Pepper "Merchant": characteristics of the variety, cultivation features, reviews

The Kupets variety is a fairly common sweet pepper and is grown both in open ground and in greenhouses. This variety differs from others in its distinct taste of summer bell pepper.

Characteristics and description of the variety

With the help of breeders, many varieties of bell peppers have been developed, and every gardener can choose the type of pepper that suits their taste, paying attention to the region for which a particular variety is zoned.

Productivity

Even in a cold and cloudy summer, the Kupets variety still yields 3 kg per square meter. However, under favorable conditions and proper cultivation, it can yield 5.5 kg per square meter.

Height, plant weight, color, shape

This variety grows as a standard bush, reaching a height of 85 cm. The large fruits are borne on drooping stalks. Each pepper weighs 100 grams and is pyramidal in shape. When ripe, the fruits are light green, and when fully ripe, they turn red. The fruit wall is 8 mm thick, and the juicy, aromatic flesh contains a rich variety of vitamins.

Ripening speed

The Kupets variety requires 112 days from seed germination for its fruits to fully ripen. It's considered a mid-early variety, but a cold summer can delay this to 120 days.

Timing of planting seedlings

The standard time for planting seeds in the soil is late February to early March. Southern regions of Russia are planted in March, while northern regions are planted in February. If shelter or a greenhouse is available, seeds are planted two weeks earlier.

Features of growing and caring for the variety

When planting seeds, you need to have with you:

1. Seeds of this variety should be purchased from a specialist store and reputable producers. This will guarantee that the harvest will yield the same variety of fruit as the one planted.
2. Containers with drainage holes so that excess water drains away and does not stagnate at the bottom of the container.
3. Nutritious and loose soil, which can be purchased at the store or made at home. To make soil for seedlings, use all the following parts in equal proportions:

• turf soil;
• soil from the garden;
• peat or sand;
• humus.

Before planting home-grown seedlings in open ground or a greenhouse, they are hardened off for 10 days to acclimate them to open ground conditions.

Peppers can be planted in unheated greenhouses starting May 15th, and in southern regions, depending on spring temperatures, planting can begin in early May. When planting seedlings in a greenhouse, use a 60 x 40 cm spacing, while in open ground, use a 45 x 45 cm spacing.

The soil allocated for planting sweet bell pepper bushes must be fertile. Therefore, it's worth adding fresh manure during the fall tilling. If this wasn't done in the fall, then during planting seedlings Add two handfuls of rotted manure and a handful of wood ash to each hole.

Sweet pepper Kupets prefers:

• when watering, use warm, settled water;
• regularity of watering;
• loosening the space between rows and simultaneously removing weeds;
• Timely fertilization of pepper bushes with fertilizers that correspond to the stages of bush development:
  • When planting seedlings, nitrogen-containing fertilizers are used;
  • At the beginning of flowering and fruiting, you need to start fertilizing with phosphorus and potassium, this will give strength to the pepper bush, and it will produce a larger harvest;

Feedback from those who planted

Michael

This is the second year I've planted this pepper, and it always produces a good harvest. It's resistant to both cold snaps and unstable heat. The fruits are medium-sized and delicious.

Olga

I've been growing this variety for several years now, and it always produces a good harvest of tasty, fleshy fruit. I plant many different varieties in my garden, but I plant this one every year because it never fails and produces a consistently good harvest.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

This variety has remarkable positive qualities:

• tolerates cold and hot seasons well;
• a consistently rich harvest;
• commercial appearance of fruits;
• large-fruited;
• The variety is resistant to diseases and pests.

Based on gardeners’ reviews, no negative qualities have been identified.

The main purpose of the variety

Because peppers are high in sugars and vitamins, their main use is in fresh summer salads. However, they are also suitable for:

• preservation for the winter period;
• stuffing with various ingredients from minced meat to vegetable ingredients.

In which regions is it grown?

This variety is suitable for northern regions of Russia, such as Siberia and the Urals. In these regions, where summers are short and cool, this pepper produces good yields of marketable fruit.

Although the variety was bred for northern regions, it is also successfully cultivated in southern areas, as it easily tolerates cold snaps and droughts, as long as they are not prolonged.

Resistance to diseases and adverse conditions

This variety has proven itself to have good immunity to various fungal diseases. However, this doesn't negate the need for weekly inspections for any deviations from normal growth and pests.

To prevent disease, it's also a good idea to adhere to a planting pattern and treat bell pepper bushes using traditional methods. If an infected plant is noticed, carefully remove it from the garden bed with a lump of soil and destroy it outside the plot to avoid contaminating the soil in the garden.

Storage rules

First of all, peppers should be stored when they're technically ripe and free of visible mechanical damage. It's important to remember that the temperature in the storage area shouldn't exceed 12 degrees Celsius, otherwise the peppers will begin to rot irreversibly. Humidity should also be 90%. If all these requirements are met, the Kupets variety can be stored until the New Year.

Therefore, you can store:

1. in the refrigerator in a special plastic container with holes for oxygen access.
2. in the refrigerator in the vegetable drawer, placing each layer of pepper fruits on paper.
3. You can try digging up the pepper bush and transplanting it into a bucket and bringing it into a warm room to extend its growing season.

With proper care, the Kupets bell pepper variety will produce fruit in any weather, meaning gardeners will never be left without a harvest.