Growing Chilli peppers, also Hot peppers

Capsicum sp. : Solanaceae / the nightshade family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    S                  
        T T            
        P P            

(Best months for growing Chilli peppers in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • S = Plant undercover in seed trays
  • T = Plant out (transplant) seedlings
  • P = Sow seed
  • Grow in seed trays, and plant out in 4-6 weeks. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 64°F and 95°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 16 - 20 inches apart
  • Harvest in 9-11 weeks. Wear gloves to pick 'hot' chillies.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Best grown in a separate bed as chillies need plenty of light and air circulation.

Your comments and tips

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15 Sep 17, Poida (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Donna, Take the chilli out of the pot, check the soil. You most likely find grubs residing under there or those rolly grub. We got rid of them by hands, feed them to the chicken. No chemical needed. You chilli will recovered if not too damaged.
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20 Dec 15, Peter (Australia - arid climate)
Snails love small chilli plants so when you plant put some snail pallets around. Chilli doesn't grow well in small cup size plastic pots so don't use them or if you buy a chilli plant in one transplant to a large ceramic pot immediately. Grow from seed in a sandy garden bed seems to work very well to germinate, when the plants are as tall as your finger transplant them into a largish ceramic pot 2 litre minimum and don't be scared of leaving them in a large pot as they grow well in pots. Use a reasonable quality potting mix and water every day, mornings best, Full sun is best so find a spot where the chilli gets the maximum sun possible. The potting mix will have enough fertiliser for the next growth stage so don't add any fertiliser for the next month. Then add blood and bone and watch them grow quickly and start to flower. I've had really good results with blood and bone so have not needed to try alternative fertilisers like manure. The beauty of blood and bone is it is almost impossible to burn or kill your plants. Finally add potash fertiliser a month after the blood and bone to ensure the chilli bush has plenty of fruit. The chilli's ive grown in big pots grow jjust as good as the ones in the garden beds if not better. L put that down to the warm soil and potting mix. I live in Perth too so I hope you have luck with your chilli's
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04 Nov 15, braydon (Australia - temperate climate)
can i please havesome gardening tips
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04 Nov 15, Egbert (South Africa - Summer rainfall climate)
Is it safe to plant chilli seedlings when the surface is dry or must I wait for the rain to fall first,because I'm in Limpopo and it hasn't rained in ages and I would like to start planting my chilli seedlings.so am a bit panicking because of the dry season but I have a borehole.please advise me on what to do.
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27 Oct 15, Annie lane (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi, interested to know is the any other colour habanero, I have yellow and red thanks
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18 Jan 16, tastyvish (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Yes, there is white variety having fruits like jelly bin ..bit temperamental but once established you could boast about having rare variety. i grow in my garden...
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16 Nov 15, Matt (Australia - tropical climate)
We have some chocolate habanero growing if your near cairns Come grab Some
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16 Dec 15, Daniel (Australia - tropical climate)
Hi Matt, I have moved to Cairns recently and am very interested in growing Habaneros and other chillies. Could I grab some seeds from you? Would love to get some general advice on varieties and local conditions too. Cheers
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21 Nov 17, William R (Australia - tropical climate)
Hi Daniel We have a lot of red habonero seeds from two bushes. You are welcome to some.
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16 Sep 15, Pete (Australia - temperate climate)
Check the if stems are too deep in the soil, the roots should start just under the soil surface (1-2mm). If they are suffering from stem rot, the water and food cannot move up and down between the leaves and roots and the plant will dry out. If they have stem rot it may be difficult to save them.
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Showing 221 - 230 of 432 comments
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Tammi - could be mice or rats, they can do this also. Its happened to me in Perth. Megan - Chillies will only grow vigourously during the warmer months, depending on where you are, they will either slow down, go dormant, or die altogether, depening on how cold it gets, a severe frowst will kill them. Wait until summer, they will flower all over, and give you lots of fruit. If you want a hotter chilli, water them less, let them dry out a little (but not all the way). A stressed plant will give hotter fruit. If you want hotter fruit still, get a different variety. Look for a chinense variety. Gareth - Most people raise chillies in punnets/starter pots, then into medium pots (10-15 cm across at the top), then onto final larger pots or garden beds when they have outgrown the medium one. You can tell when they are ready to be moved as they will have roots coming out the bottom. Julie - feed them with tomato food, probably in liquid form, is pretty good for flowering chillies, also, mulch and compost the soil if you can. Murray - depending on the variety, chillies can take up to 6 weeks to germinate, and they also need warm humid conditions to do so. Chillies are originally grown in warmer humid places, so they better you can recreate this, the happier they are. Keep them moist, (but not wet or soggy), perhaps put half a coke bottle over them to keep the humidity up, put them somewhere warm, they dont need sunlight to germinate, so the top of the fridge will do. When they do germinate, move them to a sunny windowsill or similar until they are ready to be hardened off to go outside. Michael - an NPK ratio of 10-5-10 for when they are growing works well, then 5-10-10 for flowering, if using bought fertilizers. Otherwise, a well composted mix of garden waste should work well, with some animal manure thrown in. Dont forget to mulch the soil to stop evaporation.

- Simon

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