Why we like to over winter peppers

[ScottinAtlanta]

Originally Posted by drew51

The biggest problem for me is keeping the insects out. I leave them out till the temps reach the 40's at night. I want them shocked a little. I grew three pepper plants as bonsai. It took too much care. Two died on me, the third I put in the garden. It's 3rd summer. Grew bigger than ever! Bizarre! It's a Black Pearl ornamental pepper. It made an excellent bonsai. I just had no time to care for it correctly.
I planted it in the ground, I think I'll dig it up too! Just to see how many years can i keep this alive?
This was taken 08-22-16

That thing looks like an olive tree. Amazing plant.

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by taboule

Since you don't care about current productivity, 1 gal is an efficient use of space for overwintering.

Hmmmm...I moved a year ago, both dug up peppers from the garden and overwintered some in pots, then planted some and kept others in 5g pots. The weather is still mild here, but I want to get my winter garden going, and I've been reluctant to pull some late- planted pepper plants that haven't produced much yet. I hadn't thought 1g was big enough (no greenhouse), but it's worth trying. I wrapped my plants in bubble wrap during the coldest weeks.

A couple of the Holy Mole F1 plants I kept in 5g pots produced better this year than last year!

Has anyone experimented with cutting back a little vs. drastically? I cut mine back only enough to make them easier to move.

[ScottinAtlanta]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Hmmmm...I moved a year ago, both dug up peppers from the garden and overwintered some in pots, then planted some and kept others in 5g pots. The weather is still mild here, but I want to get my winter garden going, and I've been reluctant to pull some late- planted pepper plants that haven't produced much yet. I hadn't thought 1g was big enough (no greenhouse), but it's worth trying. I wrapped my plants in bubble wrap during the coldest weeks.

A couple of the Holy Mole F1 plants I kept in 5g pots produced better this year than last year!

Has anyone experimented with cutting back a little vs. drastically? I cut mine back only enough to make them easier to move.

Me, too.

[Rajun Gardener]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Has anyone experimented with cutting back a little vs. drastically? I cut mine back only enough to make them easier to move.

Last year I grew plants in big containers, to ever winter I just put them in the GH. In Spring when they started growing again I removed them from the container, pruned both some roots and stems to about 15' and replanted. They grew well and have produced all year long and also made peppers earlier than the new plants I grew.

[GoDawgs]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Has anyone experimented with cutting back a little vs. drastically? I cut mine back only enough to make them easier to move.

After reading some posts in here about overwintering peppers, this past year was my first time trying it. It works! Late last fall the one potted Gypsy I had was just loaded with peppers so I brought it into the house over the winter. This was the Gypsy this January:




It got repotted and the roots and all branches pruned heavily Feb 17th:





Flushing nicely March 23rd:





June 22nd with lots of peppers, more than it had made the previous spring:

[Salsacharley]

Very nice illustrated progression Dawgs.

[jtjmartin]

Thanks Dawgs.

My pepper plants have already dropped most of their leaves but the stems are bright green. Hoping at least a couple make it till next spring. Reminds me a little of bare rooted trees.


Jeff

[jtjmartin]

Almost 3 months later.

The green pepper sticks got moved out to get a little filtered sunlight today. I've had them in the garage under a light. Still green but no leaves.

I keep telling them to hang on . . . Spring is coming!

Jeff

[ScottinAtlanta]

Mine are bare sticks by now, but green stems. Most of them will flourish once they are back outside when daily temps get to about 65.

[Ozark]

I have kept a pot of Maui Purple Peppers going for over 20 years now, they're the only really hot peppers I grow. Nine of these little peppers, chopped up in a half gallon of garden salsa, give it just the right amount of heat and a great flavor. The plants and peppers are very attractive and ornamental, too. ScottinAtlanta, they look a lot like your Black Pearl peppers as pictured, but the little Maui Purple Peppers are elongated rather than round.

Sometime in the late '90's I bought an envelope of these seeds from a lady on the Hawaiian island of Maui for $1. She offered them on eBay, and her listing showed a picture of a permanent hedge of these pepper plants in her yard. Her listing said that this pepper variety is native to Maui, and of course they never freeze there so they grow as perennials.

I planted them in my garden that first year, and at the end of the season I dug up the best-looking plant, put it in a pot, and brought it inside the house by a south-facing window. The plant thrived indoors and had a good crop of peppers that dropped into the soil and re-seeded themselves. I stuck a wire tomato cage into the pot, and ever since I've had a cluster of numerous pepper plants growing and bearing fruit three times a year. They really like being crowded together.

Individual plants live only 2 or 3 years, but they re-seed and when a crop of peppers gets ripe and then dries up, I always crumble some dried peppers and seeds into the soil of that pot. The pot is brought indoors during our cold months, and the rest of the time it is outdoors on our deck. I water the plant with MiracleGro about twice a year, and the same soil has been in that pot for 20+ years now without any problem.
Overwintering these pepper plants has worked just fine for me, and the fresh hot peppers are pretty to look at and something we use year-round. That was a very well-spent dollar!

[Goodloe]

Originally Posted by Ozark

I have kept a pot of Maui Purple Peppers going for over 20 years now, they're the only really hot peppers I grow. Nine of these little peppers, chopped up in a half gallon of garden salsa, give it just the right amount of heat and a great flavor. The plants and peppers are very attractive and ornamental, too. ScottinAtlanta, they look a lot like your Black Pearl peppers as pictured, but the little Maui Purple Peppers are elongated rather than round.

Sometime in the late '90's I bought an envelope of these seeds from a lady on the Hawaiian island of Maui for $1. She offered them on eBay, and her listing showed a picture of a permanent hedge of these pepper plants in her yard. Her listing said that this pepper variety is native to Maui, and of course they never freeze there so they grow as perennials.

I planted them in my garden that first year, and at the end of the season I dug up the best-looking plant, put it in a pot, and brought it inside the house by a south-facing window. The plant thrived indoors and had a good crop of peppers that dropped into the soil and re-seeded themselves. I stuck a wire tomato cage into the pot, and ever since I've had a cluster of numerous pepper plants growing and bearing fruit three times a year. They really like being crowded together.

Individual plants live only 2 or 3 years, but they re-seed and when a crop of peppers gets ripe and then dries up, I always crumble some dried peppers and seeds into the soil of that pot. The pot is brought indoors during our cold months, and the rest of the time it is outdoors on our deck. I water the plant with MiracleGro about twice a year, and the same soil has been in that pot for 20+ years now without any problem.
Overwintering these pepper plants has worked just fine for me, and the fresh hot peppers are pretty to look at and something we use year-round. That was a very well-spent dollar!

That's outstanding! Probably the best pepper story I've ever heard! KUDOS!!

[jtjmartin]

Well, 4 out of 5 Cheese Pepper plants made it through the winter and have leafed out. They are HUGE compared to my new pepper plants! The other plant stem is green but just not leafing out.

https://flic.kr/p/2ehE3v6

[jtjmartin]

Finally learned to use Tville photo album - now if I could get the pic right side up!

[GoDawgs]

Last year was my first year trying to overwinter a pepper (a 'Gypsy') and it was amazing how big and productive it was. This year I'm going to overwinter a Feher Ozon paprika since they're supposed to be a somewhat smaller, more compact plant.

[DonDuck]

Originally Posted by jtjmartin

Finally learned to use Tville photo album - now if I could get the pic right side up!

I tried to use the photo album feature and simply did not like it. I started using the paper clip button at the top of the message box to upload photos to any post I want. I size the photos on my computer to lower the pixel density and the overall size of the photo and then upload them. The photos post in the orientation they are stored in on your computer.