The 2010 Chilli growing thread - it's scorching!
- Thread starter NickK
- Start date
Just bought another packet of prairie fire window sill chillis today, shook it just to make sure there was more than 1, which happened last time lol. Then i couldnt get the seed to germinate 
any tips on germinating the seed? I have airconditioning, but no airing cupboard. Do i just need a warm place?
any tips on germinating the seed? I have airconditioning, but no airing cupboard. Do i just need a warm place?Just bought another packet of prairie fire window sill chillis today, shook it just to make sure there was more than 1, which happened last time lol. Then i couldnt get the seed to germinate
All you need is to keep it at a stable temp at 23-27 and it's usually best to keep them in a sealed box so they don't dry out.
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My chilli's are growing well but they seem to be getting very lanky, they are about 2-3 inches tall and just starting to grow the second set of leaves. Im sure my chillis last year didnt get this tall so quick.
Its the same on all the leaves. But they still seem to be growing (very slowly).
Probably a little nutrient imbalance, but it's probably light levels.
What's the watering regime?
Are they the same species, the same type of potting soil used? Same location?
If they're getting tall you may need to support them with a stake then use loose wire to hold them. Additionally the breeze treatment works well too and given a continuous breeze for a few days whilst they're growing in this phase will help them.
Also ensure they have enough light.
It's worthy to note - if they are left to bend now then they will not grow straight. I made this mistake with my Jalapenos last year and then they spent the rest of their adult lives being propped up (they will still fruit etc).
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just thought I would give people a heads up Aldi will have "Windowsill Green Houses" (Basically a propagater with 5 x 6 cell units) in from thursday the 18th for the grand price of £1.99
I now have 1 of my jalapeno's shooting now hopefully the rest will start soon
EDIT: I'd post a link but I guess they might be considered a competitor?
I now have 1 of my jalapeno's shooting now hopefully the rest will start soon
EDIT: I'd post a link but I guess they might be considered a competitor?
:O this thread suprised me about as much as the one at christmas asking how to cook a turkey (my wife followed the instructions
)
I still havent planted anything yet, my wife doesnt like plants in the house because of the little flies so im relegated to the green house which my father in law bought me last year Hopefully i'll catch up with everyone
)I still havent planted anything yet, my wife doesnt like plants in the house because of the little flies
so im relegated to the green house which my father in law bought me last year Hopefully i'll catch up with everyone I thought I'd write a guide to growing phases.
0. Planting
Chilli seeds don't need deep planting. The seed only has a certain amount of energy stored and it will exhaust those energy reserves getting the root out and breaking the soil with the first set of leaves.
So plant shallow at about 1/2 a centimetre.
I'm going to use the example of a peat-substitute "pellet" which is sold dry then expands when water is added prior to planting.
1. Germination
All chilli seeds need at this stage is warmth and humidity. You're simulating spring in a warmer climate.
Planting in little peat-substitute pots helps as they will orientate with roots down and then pull their leaves out of the seed casing as they attempt to grow out of the soil.
2. First set of seedling leaves
These are the leaves that are pulled from the seed, they're usually long and slender probably won't look any different between species if you're planting more than one type of chilli.
At this stage they need light, you will want to try to keep the stem straight and if they flop around, unable to hold their own weight, you need to support them. Once they're a little larger then adding a fan just to cause a breeze helps strengthen the stem - the leaves should just be moving in the breeze and you may notice they slow slightly as their energy is diverted to thickening the stem.
The roots will be growing too - adding more roots, thickening and going deeper.
3. First set of proper leaves
These are the first set of proper leaves that the plant grows. Once they're growing and the stem has increased in length you may notice the roots start appearing at the side of the pellet then leave it until the roots start attempting to break through the pellet casing - at which point it's time to repot them into a bigger pot to allow the roots to grow and support the plants requirements.
You can just put them in a large pot but by staging you encourage the plant to use all the current soil first and the resulting root mass is denser.
The pot must have holes in the bottom - so put a pot saucer to catch any watering fall through.
When you repot - create a mix of 3:1:1 of soil, perlite, vermiculite. The two additional bits help stop the soil compacting and suffocating the roots; also they store moisture.
It should be worth noting that the majority of plants with roots in water will die through the rotting of the roots which then rots though the stem and kills the plant from within.
When watering you may notice that the water falls through quicker than you'd expect - that's fine.
Next add the mixture in to the pot so that when the pellet is placed into the put the seedling leaves are just at the level of the top of the pot. Next fill around the pellet and put soil around so that the seed leaves are almost sat on the surface of the soil.
What will happen is that the plant will sprout roots from the stem under the seed leaves this will strengthen the plant again.
As the stem grows it will raise the seed leaves above the pot and soil. At this stage the seed leaves are basically redundant as the main leaves are growing and providing energy.
Don't forget to push down the soil down slightly then give the plant a good watering - this time do it from the top (as the plant is at the top).
You may notice after repotting the plant will wilt and sulk. It's in shock and given a few days it will bounce back more spritely than before.
4. Leafing up
I would say that the next stage of the plant is just producing a load of leaves as it grows you may also notice the buds appear.
The plant will start to use more and more water as it grows. It's probably worth slowly adding some plant food every other watering.
To water a chilli plant it's best to use the 'dunk' method on the food watering - make up a enough water+food mix so that the plant can sit in the bucket. Then lower the pot slowly into the bucket so the water rises and soak through. Then leave for 5-10 minutes before allowing to drain (get a mesh over the bucket). The pot saucer will then catch any last remaining water.
5. Flowering
When your buds appear they'll grow alongside the plant, until they petals develop and the flower opens.
At this point you have to pollenate the flow using a peg, biro, or something that will allow the transfer of pollen. All you're looking todo is to collect pollen and then dip the stigma (the centre stalk) into the pollen where the pollen should stick to it.
If the flower dies and it appears to fall off at the base of the flower stalk then you may need to look at the watering, food and environment (cold draughts etc).
The more flowers that appear, you may also find the the water requirements increase.
6. Fruiting..
Once pollenated the stalk between the flower and the plant will thicken, the petals and stamen (make the pollen) will shrivel and fall away. Then the young fruit will slowly grow.
You may find the water requirement increases.
The stages of growth and ripening depend on the chilli species..
0. Planting
Chilli seeds don't need deep planting. The seed only has a certain amount of energy stored and it will exhaust those energy reserves getting the root out and breaking the soil with the first set of leaves.
So plant shallow at about 1/2 a centimetre.
I'm going to use the example of a peat-substitute "pellet" which is sold dry then expands when water is added prior to planting.
1. Germination
All chilli seeds need at this stage is warmth and humidity. You're simulating spring in a warmer climate.
Planting in little peat-substitute pots helps as they will orientate with roots down and then pull their leaves out of the seed casing as they attempt to grow out of the soil.
2. First set of seedling leaves
These are the leaves that are pulled from the seed, they're usually long and slender probably won't look any different between species if you're planting more than one type of chilli.
At this stage they need light, you will want to try to keep the stem straight and if they flop around, unable to hold their own weight, you need to support them. Once they're a little larger then adding a fan just to cause a breeze helps strengthen the stem - the leaves should just be moving in the breeze and you may notice they slow slightly as their energy is diverted to thickening the stem.
The roots will be growing too - adding more roots, thickening and going deeper.
3. First set of proper leaves
These are the first set of proper leaves that the plant grows. Once they're growing and the stem has increased in length you may notice the roots start appearing at the side of the pellet then leave it until the roots start attempting to break through the pellet casing - at which point it's time to repot them into a bigger pot to allow the roots to grow and support the plants requirements.
You can just put them in a large pot but by staging you encourage the plant to use all the current soil first and the resulting root mass is denser.
The pot must have holes in the bottom - so put a pot saucer to catch any watering fall through.
When you repot - create a mix of 3:1:1 of soil, perlite, vermiculite. The two additional bits help stop the soil compacting and suffocating the roots; also they store moisture.
It should be worth noting that the majority of plants with roots in water will die through the rotting of the roots which then rots though the stem and kills the plant from within.
When watering you may notice that the water falls through quicker than you'd expect - that's fine.
Next add the mixture in to the pot so that when the pellet is placed into the put the seedling leaves are just at the level of the top of the pot. Next fill around the pellet and put soil around so that the seed leaves are almost sat on the surface of the soil.
What will happen is that the plant will sprout roots from the stem under the seed leaves this will strengthen the plant again.
As the stem grows it will raise the seed leaves above the pot and soil. At this stage the seed leaves are basically redundant as the main leaves are growing and providing energy.
Don't forget to push down the soil down slightly then give the plant a good watering - this time do it from the top (as the plant is at the top).
You may notice after repotting the plant will wilt and sulk. It's in shock and given a few days it will bounce back more spritely than before.
4. Leafing up
I would say that the next stage of the plant is just producing a load of leaves as it grows you may also notice the buds appear.
The plant will start to use more and more water as it grows. It's probably worth slowly adding some plant food every other watering.
To water a chilli plant it's best to use the 'dunk' method on the food watering - make up a enough water+food mix so that the plant can sit in the bucket. Then lower the pot slowly into the bucket so the water rises and soak through. Then leave for 5-10 minutes before allowing to drain (get a mesh over the bucket). The pot saucer will then catch any last remaining water.
5. Flowering
When your buds appear they'll grow alongside the plant, until they petals develop and the flower opens.
At this point you have to pollenate the flow using a peg, biro, or something that will allow the transfer of pollen. All you're looking todo is to collect pollen and then dip the stigma (the centre stalk) into the pollen where the pollen should stick to it.
If the flower dies and it appears to fall off at the base of the flower stalk then you may need to look at the watering, food and environment (cold draughts etc).
The more flowers that appear, you may also find the the water requirements increase.
6. Fruiting..
Once pollenated the stalk between the flower and the plant will thicken, the petals and stamen (make the pollen) will shrivel and fall away. Then the young fruit will slowly grow.
You may find the water requirement increases.
The stages of growth and ripening depend on the chilli species..
Sorry NickK I know you said it somewhere is it 2:1:1 ratio for the compost:vermicleearlite.
Yes, although thinking about it it's probably better with more soil in the mix. In the 2:1:1 ratio the water will go straight through easily (which can mean it become dry on a hot day) whereas in a 3:1:1 the additional soil help retain a little more moisture.
At the moment they are growing in those jiffy pellets, although they're the peat ones and not the peat substitute ones. The guy on ebay said these would be fine for chili plants.
I water them once a day with about 1ml per plant. The pellets are only small 30mm ones so I didn't want to get the soil too damp.
I'll have to see if i can move them to another window but being single glazed as soon as the sun goes in the window sill gets very cold.
Nice
When did you sow them?
They were started off at the end of December beginning of January iirc. They have been on a south facing window ledge ever since they come out of the propagator.
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Soldato
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Nice progress! My naga is getting some leaves back on it now rather than just the stalk so here's hoping it'll be a good hot year!
Soldato
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My really thick stalk is taking ages for the little buds to come out as leaves, but the smaller one has sprouted nicely. They are funny souls!
Think I might look at that Aldi thing though
Think I might look at that Aldi thing though