When and how to sow pepper seeds for seedlings for further cultivation in a greenhouse

A favorite of many gardeners, sweet peppers are grown in a wide variety of regions across the country. But to ensure results and ensure the effort is worthwhile, it's crucial to follow all the rules for cultivating this heat-loving crop.

In most areas, seedlings must first be grown, and even after that, it is recommended to plant them under shelter rather than in open beds.

This agricultural technique allows you to harvest delicious peppers even in the challenging climates of Siberia, the Northwest, and the Urals. However, you need to know the right time to sow this crop, some nuances of growing seedlings, and when to transplant the plants to their permanent location in a greenhouse.

Timing of sowing seeds for pepper seedlings for greenhouses

Experienced gardeners have determined the right time to sow peppers over many years of practice. When calculating the time, consider the following factors:

• characteristics of pepper varieties according to their ripening time;
• local climate;
• weather of the current season (long or early spring);
• conditions for growing crops (film greenhouse, polycarbonate greenhouse, heated greenhouse, unheated greenhouse).

Peppers are divided into groups according to ripening time:

1. Early varieties (it will take 90 to 100 days before the first fruits form).
2. Mid-season (here the terms will be longer – up to 120 days).
3. Late varieties (fruit formation occurs on the 130-140th day).

Seedlings should be grown according to this information. The optimal age for them will be:

• for late varieties – 75-85 days;
• for mid-season peppers – 65-70 days;
• For early peppers, 55-60 days will be enough.

This means that late-season varieties will need to be sown earlier than peppers from the other two groups. The calculations are simple: using the approximate time of planting the peppers in the greenhouse (the timing will vary by region), calculate the age of the seedlings for a given variety, and add another 10-14 days (the time it takes for seedlings to emerge). This yields the desired sowing date for seedlings.

The optimal period is from mid-February to mid- or late March. For example, a late pepper variety should be sown on February 5-10 if planted in a greenhouse around May 5-10. Seedlings will emerge around February 20. Thus, with proper care, you should have strong, 80-day-old seedlings by May 10. An early pepper variety, planted in a greenhouse around the same time, should be sown later, on February 20-25.

When choosing days, consider the schedule of lunar phases, which indicates the best sowing dates for different crops, including sweet peppers.

Sowing for seedlings

Once the planting date is determined, prepare the seeds, containers, and seedling nutrient mixture. Carefully prepare the seeds. Store-bought seeds and home-grown ones make no difference; they all require calibration, disinfection, and germination. If the pepper seed packet (usually hybrids) indicates that the seeds are treated, they can be sown without any preparation.

Basic techniques:

1. Selecting seeds, using a salt solution, is a good choice. Dissolve a heaping tablespoon of salt in a liter of water and drop the pepper seeds into a cloth bag. Remove the light seeds that float to the surface, and prepare the heavy ones that sink to the bottom for sowing.
2. Seed disinfection. Use potassium permanganate (2-3 grams per 0.5 liters of water), Fitosporin-M, Albit, and other preparations.
3. Soaking in growth stimulants (Novosil, Epin, Zircon), a solution of complex micronutrients (Cytovit), or an ash infusion (2 tablespoons per liter, leave for 24 hours, then soak the seeds for 6-8 hours). When soaking seeds using these preparations, follow the instructions.
4. Germination is carried out in a damp cloth, constantly wetting the material. The temperature should be between +20ºC and +25ºC.

Once the seeds are prepared, begin sowing them. Plant them no more than 1.5 cm deep, and lightly cover the top with soil. Cover the containers with glass and store in a warm place. The temperature should be at least 25ºC. These sensitive peppers don't tolerate even the slightest drop in temperature during this period, and will take a long time to germinate in unheated soil. However, after proper pre-sowing preparation and at optimal temperatures, peppers can sprout in as little as 5-6 days.

Have the first sprouts appeared? Immediately remove the glass and place the seedlings in a bright spot, lowering the temperature to 18ºC. Maintain this regime for a week to prevent the seedlings from becoming too tall.

After this, the seedlings are grown at temperatures of +20ºC to +25ºC during the day and +17ºC to +20ºC at night. On sunny days in March and April, it is advisable to provide light shade to prevent the peppers from being scorched by the bright rays.

Preparing the greenhouse

Peppers are best grown in Russia's capricious climate in greenhouses or hotbeds. The soil under the shelter must be prepared in advance, preferably in the fall.

The beds are dug up and fertilized with humus, wood ash, and superphosphate (approximately one cup per square meter). The soil should be loose and permeable.

Peppers grow well next to tomatoes, but they shouldn't be planted in a greenhouse with cucumbers. These crops require different microclimates, so good yields won't be achieved with this type of cultivation.

If the soil in the greenhouse has above-average acidity, additional dolomite flour or chalk will need to be added.

Soil preparation

To get good seedlings, you need to prepare high-quality soil. A lazy option is to buy a potting mix from the store, but it's best not to use only peat. It's better to prepare the soil yourself, which will require:

• turf or leaf soil;
• humus;
• coarse-grained sand.

Proportions: 2:2:1. Humus can be replaced with peat (high-moor moss); the ratio will be the same. It is not recommended to use soil from under conifers, oaks, or chestnuts.

The soil should be disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate (use a saturated solution), and the soil can also be steamed or frozen. To improve the soil's nutritional value, add ash (approximately one full glass per bucket) or a complete fertilizer (no more than 40 grams per bucket of soil). Fertilizer should be added to the soil mixture only after disinfection and steaming.

Preparing a container for growing seedlings

Gardeners have a wide variety of options here, from store-bought pots and cups to homemade containers. The following are used as containers:

• wooden boxes;
• containers (plastic);
• pots, as well as peat tablets
• cups made of plastic, paper;
• ceramic pots.

You can sow pepper seeds in common containers and then transplant them. However, many believe (and not without reason) that pepper seedlings are finicky and fussy and don't tolerate transplanting well, so they are sown directly into individual containers. In this case, you can sow two seeds in each container, and then, when the plants have grown a little, keep only the strongest seedling.

Many people use empty milk cartons and juice boxes to grow seedlings. These containers are also suitable, but they must be thoroughly washed and dried to ensure no liquid remains.

When using plastic cups, it's recommended to make a hole in the bottom to allow moisture to escape. Place the cups in trays to catch any excess water.

Caring for seedlings before planting in a greenhouse

When sowing peppers in large containers, once 2-3 true leaves appear, they will need to be transplanted into individual containers. Peppers sown directly into pots or cups do not require transplanting.

Care for the seedlings by carrying out the following basic activities:

• watering;
• top dressing;
• maintaining optimal temperature conditions.

Keeping in mind that this plant is capricious, avoid drafts and temperature fluctuations. Peppers are harmed by both extreme heat and cold temperatures, so it's advisable to provide a stable microclimate while growing seedlings.

Water the seedlings moderately, avoiding either excess moisture or allowing the soil to dry out. Watering should be very moderate before transplanting; after 3-4 leaves appear, you can water more frequently, but again, the exact amount depends on the condition of the plants themselves.

Excess moisture can lead to the insidious "blackleg" disease, so it's recommended to sprinkle the soil surface of cups or containers with calcined river sand. The water should be warm and settled.

Feeding seedlings

Peppers don't need to be fed until 3-4 true leaves appear, but after that, a couple of additional applications are possible. It's convenient to use complex fertilizers, which contain all the necessary nutrients for seedlings.

You can use a mixture of the following elements:

• superphosphate;
• urea.

The components are taken in the following ratio: 5 and 30 grams per 10 liters of water. Potassium humate and wood ash are also used for feeding. Diluting bird droppings or mullein is not recommended. Firstly, it promotes excessive growth of green mass, and secondly, using organic matter indoors is not entirely advisable due to its specific odor.

7-10 days before the expected planting in the greenhouse, peppers can be fed a second time; the fertilizer composition will be the same as for the first application of fertilizers.

You should especially not get carried away with adding nitrogen supplements, as the plants begin to “grow fat” and few flowers and ovaries are formed.

Hardening off seedlings

One common mistake novice gardeners make is rushing to transplant pepper seedlings into the greenhouse as soon as the designated planting day arrives. As a result, the sudden change in conditions causes the plants to experience significant stress and takes a long time to adapt and establish themselves.

Therefore, approximately 10-14 days before planting, you'll need to begin hardening off the peppers. First, take them out onto a balcony, loggia with open vents and windows, or open verandas for 15-30 minutes.

If temperatures permit, you can move the boxes and cups on trays under awnings or gazebos. Gradually increase the hardening time to several hours, bringing the seedlings inside only at night.

This hardening will allow the plants to gradually get used to fresh air and new conditions, and the upcoming transplant will not cause any difficulties.

Transplanting seedlings into a greenhouse

Once stable temperatures have been established and both the air and soil have warmed, the plants can be prepared for their permanent residence in the greenhouse. This typically occurs between early and late May, but everything, of course, depends on the local climate and weather.

In the central part of the country, if the spring is warm, pepper seedlings can usually be planted in greenhouses in late April or early May. However, in the Urals or Northwest, even greenhouses can be too cool at this time, so planting is usually done in late May.

The plants should be 60-85 days old, depending on the ripening time of the pepper and the variety. The plant should have 7-10 developed leaves. The seedlings are carefully planted in the holes, maintaining a distance between the plants.

The calculation is made based on the grade:

• tall peppers are planted at a distance of at least 50-60 cm from each other;
• low-growing varieties – up to 25-30 cm.

Descriptions of standard pepper varieties often indicate that the plants produce good yields when planted close together. This can be taken into account, especially if the greenhouse area is small.

Tall pepper varieties should not be crowded together, as this will deprive the plants of sunlight and nutrients, causing them to drop flowers and fruit. The best time to plant seedlings is on a cloudy day or in the evening.

The seedlings are carefully planted in holes that have already been watered, covered with soil, and compacted. It's advisable to mulch with peat or well-rotted compost. The next day, the seedlings can be shaded, especially if the weather is hot and sunny. It's convenient to use non-woven material (even in a greenhouse), which makes it easier to create a comfortable microclimate for the peppers.

This same material will also help protect peppers from recurrent frosts, which are quite likely in many regions of Russia even in early June. However, as experienced gardeners note, if the seedlings are strong and already established, they won't be affected by such fluctuations in temperature in a greenhouse.

So, by approaching the process of growing seedlings correctly, you can count on getting a good harvest of delicious sweet peppers.

Reviews

Zhanna, Yaroslavl region

I sow peppers in early February and plant them in the greenhouse (we have a plastic one) in early May. But you have to watch the weather; spring can be cold, so it's best not to rush. The seeds are soaked in potassium permanganate, then in Energen. I sow them in peat pellets; once they have two true leaves, I transplant them directly into plastic jars (0.5 liters). I've used them for years; the bottoms are cut in half. I place a circle on the bottom, then fill it with soil. When transplanting, I simply slide the root ball out of the cup and that's it—no problem, and all the roots are intact. The seedlings are always strong and healthy, and the harvest is always good.

Natalia, Verkhovazhye

I always treat the seeds (unless they're already treated). But I've only had foreign-made ones, and they're even hidden in pellets.

I don't transplant peppers; I plant them directly in bags made from plastic sleeves. I grow short peppers two at a time (mine are 10x10 cm), and tall peppers only one at a time. I always have 30 peppers of different varieties, enough for a family of four, and I always give some away to relatives. I recommend growing a variety of peppers so you have plenty for stuffing and canning.

Lilya, Bryansk

I sow peppers around March 10th to 15th. I don't disinfect them, I just use germination. I always use my own seeds, they germinate perfectly, and are already standing tall within five days. By mid-April (if it's warm), I take the boxes out into the greenhouse to harden them off, covering them with more plastic. The seedlings are strong; I always plant them with 10 leaves, and some even have buds. Peppers seem to like warmth, but if you harden them off and do everything wisely, they can even withstand temperature fluctuations.