resulting infusion with water (1:10). Apply a liter of fertilizer under each bush.

Pests and diseases of pepper in the greenhouse

In conditions of closed ground, a favorable environment is formed for the free life of many pests. Here are the most frequent guests of greenhouses with peppers.

Pest	Why is it dangerous?	Control measures
Aphid is a small green insect	It sucks all the juices out of the pepper. This leads to twisting of leaves, drying of the ovary, damage to the fruit.	Ventilate greenhouses regularly. Treat plants with wormwood or yarrow decoctions. Spray them with Phosbecide.
Greenhouse whitefly - insect with white wings	Insect larvae feed on plant juices. This leads to wilting of the leaves. The insect provokes the spread of dangerous fungal diseases.	During the growing season, spray the plants with Phosbecid.
Red spider mite	Living on the inside of the leaves, this insect destroys the plant. First, yellow spots appear on the leaves, which then turn dirty yellow. Over time, a cobweb appears.	Treat the plants with the following preparations: Actellik, Karbofos, Fosbecid, Fufanon.
Wireworm - the larva of the click beetle yellow and with a hard cover	The larvae live in the soil, causing damage to the roots of the pepper. As a result, the plant grows and develops very slowly.	To hunt wireworms, use baits: cut the raw potato tuber into small pieces, stick wooden skewers into them and deepen the baits 5-7 cm into the ground. After a few days, remove them along with the larvae and destroy.
Slugs	The insect happily feasts on the leaves and fruits of the pepper, which will soon rot.	Make small grooves around the bed and spray them with lime mortar. Loose the soil and sprinkle it with mustard powder. You can use the drug Strela.

Now let's talk about the most common diseases of greenhouse peppers.

Disease	Description	Prevention and control measures
Mosaic	Affected leaves wrinkle, white spots appear on them, mosaic spots on the fruits acquire a yellow tint.	Destroy plants that are sick with mosaics without regret. Use only healthy seed for sowing. For disinfection, treat the seeds with a 2% sodium hydroxide solution. Destroy spider mites, aphids, which are carriers of the mosaic.
Bacterial cancer	Affected leaves begin to wilt on one side. Then brown stripes with mucus appear on the petioles and stems, the leaves turn yellow. Fruits may develop dark colored spots.	Remove all affected bushes.Treat healthy plants with copper sulfate. After harvesting the peppers, disinfect the greenhouse with methyl bromide or completely replace the soil.
White rot	First, the top of the plant withers, then part of the stem becomes very soft, covered with a white bloom. If you cut the stem, you can see black sclerotia.	To prevent spread of the disease, treat affected plants with any copper preparation. Make sure that the planting is not too thick - this interferes with ventilation. Do not overdo it with nitrogen fertilizers, because their excess provokes the spread of the disease.
Fusarium	Seedlings grow slowly. The upper leaves turn yellow, part of the fruit near the stalk darkens and dries up.	Dig up the diseased plant and burn it. Preventive measures: treat the seeds before sowing with Fundazol (0.1 g of the drug per 10 g of seeds).

Garter and shaping

The yield of peppers largely depends on the timely garter, shaping and pinching.

A pre-prepared trellis can be used for its intended purpose within a week after planting the seedlings. Tie the plants to the trellis using twine: make a free loop at the bottom of the plant, wrap the stem. As the shoots grow, twine the strongest ones with twine. Tie the rest around several times per season.

Now let's talk about formation - what is it and what is it for? The fact is that after the formation of the first bud (it is removed), the plant actively branches: you can observe the formation of several shoots, which in turn also branch. As a result, the plant experiences a lack of light, which, as noted above, is harmful to pepper.

Forming will help prevent over-thickening of the plants. When the main stem forks, leave 2 strong shoots, and pinch the rest (after the formation of the first fruit). It will not hurt to remove the side shoots (on the upper part of the plant), on which there are no fruit ovaries, as well as side shoots on the lower part.

It is imperative to get rid of stepchildren so that they do not interfere with the development of the plant.

Next to the side shoots, from the axils of the leaves, additional shoots often grow - stepchildren. Carry out the shoots until the length of the shoots has not exceeded 10 cm. In hot weather, stepchildren are formed most actively, so they will have to be removed regularly.

In the morning, periodically shake the trellis to "stir up" the plants - this promotes the formation of ovaries. Perform all manipulations as carefully as possible: pepper is considered a fragile plant, and it is easy to break it.

Harvesting sweet peppers

Harvesting is the most enjoyable activity and, it seems, is not difficult at all. But here, too, there are rules.

There are two stages of pepper maturity:

• Technical - comes 45 days after flowering; the fruits reach their maximum size, but remain green. Pepper can be eaten, but the fruits are not juicy and delicious.
• Biological - the fruits not only reached the required size, acquired a bright color, but also the seeds inside them ripened well.

Harvest as the fruit ripens, from early July through September. In no case should you pick off the peppers: they must be cut off with a pruner along with the stalk.

Peppers harvested at the stage of biological ripeness are the most delicious and juicy

Feel free to send poorly ripened peppers to ripening in the refrigerator - store them in an open plastic bag for a month. Uproot the bushes as soon as you remove the last fruit from them.

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Dispose of the harvest at your own discretion: eat fresh pepper, stuff it or harvest it for the winter. Bon Appetit!

Bell pepper is a delicious vegetable with a versatile purpose.It is used fresh for making salads, it is also pickled, fried, stuffed, baked and used in various other variations. For growing and planting such a crop in open ground, areas with a mild climate are suitable; in other areas, such a vegetable can be obtained using a polycarbonate greenhouse.

In such a greenhouse, you can plant a sweet and bitter variety even in early spring. It is much easier to care for and train even in the climate of Siberia, the Urals and the Moscow region.

Benefits of growing peppers in a polycarbonate greenhouse

Bell pepper considered a capricious culturethat grows only at a certain temperature, light, humidity, etc. It is practically impossible to create the necessary conditions in the open field, because there will always be a risk of adverse weather conditions.

In order to get a guaranteed yield, you should build a polycarbonate greenhouse, which also has the following advantages:

• possibility of early disembarkation seedlings, which will lead to the fastest formation of ovaries;
• bell peppers are especially sensitive to temperature changes, while a favorable microclimate can be maintained in the greenhouse;
• under cover, plantings will be protected from cold winds, excessive rainfall and unwanted dew. This factor makes plants the most immune to disease;
• indoors pepper care is minimized.

Keeping peppers in the greenhouse is minimized

For Bulgarian varieties, a polycarbonate greenhouse is best suited, because through the double material scattered sunlight gets on the plants, and not direct ones, thereby protecting the plantings from burns. Also in such a greenhouse the most comfortable temperature is maintained.

In the greenhouse, the Bulgarian will be protected from all natural disasters, so the quality and quantity of the harvest will depend only on the efforts, competent approach and skills of the gardener. It is necessary to cut off flowers in a timely manner, transplant seedlings at a certain time, and also carry out the formation of a bush if any tall variety is selected.

The correct timing for planting bell peppers in a greenhouse

On average, seedlings need to be planted in a greenhouse in mid-May, but more specific dates can be determined by the following indicators:

1. Saplings 60-70 days old should have at least 10 leaves;
2. The air temperature in the greenhouse will be a very important indicator; planting work can only be carried out when it stops dropping below 10-12 degrees;
3. In the southern and central regions, the greenhouse is already warming up by the end of April to mid-May... While in more northern areas, such indicators appear only by the beginning of summer.

Pepper seedlings are planted in greenhouse soil around mid-May

In order to speed up the process of heating the greenhouse, you should prepare "warm" beds... In the fall, the soil is dug to a depth of 30 centimeters, and small branches, straw, leaves, humus and other plant material are placed on the bottom, after which it is buried with soil and watered with water. As soon as snow falls, it is scattered over the soil in the greenhouse.

How to prepare a greenhouse and what top dressing to add to the soil

Before planting pepper seedlings in a greenhouse, it is necessary to prepare the soil, because the quality of the future harvest will depend on the degree of its fertility.

In the fall, the soil is dug up, cleaned of weeds, stones and other debris. Also at this time make organic fertilizers in the form of compost or rotted manure. For one square meter of soil, 1-2 buckets of fertilizers are used.

Immediately a few days before planting, the soil is watered with a solution of complex mineral fertilizers.

If the soil in the greenhouse is not fertile enough, the pepper must be fed

Distance when planting pepper seedlings

Seedlings of bell pepper are placed in a greenhouse, focusing on the area of ​​the room, the variety and the method of cultivation. For the most rational use of the territory, it is recommended to choose tall varieties... The rules for the arrangement of plants are as follows:

• the distance between the rows should be not less than 70-80 centimeters, otherwise, caring for the plants will be a little more difficult;
• tall varieties grown in 2 or 3 trunks are located at a distance of 40 centimeters from each other;
• undersized peppers are grown in 2 trunks, the distance between them is 25-30 centimeters.

Before planting, seedlings must be accustomed to the bright sun. To do this, they are taken out on the street every day during the week. The exposure time of plants in the open sun is gradually increased from 2 to 12 hours.

The planting of bell peppers is carried out on a cloudy day or in the evening... Seedlings are thoroughly watered with water and taken out of the pots so as not to damage the root system and the earthen ball. The seedlings are deepened in the same way as they grew in seedling containers.

Planting bell peppers is done in the evening or on a cloudy day.

Competent bush formation

The future harvest directly depends on the correct formation of plants.

In order to get a large number of large and tasty fruits, you must adhere to some rules:

• Plant formation begins only after it reaches height 25 centimeters... Young peppers may stop developing or die;
• The first flower bud, which is also called the crown bud, is removed immediately after emergence. In this case, the plant will begin to grow new shoots more actively;
• It is customary to form pepper into several shoots, for this, the strongest shoots are left from the first fork, the remaining one is pinched at the growing point and the top is cut off. Thus, the skeleton of the plant is created;
• Skeletal branches also begin to form forks, in the center of which a bud appears. Actions are carried out similarly to the previous ones: the strongest shoot is left, and the rest is pinched over the flower bud;
• All further branches are formed in the same way;
• Shoots and buds growing inside the bush are removed, because they cause thickening of the plantings and will not bring a high-quality harvest.

On every bush they leave no more than 20-25 fruits, the rest are deleted. It is also necessary to cut off diseased, damaged shoots and leaves growing below the skeleton.

Full formation of the bush is necessary only for tall varieties... On stunted plants, only abnormally growing, diseased and sterile parts are removed.

With a lack of lighting, plant buds may begin to fall off. In order to prevent such a problem, perform the following actions:

• after the peppers are fully ripe, the leaves located on the main stem should be removed;
• after harvesting, all foliage growing below the second branch is removed.

In order for the peppers to ripen larger, and their taste was more intense, 40-50 days before the end of the growing season, it is necessary to form and tear off the tops of the shoots.

Watering rules

Watering is a very important procedure for peppers, so it is carried out taking into account the following nuances:

• all work is done in the morning hoursso that by the evening the excess moisture has time to evaporate;
• 15 liters of water are used per 1 square meter of soil;
• before the formation of buds, the plants are watered once every 7-10 days; in hot weather, additional moisture is allowed;
• during flowering and fruiting, planting is watered once every 4-5 days, in hot weather, once every 2-3 days;
• only used for watering warm and clean waterto avoid hypothermia and plant infection.

For watering peppers at the root, it is convenient to use drip irrigation

Peppers are watered only at the root, using a watering can, hose or drip irrigation system.

A good approach to plant care

Feeding plants with nutrients is very important for the formation of large and beautiful fruits:

• during the growing season, the plants are fed once every 14 days nitrogen-containing fertilizers such as urea;
• during the formation of fruits, 1 time in 2 weeks is applied phosphoric fertilizers;
• Plant feeding is allowed 2-3 times per season mullein.

In addition to feeding and watering, pepper needs the following work:

• weeds take useful trace elements from the soil and shade peppers, so they must be removed regularly;
• after watering, the soil is loosened in order to improve its oxygen saturation;
• tall varieties need support, so they are tied to a support or trellis.

Tall peppers need a garter

Gardeners' mistakes when growing

1. One of the biggest mistakes gardeners make will be non-compliance with the planting scheme plants, because of which they do not receive the proper amount of sunlight and do not set fruits;
2. Pepper is the same afraid of both cold and heat, if the first problem can be dealt with with the help of a greenhouse shelter, then the second will be a little more difficult. After the temperature in the greenhouse warms up by more than 35 degrees, the polycarbonate is covered with another translucent material;
3. Peppers should be watered often and little by little, because with a lack or excess of moisture, the ovaries of plants very often fall off;
4. Loosening too deep can lead to damage to the root system, which in turn leads to the death of flowers and the death of the plant;
5. If the pepper stopped developing, then most likely a mistake was made before planting it. When planting seedlings in the ground, you can not bury the root collar of the plant.

Lack of nutrients in the soil can also lead to various problems:

• leaves twisted around the edges indicate a lack of potassium;
• if the underside of the leaf turns purple, then the pepper lacks phosphorus;
• grayish leaves indicate too little nitrogen;
• the absence of ovaries and the rapid growth of greenery indicates an excess of nitrogen, in this case, watering with an infusion of ash should be carried out.

Grayish pepper leaves indicate a lack of nitrogen.

Diseases and pests

Peppers, like many other plants, are susceptible to diseases and pests. When growing crops in a greenhouse, the following ailments can most often be found:

• black spot;
• bacterial cancer;
• powdery mildew;
• mosaic;
• late blight;
• gray rot, etc.

Insects most often appear:

• scoops;
• spider mite;
• beetle larvae;
• Colorado beetle;
• aphid;
• thrips.

Late blight of pepper when grown in a greenhouse

To combat pests, they are treated with karbofos or other insecticides, which can be purchased in specialized stores. When diseases appear, in many cases, treatment is useless, the affected plants are removed, they cannot be transplanted, and healthy ones are treated with fungicides.

To avoid such troubles, you should carry out preventive treatment of plants with Brodsky liquid and follow all the rules of agricultural technology.

Preparation and harvesting

You can harvest sweet bell peppers from the greenhouse until the onset of persistent cold weather... The first frosts will not be terrible for such plants.

Greenhouse peppers can be harvested before persistent cold weather

The work is carried out adhering to some rules:

1. In order to increase the amount of harvest, peppers are harvested at the stage of technical (incomplete) maturity. 1 time in 5-7 days;
2. Fruits harvested at the stage of biological (full) maturity are the most tasty and healthy, but their shelf life will be much shorter than that of peppers harvested during technical maturity;
3. The transition from technical maturity to biological maturity lasts from 3 to 20 days. The main factor influencing this process will be the air temperature, the higher it is, the faster maturation takes place;
4. The fruits are separated from the plant along with the stalk, using scissors, a knife or pruning shears.

Growing bell peppers in a greenhouse is available to all gardeners, regardless of their location. Thanks to this design, it is possible to harvest healthy and tasty fruits not only in the south, but also in more northern regions.