Chillies 2019

Depending on the type you are growing, the space you will need can be about 1 square foot each or much more. The beauty of having them in pots is that you can space them as and when needed. the first pic is to show the size of the leaves on some of my seedlings from past years. The second is two peppers of the same variety and from seeds from the same pod. The one on the right is the one that I brought out of the greenhouse and placed next to one grown in the open and to show the difference between those grown inside and out

 

Bought some Bird's Eye chilli seed from B&Q yesterday and trying something inventive to germinate them.

I put two drops of water into a small sealable bag. Added four seeds and sealed the bag.
I've now placed the bag on my Wi-Fi router as it's always warm.

Let's see what happens.

 

That is called the baggy method Pushkin. Not use it for a few years, but it can be very effective.
PS: Normally you place the seeds in damp kitchen towel, then place in the ziplock bag.

 

See that large pot you have on the right? I have a dozen or so of those. How many plants would you recommend per pot of that size? Back in the day, I grew three per pot and got loads of fruit. But something tells me that this year, I might need more.......

EDIT .. OK for some reason, my photos are not appearing. Let me try once more ...



They have now all been placed into their own little pot. I gave Sarah her own, slightly larger pot and she is in the lower right of the frame. Next to her, just out of frame are three tiny tomato seedlings which I cut out from the sprouter. I'll get more tomorrow, but they're very small.

Needless to say, my belovèd other half is thrilled at the space this is taking up in the kitchen (strictly speaking, the kitchen is 'my domain', so she's not that bothered).

 

I now use square pots that are approximately 3 gallons each and one plant each. Depends on the type you're growing. My plants get up to 5 feet tall and more if I let them!

 

My first year (in fact, my only successful 'seed-to-fruit' year), I had three plants in each of those pots. I don't know if they're three gallon pots, but I suppose I could do some maths and work it out.

The way things are looking right now, I'm going to have well over fifty plants. This is more than I have ever had in the past, and our window sill is already full .. let me see if I can get a photo to upload this time ...



The ones in the bottom right are the Trinidad Moruga and the ones further to the middle and down to the bottom right are the Habanero and the Cayenne. And as of this morning, the first of another 24 Cayenne and Habanero have begun to show their little faces..



Unless disaster strikes, this is going to be a crop like I have never before imagined possible. :-)

 

@joh98 Have a look at these shelf inserts from ikea, they come in two different depths and could be joined together to utilise your window space better.

VARIERA Shelf insert White 32 x 13 x 16 cm - IKEA

TWO Wests also have this but it is pricey - Window Sill Shelving

 

I see you have a greenhouse there, @CanadianLori ... does anyone else have one? How does one help one's plants to survive over the winter? There's no way that they can come into our house, as we and pets would be living in a tent in the garden!

Oh, I like that Ikea one. Why the dickens don't Ikea deliver, as our closest is across the water in Essex. Who voluntarily goes to Essex?? :-)

 

@shiney thank you for letting me know the right pot size to use. I'm going to be giving them one of the little greenhouses and this knowledge will help me figure out my layout in there.

@joh98.mac I only heat my 6 x 8 greenhouse between mid March up until May and then in the autumn up until Halloween. Too expensive over here to heat it throughout the winter. The peppers enjoy the protected environment. You can see the difference in one that hasn't had to survive winds or other ravages - it's a good 2 feet taller than the other one in the picture.

 

I'm considering getting a greenhouse, but our garden isn't very big and already has an enormous shed in it.

 

I enjoy my smaller greenhouses too - 6wide x 4 deep - I am going to be using one exclusively for my Shiney Hybrids - that's if I don't mess up germinating them! Mine small ones are silver because they didn't have green back then but this below is the same shape and size - Palram Applications greenhouse. Took me a day to put each one together.

 

Drat. I knew that there'd be someone posting from there!

Where and when is it? I might see if I can pop over.

Do I need a bulletproof vest?

*runs like hell*

 

The ones you see here in the pink area are the Trini Moruga. Inside the green area are Cayenne. Blue - Habanero. The single yellow arrow one is the pot containing three small tomato seedlings.



As for what I intend to do with them - keep as many of them as I think I'll need. The rest, I will give to family, friends and colleagues.