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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08 Jul 09, (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
This link is pertinent to a previous poster's query and might come in handy for others. I found it (and this site) with the same Google search... www.wildfirechilli.com.au/
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06 Jul 09, Anne (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I'm having terrible trouble with possums eating my chillies (leaves & fruit - even habaneros!). I now have a small greenhouse but it's not big enough for all the varieties I want to grow. Does anyone have experience with a possum deterrent? I've tried various over-the-counter so-called deterrents and all have been crap. Did a Google search & ended up on a CSIRO site where they suggested a home made spray made of, guess what, chillies! Needless to say I didn't bother with that one!
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31 May 13, Paige (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Im also having alot of trouble with possums. They are eating all my vegie plants as well as my snap dragons and other flowers. I have tried fencing and nets but they still manage to diestroy my plants
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27 May 11, Sarah (Australia - tropical climate)
I had the same problem. I netted the garden thinking it was possums, but I caught rats in the netted sections several times. One night they ate over 60 ripe chillis and all my halerpinos. I got a cat shortly after, and she brought in a lot of rats at first. As the rats declined, the chillis increased. I now have a full pot of them, and they are now un-netted.
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26 Jun 09, Dis (Australia - temperate climate)
Thank youJPVD that's the one now where does one get seeds?
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18 Jun 09, JPVD (Australia - temperate climate)
Scotch bonnet, then habanero (closely related) and now the mighty Bhut Jolokia.
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18 Jun 09, (Australia - temperate climate)
I have heard that there is a chilli that is hotter than the Scott Bonnet Any body know anything about it?
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06 May 09, Erica Sampson (Australia - temperate climate)
To Hans Zerbes re getting seeds from chili plants. Leave one or two of the healthiest and best looking chilis on the bush to ripen fully. Pick when full color is achieved and hang them on a string (needle and cotton through the stem) to dry. Take out the seeds when they are fully dried and save until planting time. It wouldnt hurt to get another (same type) chili plant from a nursery to help with healthy cross-pollination so that you maintain a good genetic strength.
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05 May 09, Hans Zerbes (Australia - temperate climate)
Love jalapeno's I have about 25 bushes planted close together, grew them from i saved plant, will I be able to repeat this? will the existing give another crop next season We have no frost (Coastal) Still productive now. Hans
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16 Apr 20, Tom jivani (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi how many years can repeat fruiting this jalapeno's chilli ?
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Showing 381 - 390 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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