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pruning peppers
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Author:  RonD [ Tue Dec 20, 2011 3:13 pm ]
Post subject:  pruning peppers

Hi there,
Has anyone had any experience pruning back pepper plants,(jalapeno,bell,anahiem), and protecting them from freezing through the winter so you would have a jump start the following spring? My plants are healthy and we live in the San Antonio area where we don't have many hard freezes. After the hot dry summer we've just had it would really be good to get an earlier crop before the summer heat really sets in and shuts everything down.
Thanks

Author:  sandih [ Thu Dec 22, 2011 7:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: pruning peppers

Peppers grow so fast in the spring that I would just let this years go. They are an annual and I have never known anyone to actually keep them alive overwinter and into the following year. Don't cut back too severely, if you choose to keep them, but I wouldn't expect much from them next year.

Author:  tdbrueggen [ Wed Mar 14, 2012 5:46 am ]
Post subject:  Re: pruning peppers

I'm no master gardener yet, but I have several pepper plants that I kept through the winter here in Houston, TX. I built a small hoop house so I could pull the plastic down at the threat of a frost. Even with that, I was out of town at least once if not twice and they got nipped by frost. The first time I had about 40-50 4" pepper seedlings that all got zapped, but the big plants survived it. The second time I just lost some of the outer leaves of the pepper. I also have a hanging tomato (heat tolerant hybrid no less) that I have kept through the winter, and a hanging bell pepper. These two never got covered from frost, but both have easily survived the winter.

The cool weather shuts down the blooms, but the plants keep growing slowly. As soon as it started to warm, by peppers have all started blooming again, as have the tomatoes. I cannot speak for production yet, but the peppers at least are still setting fruit. Keep in mind that peppers like the hot weather however. I have two bell peppers that I planted out last July (2011). I tried to stay diligent on watering to help them set in, but certainly didn't do the best I could. During the severe heat of the day they appeared to wilt severely, but would perk up as the temps cooled.

Keep in mind too much water, and cool weather actually makes the peppers not as hot. I picked a jalapeno in early January that had less flavor than a green bell! We've had a good wet winter since the drought broke in about late October. I don't know much on pruning front I guess, so I'd defer to Sandih.

Author:  sandih [ Wed Mar 14, 2012 6:17 am ]
Post subject:  Re: pruning peppers

Like I said, peppers go so fast when it warms that there's no reason to go to the trouble of overwintering them.

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