Growing Chillies - Growing Chillies

Anatomy of a Chili Pepper

Chili is derived from the term chil given by the Arawak Indians who were the ones that first cultivated it. When Columbus first discovered the chili, he brought it back to Spain where they add the ‘e’ to it. Chili is the oldest spice in the world with archaeological specimens being found that dated to as far back to 7,000 B.C. in New Mexico.

Today, there are many variety of chili peppers including color, degree of spiciness, and shapes. Chili not only add spiciness to the food but it is also rich in antioxidant and rich in vitamin A and C. The anatomy of a chili pepper is comprises of many parts including peduncle, calyx, capsaicin glands, placenta, exocarp, mesocarp, endocarp, seed and apex.

Peduncle is the short branch on top of the pepper that remains when you harvest it from the plant.

Calyx is the green crown on top of the fruit where the penduncle is attach to. It is the remnant of the flower that has already transformed into the fruit. Preserving the calyx can keep the fruit fresher for a longer time.

Capsaicin glands is the central seed stem inside of the pepper that is joined to the placenta near the top. It is located in between the placenta and endocarp. Many people wrongly presumed that the seeds are responsible for producing the capsaicin glands.

Placenta is the round part on top where the seeds are attached to.

Exocarp is the outermost layer of the pepper which comprises the skin.

Mesocarp is the fleshy part under the skin of the pepper which is also called exocarp.

Endocarp is the inner membrane layer that surrounds the seeds.

The seed inside the pepper has low level of moisture but a high level of lecithin. Chili pepper seeds are edible. However, most people will prefer to discard the seeds as they are hard to chew and do not add any spicy flavor to the cooking.

The seeds are hot but they are not the hottest part. The white pith or rib that hold the seeds and the part that connect to the shoulder are believed to be the hottest part. The white pith is about 100 times hotter that the pepper flesh.

Apex is the bottom tip of the pepper fruit. The apex and peduncle are two areas that have the least capsaicin so biting these areas first will be less hotter.

When preparing chili pepper, you may want to wear a pair of glove to prevent the capsaicin oil from coming in contact to your skin. The capsaicin oil in the pepper can burn your skin and cause blistering.

If your skin get burned, you can apply some white vinegar to sooth it. Skin burn can occur especially when you are preparing a pepper with high Scoville scale such as Habanero.

How to Grow Serrano Chili Pepper

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The Serrano Chili Pepper, also known as Capsicum annuum longum, was originally grown in the mountains of Mexico. The name serrano, is derived from the term sierras which refers to the mountains in that region.

Serrano chili pepper is several times hotter than the Japapeno pepper, scoring a Scoville Scale rating in between 10,000 – 25,000.

Because of the spicy taste it gives, it is often used in hot dishes like Pico de Gallo. The serrano pepper size is about 1-2 inches and they come in dark green and red colours.

Planting the Serrano Chili Pepper

The first step is to let the serrano chili pepper seeds sprout and it is done by sowing the seeds ¼ inch deep in a seedling tray. It needs some warmth and sunshine in order to germinate properly.

Since you have to put it indoor, you can place a heat mat under the tray and put the tray near a window with lots of sun exposure. Artificial lighting is a good substitute if not enough sun is entering through the window and growing chilies indoors is possible.

After 2 – 3 weeks, you can transplant the young plant into the garden. There should be a distance of about 12 – 48 inches apart each young plant. Each row should be at least 24 – 36 inches apart.

Peppers like warm temperature so you should plant them in places that get lots of sun. The area of the garden where you plant the peppers should have a fertile soil with a PH between 6.2 – 7. The soil must be well drained otherwise it will cause disease like leaf spot.

If you want it to yield heavy fruit, your soil must be rich in potassium, calcium, and phosphorus. In addition, you must regularly water the plant and make sure the soil is moist all the time. If your soil don’t have enough nutrients, you can put 3 – 5 inches of compost above the soil. Organic fertilizer is best used to fertilize the plant.

When growing them early in spring, you can use a row cover to keep them warm and protect them from the cold. If a surprise spring frost is in the forecast, it is advised that you use a frost blanket to cover and protect the young plants. The plant tend to do poorly and the leaves may turn yellowish when the temperature falls below 55º F or 12º C.

Harvesting the Serrano Chili Pepper

The chili is ready for harvesting in 2.5 months starting from the day you transplant them. It will yield a lot of small waxy green fruits in 60 days. After 80 – 100 days, the green peppers will be big and ripe in red, yellow or orange color.

When harvesting, you simply use a pruning shear or sharp knife to nip off the chili pepper. The fruit can last longer if you keep the stem attached. After harvesting the peppers, you can keep them in a air tight plastic bag or plastic container in the refrigerator.

Growing Chillies Indoors: Easiest Chillies to Grow Indoors

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Three Easy to Grow Chillies

Daemon Red chili or Thai Chili is very suitable for growing indoors. These peppers are quite small, approximately five to six centimeters long. They are usually red and thin. You can grow them at your home, greenhouse or anywhere else inside. The time of maturity is four to five months. After that, they can be served together with a meal. Daemon Red peppers are very hot but delicious chilies. Consumers have an interesting and pleasant experience while eating them.

The Bhut Jolokia is an extremely hot pepper that grows very well indoors. This chili is great for those who love dangerous pepper varieties. It is definitely one of the hottest chilis in the world, so the consumers should be highly careful while eating it. The Bhut Jolokia originates from Assam in Northeast India and can be found in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Furthermore, this pepper is even used by the Indian army, and it is an interesting fact worth mentioning. The Indian Ministry of Defense replaced controversial pellet bullets with pepper grenades. And the Bhut Jolokia is the main component.

The Inferno chili is a moderately hot pepper, and it is not as dangerous as these chilies above. Its country of origin is Hungary, and because of that the Inferno is also called “Hungarian Hot Wax.” The pods can be yellow, light green, orange and red. Home breeding is an ideal condition for the variety, however, it should be totally exposed to Sun. The Inferno has a quite usual look with a normal shape and an average size.

The best place for growth is definitely somewhere near a window because they need a daylight and Sun rays. You can even make a small plant on the balcony, and the peppers will grow during summer.

To start, you will need the seeds. Fortunately, you can buy seeds easily and the price is pretty affordable. After that, you should also prepare potting soil, water, and a seed tray. If you do not have them, both can be bought online or in a specialized shop.

Their prices vary, so pay attention while buying. When you have all this, the seeds are ready to be planted. Firstly, put potting soil into the seed tray, and then place the seeds an inch down into the soil.

Now, they are ready to be watered, so you should do that. Pay attention to your chili plants, watch them every day, and repeat watering when the soil becomes dry.

Chilli Plant Care: Caring for Sick Chili Plants

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Pepper plants are usually a quite resistant, and they only require a minimal care.

That is one of the reasons why many people love to have them in a garden.

However, they are not fully immune to different infections, and there are some types of plant diseases that can harm them. Peppers need to have appropriate conditions for growing. It is the first requirement for their successful development.

Like other plants, they cannot grow without water and Sun. Regardless of their health conditions, they have to be properly exposed to these elements. If they do not receive enough water or Sun, they would be weaker and therefore more susceptible to various illnesses.

Also, if chilies receive too much water on a daily basis, some disease may occur as an outcome.

For example, excessive watering can attract Aphids, which are a real nightmare for chili plants.

They are hard to spot at the beginning, and when you finally notice them, it is usually too late, and your garden is already partially or totally destroyed.

Also, poor pollination can be dangerous for peppers, and like misuse of water, it may cause different problems and attract various plant diseases.

Some of these are Thrips, Viruses, and Spider Mites. Chemical injury can harm chilies too. It often attracts various illnesses, such as Powdery Mildew, Cercospora Leaf Spot, and Viruses among others.

Temperature is also very important for pepper developing. Chilies may have a slow growth if it is too low. They may also fail to ripen because of the same reason. If you notice any of these symptoms, you would know what a potential cause is.

Eliminating the source will eventually cure your sick chilies. Always follow the basic rules to prevent any of these problems. Protect your pepper plants as good as you can. Use enough water and light. Adjust temperature. Expose your plants to sun rays.

Use good soil and enough pollination. Avoid chemical injuries at all cost.

It is all in your hands. If you create good conditions for your chilies, their illness will pass, and you will have no problems anymore.

How to Make Mulch for Chilies

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Mulching is usually an easy and simple process that prevents weed growth. Healthy chili gardens always preserve more water during hot days and also have less weed among plants. Except in a garden, mulch can be used for flower protection as well. You can find out how to make mulch easily in the text below.

There are two types of mulch. The first is organic, and the second one is non-organic. For organic chili mulching, you can use straw, grass, chopped leaves, compost, sawdust, wood shavings, paper, scalloped wood, and pine needles.

Non-organic chili mulch materials are black plastic, stones, gravel, and geo-textile. However, this text clearly explains how to make organic mulch, while non-organic mulching is left for a new one.

With organic mulch, it is important to cover the weed that already exists in your garden, and the cover layer should be thick enough. Remember these two basic rules and always follow them. That way, the weed regeneration is prevented, and your garden is safe.

The layer should be from ten to fifteen centimeters thick, while in parts with insufficient sun rays, it should be from five to eight centimeters thick. The structure of mulch can be different, so you can use various materials to make it.

Stores sell corn shavings and wood as a decoration and you can buy them there. Still, it is the best to use your own corn shavings that you made for yourself. Also, if you know someone who has made it, you may borrow a few packs from him.

Fallen leaves can be found almost everywhere especially during autumn. You can ditch these leaves to make free but quality mulch. The fallen leaves can be minced up with a lawnmower that has a grass catcher in the back.

This mulch is ideal for chilies, but it is not suitable for one-year plants because it takes too much time to decompose and may interfere with your cultivation.

The grass is another organic material that can be used for making chilli mulch. It is particularly good for peppers because it contains a large amount of nitrogen.

Pine needles are also useful material for mulch making. Water can easily pass through them, and they gradually break down.

Compost is good material for mulching too. It will enrich the soil, preserve water, and the plants will get a larger amount of minerals from it. Use a thin layer of compost while mulching and put a thin layer of leaves over it. This way, you will achieve the maximum.

Straw is giving the best results in comparison with other organic materials. It keeps moisture, decomposes quickly, and stops weed growth. So you should definitely consider it. However, keep it away from the chili plants because it may attract snails.

Wilting Chili Plants

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If you notice wilting chili plants, you should pay attention as something is wrong!

Sometimes, chili plants wilt because they’re baking in the hot, hot sun. Another cause of wilting chili plants is the amount of water you are providing them, this can range from too little or too much moisture.

Why do Chili Plants Wilt?

When we get thirsty, our bodies are letting us know that we need more water. It is a feeling we have. Part of the reason for this is that we have a skeleton structure that keeps us standing straight. Green leafy plants don’t have a similar structure, they use water pressure to keep them standing upright. You can think of the plant leaf as being similar to a garden hose.

With the water turned off, the hose is limp–its wilted. When we turn the water on, the water pressure inside the hose increases and the hose becomes stiff. The stiff hose no longer looks wilted. Plants work exactly the same way. In order for a plant to maintain its normal shape, it needs a certain amount of water pressure inside the leaves.

Water pressure is maintained in the leaves by the roots which are absorbing water from the soil and pumping it up into the leaves. Leaves naturally loose water, especially during photosynthesis. Water is constantly flowing from the roots to the leaves. If roots can’t get enough water, they can’t maintain the correct water pressure in the plant and the leaves drop or wilt.

If the plant is overwatered, fungal wilt is probably to blame. Spotted wilted pepper plants, leaves that are dotted with brown or black spots, yellow marking on the leaves or stem are sigs of fungal wilt.

Damaged Roots During Transplanting

When you move a plant, it will damage some of its precious roots. It is quite normal for such a plant to show wilting right after being moved.
It is quite common for people to water far too much after transplanting chilis in order to try and fix the problem. Too much water does not help the problem. One solution is to move chili plants in spring and fall when the temperatures are lower and plants are not requiring full energy. At these times of the year, water evaporation from leaves is less and you get less wilting.

If you do move a plant in summer, it will wilt much less if it is covered for a week or two so that it receives less sunlight.

How to fix wilting Chili Plants?

Take a careful look at the environment and the soil for clues.
If the weather is hot and the soil is dry, considering covering the chili plant or moving it to an alternate location. Water the soil twice daily ensuring that the soil is moistened and water doesn’t pool. If the soil is already moist watering can make things worse. Do not overwater and considering watering the plant less. Ensure the soil is well-draining.

Prevention is the best cure to avoid wilting chilis. Take precautions to ensure that the disease doesn’t spread or reappear if its fungal wilts from overwater these are soil-borne and can live in the soil for many years. it will take time before planting in the old location is safe again. Choose a new garden location and keep it free of fungus by increasing drainage and only watering when the top 2 inches of soil feel dry to the touch.

How to Grow and Care for Jalapenos

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Jalapeno is a type of hot pepper that comes from the same family of plants as cayenne and cherry. This popular pepper originally comes from a place called Xalapa, in the capital of Velacruz, in Mexico. It is often served stuffed with seafood, and cheese and also used as a spice for tacos in Mexican dishes. Jalapeno has a rating in between 2,500 – 8000 Scoville heat units, which is a medium range of chili intensity. Jalapeno looks like a hard plant to grow but you can actually grow it easily by providing adequate sunlight and water.

Planting and Germinating the Seeds

Firstly, you must decide how many jalapenos plants you want to grow. Then, you can prepare the containers for sowing the seeds accordingly. The container should have holes at the bottom so that the water can drain away when you water it. You can use seedling pots or soda bottle as the container. In each container, you can plant 2 – 3 seeds. The seeds are to be sowed at a depth of 1/4 inch. Not all seeds will sprout so you may want to sow extra seeds.

Jalapenos don’t like cold temperatures so you must wait for the temperature to warm up to 75 – 85 before sowing the seeds. It takes 2 – 3 weeks for jalapenos seeds to sprout. After 3 weeks, you can move each seedling that has sprouted to a 3 inch diameter pot. It is to be placed on a sunny spot indoor, for example, the window sill or under the grow lights.

The potting mix of the sprouted seedlings must be kept moist but not too wet so as to damage the roots. You only need to water the seedlings 1 – 2 times per week to maintain the moisture level. You will have to gradually move the seedlings to a few more bigger pots until it grow a young plant. This should take about 8 – 12 weeks. The final container size will be about 2 gallons. Terra cotta container is the best option for the final container. They offer better result compared to plastic containers.

Transplanting the Young Chili Plant Outside

The young chili plant cannot be moved outside immediately. Instead, you will need to slowly expose it to outdoor conditions to allow it to adapt to the new environment. When it is time to move the plant outside, be sure to plant it in a place that get at least 8 – 10 hours of direct sunlight. The transplanted plants should be about 14 – 16 inches apart to ensure that there is enough air circulation.

Caring for the Jalapeno Plant

The best potting soil for jalapenos is organic, rich in nutrition with good drainage quality. Fertilizer should be added about 1 month after you have transplanted the young plant outdoor. You will want to choose a fertilizer with a NPK of 10-10-10. The addition of fertilizer ensures that the chili plant will receive an adequate amount of nutrition after all the existing nutrients in the soil has been used up. New fertilizer can be added on the third watering. There is no need to add any fertilizer if you are using a high quality potting soil. Diluted fertilizer is easier for the plant to absorb compared to solid fertilizer.

Jalapenos are night shade plants just like tomatoes and potatoes so make sure you don’t plant them close to each other. This is because the pests from your tomato and potato plant can go to the jalapeno plant. Some of the common pests are cutworms, aphids, and flea beetles. You can spray neem oil keep it away from these pests. Additionally, you should hand pick the caterpillar, snails, and worms on your jalapeno plant.

Harvesting the Peppers

It takes at least 90 – 120 days for you to see the first crop of your pepper plant. When the pepper plant is mature, it will grow to 2 – 3 feet tall. You may see 30 – 40 pepper pods hanging from the plant. The pods will grow to 2 – 3 inches long before it is ready for harvesting. If it yield too much peppers, you can use a plant cage as support. You can harvest pods from a jalapeno plant for a few times. You can harvest the jalapenos green or red. Or, you can wait until the full time at the end of 120 days to pick the jalapenos when it is ripened to red color.

Picking the peppers early can force more new blossoms. Green jalapenos are not yet ripened so they have milder taste. When it is red, it will have a medium intensity heat flavor. Some people have also picked jalapenos with a mix of red and green color. They make a nice presentation for their dishes. To harvest, you simply pinch the pepper off the vine gently. You can store the pepper fresh in your refrigerator for up to 2 – 3 weeks.

Gardening Guide on Growing Bell Peppers in Container

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Bell pepper, also known as Capsicum anuum, is a must have vegetable crop in your garden if you live in a place with warmer climate. Bell peppers have a crispy sweet flavor which makes it a great addition to a variety of dishes. It does not taste hot like its relatives the chili hot peppers because it does not contain the capsaicin compound.

There are several varieties of bell peppers. The green bell pepper is the most common and cheapest in the supermarket. Next to green peppers on the aisle are the red, yellow, and purple peppers. Green pepper are often cheaper because they are picked early. All colors of peppers keep their colors when cooked except the purple peppers which turned to dark muddy color when cooked. You can buy bell pepper seeds at your local nurseries or online from amazon. You should always look for varieties that can ripen fast. Some of the recommended varieties are lady bell, gypsy, orange sun, and Golden California Wonder.

When to Sow Bell Peppers

Bell peppers like cool temperature in between 21 – 25 degrees. It will not grow well if it is too hot or too cold. Therefore, the best time to plant it is a few weeks before Spring in February or in the Fall time in September.

Sowing the Seed

A good pot of seeding mix will consist of cocopeat, vermicompost, and sand. When you plant the seed, make sure you don’t bury it too deep. You only need to bury the seed about 1 cm deep. If the seed is sown too deep, you will not be able to see the leaf when it germinate. The birds always like to eat new seeds that are just sown so you should cover your pot with a polyethylene cloth.

The pot with the newly sown seeds should be exposed to at least 4 hours of sun in order for germination to take place effectively. Bell peppers is like a small tree and it will produce lots of small branches with leaves when mature. So, if you plant in a big pot, you can at most plant only 2 seeds. The seeds should be planted about 6 – 8 inches apart.

Preparing the Soil for Transplanting Bell Peppers

Bell pepper likes loamy soil that is well drained. You can make the soil well drained by lining it with porous landscape fabric or plastic. If you use plastic, makes sure to punch holes on the locations where the drainage holes are. The soil should not be too wet and muddy or else the root will become rotten. It also should not be too dry until it show cracked lines as it will result in blossoms drop.

Prior to transplanting, you can add aged compost into the soil. The aged compost will work as fertilizer and as mulch to assist in the retaining of the water. It is recommended to continue adding other fertilizers for maintaining the bell pepper plant. For example, you can add compost tea or fish emulsion solution every 10 days or so.

High nitrogen fertilizer can prevent the plant from bearing fruits so it should be avoided. Many people also like to add plastic mulch to increase the yields. On the other hand, organic compost mulch can lower the amount of weeds and reduce the need for watering. Organic compost mulch does not help in any way in the fruit yield.

Caring for the Young Bell Pepper Plants

After the young plants are successfully transplanted, you must keep watch for weeds that will spring up every now and then in the planting beds. In addition, you should also don’t forget to water 1 – 2 inches of water every week. You need to keep in mind that pepper is a heat sensitive plant which means you must water daily if you live in an area with warm climate. You can apply a solution that consists of a mixture of detergent and water on your pepper plant to keep away the aphids and whiteflies. It is important to keep the bell pepper plant in a place with the suitable temperature otherwise it will not bear fruits.

Harvesting and Storage

Usually, it takes around 2 months for the bell pepper plant to grow to full size. It is best to harvest the peppers when it has changed to the color you want. For example, if you want to use green pepper in your cooking, then you can pluck it when it is green. However, if you want to use yellow pepper, you should ideally wait until it has changed to yellow color. It will also work if you pluck it green and then keep in place that has sunlight so that it can change to red and then yellow. However, it will not taste as sweet as when you pluck it in yellow color from the plant.

You can store bell peppers in plastic bags in the refrigerator for up to 1 – 2 weeks. You can also store peppers in dried forms. To dry the peppers, you must first remove the seeds and then cut into strips. The strips are to be spread out on a baking sheet and baked for 10 minutes in the oven. After that, you can remove the peppers from the oven and let it cool down. Once cooled, you can put the pepper in bags and store them in the refrigerator.

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How to Grow Bell Peppers with Mild Flavor

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Sweet bell pepper enriched with vitamin C and vitamin A is an ingredient that you don’t want to miss in your cooking. The fruit with a smooth skin, crunchy flesh and white membrane can give a delicious mild flavor. Bell pepper is not difficult to grow. Many people have successfully grown it in their backyard whether in garden soil or in container gardening.

Sowing Bell Peppers

The right way of sowing bell pepper seeds is to start them indoor instead of directly sowing them into the ground outside. You can start the germination of the seeds about 5 – 8 weeks before the last frost. You are to fill a seedling tray with well drained potting mix. The seeds are sown at about 1/4 depth in the soil. Soil should be kept moist with a temperature around 70 – 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature is not hot enough, you can put heating mat under the seedling tray or near the window.

After it sprout, you must watch for the first true leaves to emerge. The cotyledons, the seed leaves, which appear before the first true leaves are to be vibrant and green. If it is yellow, it means that it is not getting enough nitrogen. You can add fertilizers like fish emulsion and kelp mixture into the seedling potting mix to ensure that it grow the true leaves successfully.

Selecting a Plot in Your Garden

You can first plot the area in your garden where you want to transplant the young bell pepper plants. Ideally, the site you choose should not have been grown with tomatoes or potatoes as they share the same pests with bell peppers. The soil on the site should be well drained and heavy as well as rich in all the essential nutrients including phosphorus, potassium, and calcium. You can aim for a pH around 6.5.

Transplanting

You can transplant the young bell pepper plant into the garden plot after it has developed 1 – 2 true leaves. To allow the plants to adapt to the new environment, you may want to slowly expose the young plants to the sun by placing the pots outside for a short period of time daily.

When it is time to transplant the peppers, first check and see if the temperature has already reached 60 degrees with no danger of frost. The transplanting day should be a cloudy day with some sun. You are to plant the pepper plants at a distance of about 12 – 20 inches apart.

You can stake or cage the plant if there are lots of wind and you are afraid that they break the stem.

Bell pepper plants usually need a consistent addition of nitrogen on the soil until it successfully develop the fruits. For this reason, you may want to add nitrogen fertilizer into the soil. You will want to be careful not to add too much nitrogen as it can reduce the fruit and increase the leaves growth.

Watering

You only need to water at least 1 inch of water every week. If the weather is hot, you can add mulch to help retain the moisture. Early blossoms can be pinched off to help direct the energy of the plant so that you get a heavy harvest afterwards. If you keep your bell pepper plant fed and water well, it will have lower chances of developing diseases.

Dealing with Bell Pepper Pests

Bell pepper plants get attacked by different types of pests including cut worms, corn earworms, caterpillars and weevils. To avoid pest infestation, you should avoid using water soluble fertilizer that contains a high level of nitrogen. Using this type of fertilizer can cause the plant to become soft and easier for the insect pests to penetrate.

Whenever you spot weeds, be sure to pull them out. Weeds are habitats to insect pests. You can apply pesticides to prevent the pests population from infesting your plant up to a damaging level. The pesticides should be applied thoroughly including underneath the leaves. If there is too much damage, you will have to discard away the pest infested plant.

Harvest and Storage

A well grown bell pepper plant will produce 5 – 10 large fruits. Bell pepper can be harvested when it is green or purple color. If you want sweeter flavor, you can wait until it ripens to red or yellow or orange. The sweetness and vitamin C will increase as the color changes. Picking the fruits when they are green will encourage more new blossoms and fruits to develop. If the fruit set after late August, it usually will not ripen.

When harvesting the peppers, remember to use hand pruners or small knife to avoid damaging the plant. This is because it can still continue to yield more fruits for you in the next few years. You can keep the fruits in a humid place with a temperature range in between 68 – 77 Fahrenheit degrees in the event that they are picked early because of the cold season. They will change color but they will not grow sweeter. Refrigerating bell peppers can help to retain the firmness and flavor for 3 – 5 weeks.

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How to Grow Chilies Indoors with LED Grow Lights

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Many people like to have some organic chilies to add to their cooking.

However, lets face it, you can’t keep spending money on organic chilies as they are expensive.

Growing chilies yourself means you will be able to save a lot of money. The problem is that there is the lack of sunlight in North America and parts of Europe and chillies require a lot of sunlight to grow healthily.

The good news is that you can overcome the problem and grow chilies indoors under LED grow lights.

Temperature

Chili needs a hot temperature around 80F – 90F plus in day time and at least 70F at night. It has to get at least 6 hours of sun to grow healthily.

The 6 hours of sunlight is equal to 16 hours of LED lights. So, if you have limited space, LED grow light is the best option. You can put it near to the plant without burning the leaves. It is cooler because it releases lesser infrared radiation and uses lesser watts.

LED grow light is a long lasting investment as it can last for up to 50,000 hours which is equivalent to 10 years of use. It offers longer lifespan compared to HID lights which can last in between 10,000 – 18,000 hours.

With LED grow lights, you can expect to save up to 50%-60% of energy. Best of all, it is safe to use and environmentally friendly. It does not contain any mercury, lead or gas.

It doesn’t have any fragile glass bulb and will not shatter like glass.

Varieties

The most common chili varieties that are grown indoor are chiltepins, habaneros and other small varieties.

Small chili varieties have long growing season. This means they take longer time to flower and bear crops. The plant will grow up to a height of 6 – 12 inches. In harvest time, you can easily notice the chili crops from among the leaves.

Chili plant can also make a nice decorative ornament for the house apart from tasting spicy in the mouth.

How Many LED Lights to Install

The amount of LED lights you use depends on your chili grow space. Ideally, you should install 32 watts LED lights for per square foot.

So, if you have 6 square foot of grow space, you should install around 200 watts of LED lights. You can buy a LED light block designated for a specific amount of grow space for convenience.

Because chili comes from places with long hours of sunlight, you will need to let the grow light turn on for many hours at least 12 – 16 hours per day. You can get programmable LED grow lights to help you achieve this.

Programmable lights allows you to schedule the light to turn on and off at a specific time. If it doesn’t have any schedule control, you will have to remember to manually turn on the light every day to ensure you reap a heavy harvest of chili crop.

What Colors of LED Lights to Choose

LED lighting is usually installed in small blocks in the indoor growing spaces.

They come in a variety of colors including red, blue, white, green, indigo, and yellow. Red and blue LED lights are the most important lights. Red light which imitate the heat of the sun enhances stem growth, flowering and fruit.

Blue light is necessary for artificial photosynthesis, and development of strong roots. Green light is not that important and you can exclude it in your LED lighting installment if you want.

You have the option of buying a full cycle LED light or only install a specific color of LED light for enhancing the development of certain aspects.

Many chili growers recommend the use of LSR 865 with a light color of 6500 Kelvin.

How to Set Up an Indoor Growing Area

Firstly, you will need to look for a vacant space where you can use as a growing area. It can be a shelf that you are not using, or the basement or garage.

First, you germinate the seeds in a pot on the window sill. When the seeds sprouts, you can move them to the grow light area. As the chili plan grow bigger, you will have to transplant them to bigger pots. Usually, you only need a pot that is 10 – 12 inches in size for transplantation.

Bigger varieties may need pots that are 16 – 18 inches in size.

You will have to keep watering the chilies plants. Lesser watering is needed as the plants grow bigger.

It takes about 60 – 150 days for the peppers to mature before they start to produce crops. On the seed packet, you can find information on how long the chili plant take to mature.

This refer to the time it takes the plant to mature after it has been transplanted to a pot. It takes about 8 – 10 weeks for a seedling to grow into a plant that is suitable for transplanting.

You can harvest the chili green, orange or red as you like.

There you have it, now get out there and grow chilies indoors.

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