I like to grow all the daily kitchen needs in terms of green items in my garden. It not only allows my family to have fresh and delicious foods but also injects some self-satisfaction into my mind. Obviously, I grow a wide variety of veggies at the first point, and I also grow fruits that are used in daily food preparation.
Here, by mentioning the daily-use fruits, I am actually talking about hot peppers. Growing hot peppers is like participating in a culinary adventure that demands attention, care, and a touch of fineness.
Join me on this fascinating journey, in which I describe how to grow hot peppers along with care and maintenance. Let’s start.
Basics of Growing Hot Pepper in Your Garden
Before heading towards the hot pepper growing process, it is essential that you do some background checks.
Selecting the Right Variety of Hot Pepper
As mentioned earlier, hot pepper is a very delicate plant. You must plant the right hot pepper type in accordance with the weather of your area, soil characteristics, and other requirements.
I suggest you consult the table below to choose the most suitable variety of hot peppers to grow in your garden.
| Weather type | Soil type | Hot pepper variety |
| Warm weather | Sandy, loose, well-drained | Cayenne, Jalapeño, Habanero, Thai, Serrano, Ghost |
| Cold weather | Sandy loam, well-drained | Poblano, Hungarian Wax, Anaheim, Cherry Bomb |
Ideal Growing Environment of Hot Pepper
To get a higher yield, you must incorporate the following factors that have a greater influence on growing hot peppers in your garden.
- The hot pepper plants grow best if they receive 6-10 hours of contact with sunny. This direct sunlight contact helps the plant grow faster while producing flavorful and abundant fruits.
- If you reside in an area where the daytime temperature is 21-26°C and the nighttime temperature is 16-21°C, it is sure that you will get a good harvest. However, if your area does not fall in this temperature criterion, you will still get yield but at a low quantity.
- The hot pepper’s seed germination requires 23-29°C.
- Hot pepper falls into the picky bloomers category, demanding a humidity level between 65% and 85%.
- As per my practical observation, hot paper plants grow best in loose and well-drained soil.
- The ideal soil pH requirement is 6.0 to 6.8. However, hot pepper is not that sensitive to soil pH. A bit up and down is okay.
Stepwise Guide How to Grow Hot Pepper in Your Garden
The following is the step-by-step guide on growing hot peppers in your garden.
Step 01: Getting Prepared
I hope you have already consulted the given table to identify which hot pepper variety will be suitable for your garden’s soil and the region’s weather. Once you are done with the variety selection, go to purchase the seeds.
You have to purchase the seeds if this is the first time you are growing hot pepper. Next on, you will use some of the fruits from this yield to extract seeds for the upcoming plantation.
Step 02: Soil Bed Preparation for Hot Pepper Plant Growing
The following factors are most influential in preparing the soil bed for growing hot peppers in your garden.
- Select a location in your garden directly exposed to sunny for 6-10 hours daily.
- Remove rock, dirt, debris, weeds, etc., from that space.
- If you prefer eco-friendly gardening like me, cast compost as part of the soil amendment process. If you prefer inorganic soil amending, cast commercial fertilizer in which nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium maintain a ratio of 5:10:10.
- The soil pH must be tested to make an ideal soil bed for hot pepper. If the pH level is above 6.8, use elemental sulfur, aluminium sulfate, or iron sulfate to reduce that. On the other hand, if the soil pH is lower than 6.0, you can use wood ash or agricultural lime to increase the pH level.
- I also suggest organic mulching, though it is not mandatory. You can use a straw, wooden chips, or shredded leaves as organic mulch.
- Finally, water the soil bed regularly to ensure the compost mixes with the soil particles evenly.
- Now, create rows as the last stage of the soil bed preparation for hot peppers. Maintain 24 inches to 30 inches row-to-row distance.
At last, you have completed preparing the soil bed effectively. Now, go for the germination of hot pepper seeds and regularly water the created soil bed. Also, you must remove weeds regularly.
Step 03: Seed Germination
As you are going to grow hot pepper for the first time, purchase pulp and firm seeds without any sign of damage. Select the right size containers based on your prepared soil bed. Fill the containers with rich and fertile soil that also contains well-drainage properties.
Start the germination process 4-6 weeks earlier before the season. Sow the seeds ¼ inch deep inside the soil and cover each of the seeds with loose soil gently.
I highly recommend you soak the seeds in lukewarm water for 24-48 hours before sowing. You have to do consistent watering to keep the soil layer moist, but care for restricting water logging. Hot pepper seedlings usually come out in 7-14 days, depending on the overall condition and the selected variety.
Step 04: Transplanting Hot Pepper seedlings
Once you see, seedlings are coming out. Start taking the whole container to direct sunlight exposure for 1-2 hours daily. It will help the seedlings to adapt to the garden’s environment. Now, start transplanting by gently removing the seedlings from the container.
Be careful not to damage the roots. Now, take the seedlings to the soil bed in your garden and create holes 18 inches apart from one another. Put a sprinkle of organic compost inside each hole.
Then, place the seedlings one by one. After you place one seedling, cover its base nicely. Then, plant another seedling and cover its roots. Go on with this pattern for all the collected seedlings.
After transplanting all the seedlings, water is thoroughly used in a micro-water system so the soil at the plant’s base does not rip off.
Step 05: Taking care of Seedlings
To take care of the transplanted seedlings, I suggest three particular things:
- Never go for over and bottom watering; otherwise, the growth will be hampered, and some plants might get damaged.
- Once you see the healthy leaves are growing, start fertilizing. If you prefer eco-friendly gardening, use organic fertilizers like bone meal, homemade compost, fish emulsion, etc. On the contrary, if you like the inorganic gardening method, you can choose a water-soluble fertilizer with an N-P-K ratio of around 5-10-10 or 10-20-20.
- Go for thinning if you see crowded situations that will host when the plants reach full size.
Step 06: Pest and Disease Control
The following table is designated to notify you about hot pepper’s pest and disease-controlling process.
| Issue type | Pest or disease name | Solution |
| Pests | Aphids | Spray the mixture of dish soap, vegetable oil, and warm water |
| Thrips | Spray Alanto or Osheen | |
| Whiteflies | Spray water and dish soap mix | |
| Diseases | Bacterial spot | Bleach solution |
| Fungal blights | Fungicides | |
| Other | Neem oil, beneficial insects, etc. |
Tips for Care and Maintenance
- You can use mulching to retain the moist condition of the soil.
- Pinch off the growing leaves to make the plants bushier.
- Create support to tackle the fruit load.
- Most importantly, be careful not to create any waterlogging situation.
- Extract the weak leaves or branches.
- Use foldable shading to protect the plants from extreme heat and cold.
Final Words
I am sure that by incorporating my guide on how to grow hot peppers, you will be able to source your chilli needs from your garden all year round. Again, the tips for care and maintenance will help you facilitate substantial plant growth and good harvests.
Finally, if you plan to go with hot pepper in the next season, separate some healthy fruits at the beginning of the harvest for seed collection.
