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Peppers are tasty and healthy. The red, yellow and green fruits are rich in vitamins and trace elements. It can also be grown in the garden. We show what is important when pricking your peppers.
In a nutshell
- Perennial in Central and South America, annual in Central Europe
- Sow February to March on the windowsill
- Pricking required for unhindered growth
- Plant outdoors at the end of April to May
paprika
Just like the tomato, the pepper (Capsicum) belongs to the nightshade family (Solanaceae). Depending on their spiciness, the vegetables are subdivided into chili, chili peppers, hot peppers and sweet peppers. The capsaicin it contains is responsible for the sharpness.
In its homeland, the subtropical regions of Central and South America, the pepper plant grows perennial. In Central Europe it is cultivated as an annual.
By the way, Columbus brought the plant with the tasty fruits to Europe.
More and more hobby gardeners are growing peppers in greenhouses or outdoors. If you pay attention to the needs of the plants and prick them out at the right time, you can achieve good yields.
Preculture required
Paprika is an extremely cold-sensitive plant. For this reason, the sowing must take place in a warm, sheltered place before you can prick out the peppers. Sowing directly into the bed is possible from May. However, the success is less than with pre-culture in a heated room.
Manual:
- Sow You pepper seeds between February and March in bowls with potting soil or peat pots.
- Put them on one warm place.
- spray the bowls and pots regularly with water.
- After about three weeks show the cotyledons. Two weeks later, foliage leaves can also be seen.
- pricking the seedlings from the seed tray.
- put one pepper plant in each pot.
- Water the pots regularly.
- When the plants are well established, add them Outside temperatures of around 14 degrees Celsius on the balcony to prepare them for moving outdoors.
- end of May, after the ice saints, you can use the peppers plant in the bed.
Tip: If you don't have a garden, you can successfully cultivate peppers as a container plant. Use a large pot for each plant or a disused mason's tub with a water outlet for three plants.
substrate
Pepper seeds are first sown in potting soil. This is low in nutrients, which promotes root growth. We recommend planting the plants in pots with a mixture of potting soil and garden soil even after pricking out. With this mixture, the demands of the vegetable plants can be well met. In this way, stable, healthy roots develop until they are planted outdoors.
time
The best time to prick out the small seedlings of the peppers is a few weeks after sowing, when two small leaflets appear in addition to the two cotyledons.
Pepper seedlings before pricking out
pot size
We recommend transplanting each plantlet into a plastic or clay pot with a diameter of eight to ten centimeters after transplanting.
pricking
Pricking comes from the French word "picer" for "to prick". This means poking out a little plant with the help of a pricking stick and moving it to another location. Usually seeds are first sown in seed trays. After a few days, small plants appear densely packed. In order to give them the necessary space, they are pricked out and planted in another place.
Reasons At first glance, pricking out peppers seems to be quite a hassle. But the effort is worth it! Transplanting the seedlings prevents competition for nutrients, water and light. If you don't prick the peppers, you will get thin, puny pepper plants. If they grow tightly packed, they have to sprout up quickly in order to be able to supply themselves with sufficient light. Rapid height growth results in thin plants. After pricking out, each plant gets enough space and enough light. The result of pricking out are healthy and robust plants.
Prick the peppers - instructions
Tool: Pricking stick, pricking fork, small spoon or shish kebab stick
In individual pots, the peppers can grow undisturbed after pricking out.
- fill small potty with a Mixture of growing and garden soil.
- Press the surface a bit firm.
- spray the substrate with water.
- Prick with that Pricking stick next to a seedling into the earth.
- to leverage the seedling carefully.
- Prepare at the new location small planting hole before.
- Insert the seedling carefully.
- Press the soil around the seedling.
- When all healthy pepper plants have been transplanted, spray the substrate with water at room temperature.
- Feed the pepper plants regularly with water.
Notice: Only prick out the strongest plants.
frequently asked Questions
Why isn't just one seed sown in each peat pot?Pepper seeds do not germinate as reliably as other varieties. For this reason three or four seeds are sown per pot. This procedure saves space and resources. The most robust seedlings are selected by pricking out.
How dangerous is it if a piece of the root breaks off when pricking out?Even if you are very careful, a piece of the root can break off when pricking out, or part of the fine hairy roots can remain in the ground. In most cases this is not a problem. Put the plant in the new pot and press down the substrate well. Water the plant gently. She soon recovered! However, if the main root breaks off, the seedling can no longer be saved.
How deep are the plants placed in the substrate when transplanting?Place the pepper seedlings in the substrate of the new pot up to just below the first two cotyledons.
What do pike sets contain?Pricking sets consist of a pricking stick and a spatula or small spoon. With this set, the careful removal of the sensitive plants succeeds very well. Alternatively, you can use a skewer and a wooden spatula or small spoon.