It seams that the hotter the pepper the longer it takes for them to germinate. They must like staying inside that seed as long as possible to build up some heat.
Just kidding.
They also require at least 10 to 18 hours of light. So the use of grow lights is also a must. I prepare the growing containers by adding the growing medium, getting the medium wet, making a small hole in the center, placing the seed in, then covering with 1/8" of medium. I then get a spay bottle with warm water & spray the top. Carefull not to over do it. If the seeds get too much water, they will rot.
Place the trays on the heating mats, put the lights on & get ready for the show to begin. Being the pepper head that I am, I had a chair set up in front of all the trays & would sit there for at least 30 min. (sometimes longer) & wait for them to appear. I put the lights on in the morning when I got up & shut them off at night when I would go to bed; they need some shut eye also.
If everything is done right, germination usually occurs in about ten to 20 days. I've heard some peppers taking as long as 30 days. I've been sucessful in getting them to germinate in that 10/20 day period. If I had a greenhouse (heated) I could start earlier & extend the growing season well into December. Let's see what the future brings.
This year I did something different. I gave my seeds to a local farmer who has greenhouses. He started the seeds for me & raised them. Raised them to the point where they would be ready for planting. He pretty much had the same results as I did with the germination.
The Bhut Jolokia was the last to germinate & as of this writing, is still the smallest. The Bhut takes a long time to grow, which is why I would benefit from a greenhouse. It starts producing late August & gets stronger in September/October. But then the stupid frost starts coming & destroys everything. I did cover them for the first couple of frosts but the cold air does them in. So, a greenhouse would be great.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment