Sweet Bell Help?
 

I am once again growing sweet peppers in my garden, this year upping my plant out substantially in an effort to be able to do most of my canning from the garden, without needing to run to the farmers market for peppers.

In past years I've had limited success with bell peppers (vs the jalepeno's I grew a couple years ago that left me completely swamped!). I know this year I'm planning on putting black plastic down to help the soil warm up early, and will work to keep them mulched. Are there some other tips/tricks that would help, especially with our very short season here (Cdn zone 5b, approx US z4, my growing days are 139 based on average frost dates).

I'm planting several varieties (most are traded seeds, so I only have what is written on each packet)
California Wonder
Red Bell
Sweet Red
Sweet Italian
Gypsy Bell
Yellow Bell
Orange Bell

Looking forward to any tips/tricks to help these be as productive as possible (oh, and this list doesn't include the chili's.. that's a whole other list! LOL!!)

Thanks!
Cindy :)

Hi, Cindy -

Yes, I've found sweet peppers to be a bit more challenging than hots - not in terms of plant health so much as yield. I have better luck with long bells or fryer types (Lipstick, Super Shepherd, Sweet Banana, Gypsy) than bells. However, if I grow them in pots with excellent sun exposure, rather than in the garden, they do quite well. Of those on your list, if it is Gypsy hybrid, it is a pepper machine - even in a 12 inch pot! Orange Bell is my favorite sweet pepper of all. I'm not sure exactly what I do right - I use a blend of soilless mix and composted cow manure in my pots, and fertilize with a slow release balanced granular every couple of weeks - and water very frequently. I think that good soil, plenty of water, and good sun exposure is the key....anyway, that's my two cents worth!

One Tip, an a whole lotta WANT TO , myself, jus like You, Cindy...what do they call that Chinese meaning...lol. i ain't sure if Yin is positive, or if it might be Yang...but anyway, i'm jus like you, i feel like i been gardenin long enough to have done Better on sweet bells, than my track record exhibits. I'm gettin serious about em...lol. Im tryin to send ya some Yin, or Yang, ,...here... :D

The first fruit a bell pepper will set, occurs in the crotch of it's first major fork. This fruit, quite often, becomes deformed, by the pressure of the 2 stems emanating at the fork. Pick this fruit early...for 2 reasons. A:...it's the first fruit, always...kill it, an that tells the plant it aint nowhere near fulfillin it's destiny (encourages greater bloom). B:...you get the opportunity to go ahead and enjoy a good fresh bell, rather than sittin back on ya haunches an tryin to let the plant give it's best, from day 1 of yield. I jus learned, this winter, thru research, that sweet bells consistently throw that first fruit, right into the crotch of their first fork.

I presume you already know about such things as epsom salts, dry feet,,,so...i got no better advice. Like i said, i'm jus like you, Craig, Andrey, an others...i'm workin Hard...lol...towards doin a better job of these wonderful plants, myself, an i sho do appreciate any new tips anybody else has to throw in, here...)))

Best Wishes... :) :) :)

Thanks for the reply's!

The gypsy I have I'm ASSuming is an OP pepper, it was given to me in trade, and that person received it in trade, so I'm reasonably sure it's OP.

I do need to keep my peppers in the garden.. heck, I need to justify the garden size to DH as it is! LOL!! We have pretty good soil though after several years of working at it, and it will be worked in with additional well rotted chicken compost (very well rotted black muck) and I'll be working in some peat moss to the planting areas as well.

I will definetly make sure I take the first pepper off of each plant and see if that helps. I had always noticed the first pepper was often deformed and a bit puny, maybe by taking that first pepper it will help promote further growth and hopefully up my yields.

I'm hoping I'll have some verimcompost to be able to topdress the peppers with as well. Crossing my fingers that will be my secret ingredient to success with my sweet bells.

Now I just need to get DH to build me some mini greenhouse frames to set out into the garden to help speed soil warming... maybe I should make sure the tiller is tuned up first (as we sit here in the middle of a snow storm! LOL!!)

Cindy :)

I grow few true bells anymore as most all other varieties do so much better. I have found a great substitute for canning use, is the cherry peppers ,either sweet or hot. They are thick fleshed like a pimiento and look great in mixed pickles etc. They ripen to red faster than anything in my zone. They are small, but prolific. I don't know why they are so easier to grow than bells, but that has been my experience.
If they are available at a nursery in your area you might try one. They are often still alive after a light frost too.

Jeanne

I would toss the "California Wonder" in the trash, LOL. And plant "King of the North" instead. Email me with your address and I will send you some seeds.

I have not had much luck with bell peppers either. My neighbor grows wonderful bell peppers in her back yard where she has her washing machine water running out. I thought maybe mine just weren't getting enough water but last year we had a very wet year and all my peppers died from the bottom up. I myself am thinking about trying plastic this year for both the peppers and the tomatoes. I am definitely going to plant a few of my Gypsy peppers in pots now that I saw this posting. I am also growing some Klari Cheese and Yolo Wonder which I really don't know anything about but hope they yield better than the regular bells have done for me. I don't care much what the peppers look like it is that peppery taste that I want.

[quote]My neighbor grows wonderful bell peppers in her back yard where she has her washing machine water running out.[/quote]I wonder if there could be a lot of phosphate in that laundry water. Maybe it is acting as a root stimulant.

I've been growing Yolo Wonder almost every year and weel-satisfied with both productivity and taste.

My friend who is keeping breeding programme for peppers/tomatoes/physalis varieties at our Belarusian Institute of Vegetable Gardening developed 2 blocky bell peppers (Cubik red and Cubik yellow) similar to California Wonder but with better productivity and earliness (ripe 2 weeks earlier than CW). These are two most popular sweet bell pepper among our gardeners.

But as I already told here the main problem for sweet bell peppers is their total productivity. You can grow a healthy bushy plant but only with 2-3 fruits = less that 1 kg in total. So generally it's much more profitable to grow non-bell peppers with different shapes with more than 10-15 fruits can be riped from one plant.

I'm gonna try Neapolitan this year. It bears so many fruits on such pictures like:

[img]http://www.victoryseeds.com/catalog/vegetable/peppers/images/neopolitan.jpg[/img]

And of course I will try many other varieties I've got from many of you this winter.

Wonder if there is heart-shaped sweet bell peppers?! Something like a huge pipiento...

Oh wow, that Neapolitan looks WONDERFUL. My mouth is watering badly now! I'm going to be on the hunt for more varieties of sweet peppers, that one looks like a "must try". What I want the peppers for mostly is my salsa, where I like to have different colours of sweet peppers in, cut nice and chunky. It makes a very pretty salsa, and well, tastes darn good too. I also want lots chopped and frozen for use all winter in other dishes.

Charlie, I sent you a PM with my address, LMK if I can send you anything in return!

Cindy :)

I wanna throw out a name...because of what i have read. Lord knows, it might jus be more to it, than simple breeding, ...but so many commercial producers include the cultivar, Jupiter, as a Standard, by which others are judged.
I hope to grow out a Jupiter , to find out...what its all about. I wonder, Andrey, if this name rings any kinda bell ?

I grew Jupiter in 2004 and it was on the same level as California Wonder - good relible variety, but nothing special, just average. Here is describtion:

Compact plant with 4 lobes, large, blocky fruit and is the perferred choice of growers, high yielder, resistant to tobacco mosaic virus, widely adapted, good canopy. OP, 72-75 days

[url]http://www.backyardgardener.com/veg/greenpeppers.html[/url]

Thank you Charlie!

The seeds arrived today, and I'll be starting my pepper seeds in the next week or two and look forward to trying these. Are the OP? This my first year growing OP varieties of anything, and I'm going to be attempting to save seed from both peppers and tomatoes, so if i know I can save seed from these I will.

Thanks again!

Cindy :)

Wanted to ask for favorite bell pepper varieties that are prolific and found this thread which is close to 4 years old. Any of you come across any since then that you believe superior in taste and productivity?

I'd like to grow decent sized bell peppers for stuffing purposes as well as other uses. Nothing like using fresh peppers on pizza or in an omelette. It really adds nice flavor to things.

Also have had my eye on a couple larger elongated peppers like Giant Marconi but doubt it's easy to use for stuffing like bell types are.

Thanks, Jeff

I like a hybrid called Socrates. It makes early and is a great fall pepper. I usually plant them twice, once in early spring and again in late July or early August. It produces a lot of peppers and they are very tasty as well as being large with thick walls. It also seems to thrive during the cooler fall weather so it might be a great pepper for your cool climate and short growing season. I got my seed from Tomato Growers Supply.
I continue to try other peppers but am constantly disappointed by most other varieties.