If you are growing peppers and find that they are not developing as fast as expected, various issues might be hindering their progress. Nevertheless, simple solutions exist to address these challenges efficiently.
One of the primary reasons peppers grow slowly is due to lack of sunlight. This can be caused by several factors, including where you plant them or the type of lighting in your garden.
1. The Plant Is Too Small For Fruiting
Peppers are an incredibly popular vegetable, loved by gardeners around the world who want to try their hand at spicy flavors. Unfortunately, growing peppers can also be challenging with several common problems that could leave your plants stunted or not producing fruit at all.
Plants can survive in mild winters, but they’re not as hardy as tomatoes and must be started from seed indoors early in spring. During their growing season, make sure your plants get plenty of sun and warm temperatures to grow healthy and productive.
Temperatures should range between 70-90 degrees F during the day and 60-65 degrees at night. If temperatures rise too high during the day, your pepper plants may lose their flowers and produce fewer fruits.
Pepper plants are particularly vulnerable during this time to pests and diseases. To combat this, grow them indoors in a greenhouse or other protective structure which will ensure an uninterrupted harvest.
Furthermore, make sure to water your plants frequently during dry spells. This will keep the soil properly hydrated and avoid leaving your garden vulnerable to disease or pests. Check the soil moisture with your fingers before watering; if it appears dry, wait a day or so before watering again.
2. Extreme Temperatures
Extreme temperatures can cause pepper plants to grow slowly or even die, impacting the quality of their fruits as well. Therefore, it’s important to be aware of this when planning your garden schedule.
Generally, peppers should not be planted until the soil temperature reaches 70 degrees Fahrenheit (24 degrees Celsius). You can either use black plastic to warm up the soil before planting or place your peppers in raised beds that receive plenty of sun during spring and summer.
Cold temperatures can be a real issue for pepper plants that have been transplanted outside too early in the season. Frosts that reach temperatures as low as 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) have been known to kill or severely stunt pepper plants.
You can solve this issue by growing your peppers indoors, either in a greenhouse, low tunnel or high tunnel. Furthermore, use heat lamps or other heating devices to help your plants remain warmer than usual during summer months for improved fruit production.
Additionally, you can promote the growth of your pepper plants by working some fertilizer into the soil around each one. You may use either a slow-release or liquid garden fertilizer for this purpose.
Finally, if your pepper plants aren’t flourishing, it could be due to a lack of sunlight. They require eight or more hours direct exposure daily in order to thrive. If you live in a hot climate, try shading your peppers during the hottest part of the day or planting them against a building that blocks out direct sunlight.
Nutrient deficiencies and pest infestation are two other issues to contend with in your garden. Aphids or other small insects such as worms can wreak havoc on your pepper plants by eating away at their leaves and reducing their capacity for absorption of essential nutrients from the soil.
3. Swings In Temperature
Pepper plants, like tomatoes, are highly sensitive to extreme temperatures. If temperatures exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit, blossoms typically fail and do not set fruit, leaving behind only small peppers.
Avoid this issue by planting your peppers in a sheltered area or using shade cloth, if available, to protect them from the sun. Additionally, keep your plants watered during hotter weather to prevent wilting and dropping leaves.
Maintaining an even soil moisture level is critical for growing peppers, but this can be challenging due to changes in weather and environmental conditions. To get the best results, poke your finger into the soil up until your second knuckle and water deeply if necessary.
If the plant isn’t getting enough water, it may lose its leaves and flowers or its fruits may shrivel up like raisins due to intense sunlight and high temperatures that evaporate the water within it before absorption.
Another cause of stunted growth can be lack of pollination, which is especially pertinent to peppers. They’re mostly pollinated by wind but also shed their pollen best during dry conditions.
Many varieties of peppers require other varieties for pollination, so your garden location could be interfering with this process. For instance, keep jalapeno and banana peppers separate so they don’t cross-pollinate.
Finally, the color of your peppers can affect their size and flavor. Green peppers are picked earlier in their growth phase and often have a grassier, spicy taste than red ones as they haven’t fully matured yet.
4. Overwatering
Overwatering can deprive pepper plants of vital nutrients they require for healthy growth, as well as prevent them from developing a strong root system in the soil which could lead to fatal diseases like root rot.
Over watering can be hard to detect, so the best approach is to check the soil surrounding your plant for signs of wilting. To do this, insert your finger into the soil and feel for moisture content.
If your plant appears healthy and strong, then it may simply need more water. You can achieve this by watering deeply with a hose or installing drip irrigation for added efficiency.
As a general guideline, pepper plants require about an inch of water per week. In the spring and fall this is usually sufficient; however, during the summer you may need to water twice daily or more depending on weather conditions.
Peppers require a soil that is rich in organic matter and well-balanced with fertilizer. Compost derived from steer manure, aged compost or garden-grade organic fertilizer can all be added to the soil surrounding your pepper plants before planting.
Alternatively, a layer of mulch can be placed around the base of your pepper plants to retain moisture and protect them from weeds. This also aids with nutrient uptake by their roots, leading to larger and healthier fruits.
Overwatering can be a problem for any plant, but peppers in particular are especially vulnerable to dehydration and wilting due to their delicate nature. When this happens, it’s essential to recognize the signs of overwatering and give your plant time to recover before continuing with watering.
5. Underwatering
Overwatering can be a common issue in pepper growing, stunting growth and wiping away nutrients that attract pests and disease. Whether your plants are grown in pots, raised beds or directly on the ground, overwatering is one of the worst things you can do for them.
Pepper plants require soil with a pH level between 5.5 and 7.0, as well as good drainage. To ensure success, always perform a soil test prior to planting and adjust any amendments based on your results.
Another possible reason your peppers might be drowning is due to their shallow root system. They require regular, but not excessive watering in order to thrive. You can check this by gently poking a few inches down in the soil with your fingernail, or invest in one of many soil moisture meters available on the market that take all guesswork out of watering your plants.
The ideal solution to this problem is to monitor your pepper plants’ watering schedule according to the time of day, weather conditions and your personal preference. If you must water your peppers, make sure they receive a slow soak and give the soil time to dry completely before watering again.
If your pepper plants have recently been transplanted from seedlings into a larger container and they aren’t growing as fast as expected, it may be due to what’s known as transplant shock. This condition occurs when the growth rate of the plant slows or stops completely upon moving into its new container.
To encourage new growth, prune away any dead roots or leaves and replace them with fresh ones. After the plant recovers from this pruning process, it should begin growing at an increased rate.
