High-yielding sweet pepper varieties: description and characteristics with photos

Growing a bountiful harvest of vitamin-rich, delicious, and juicy sweet peppers is every gardener's dream. Most varieties of this heat-loving crop boast excellent fertility rates. Beginners, often guided solely by this characteristic, purchase seeds and expect large harvests, but ultimately end up disappointed.

Let's figure out why this happens. Let's look at the most productive varieties of sweet peppers for open ground and greenhouses.

How to get a high yield

Selecting seeds wisely is crucial. It's important to consider the ripening period and growing conditions for the variety. Some peppers produce a good harvest only in greenhouses, while others are best grown outdoors. But there are also versatile hybrid or varietal peppers that are resistant to low temperatures and dry periods. They maintain their productivity under any conditions.

Choosing seeds is just the beginning! To get a bountiful pepper harvest, remember that this crop requires very high care; good results come from gardeners who strictly follow all agricultural practices. In Russia, peppers are grown exclusively from seedlings.

Rules for sowing seeds

Sowing dates are usually indicated on the packaging, but beginners are advised to consult with more experienced gardeners in their region. In most parts of Russia, seeds are sown in February or early March. The crop is planted in unprotected soil after the last frosts have passed and the top layer of soil (up to 10 cm deep) has warmed to 15-16 degrees Celsius. This period occurs between mid-May and early June.

Timing of planting is crucial. If you sow late, the crop won't have time to produce a harvest before the cold weather sets in. If you sow seeds too early, the peppers will overgrow and flower in their pots. Insufficient light and nutrition will severely weaken the plant, causing it to shed its flowers and take a long time to produce new ones. By the time the seedlings are planted, each plant should have 8 or 9 true leaves.

General recommendations:

• early ripening peppers are sown 65 days before the planned planting date;
• mid-season varieties and hybrids can be sown 65 or 70 days before planting in a permanent location;
• Late-ripening peppers are sown 75 days before planting.

If transplanting is planned during seedling cultivation, this period should be extended by 8 or 10 days. Seedling growth slows during transplantation. It's important to consider not only the ripening time but also the growing conditions; peppers can be sown slightly earlier in greenhouses. It's also important to remember that pepper seeds take a long time to germinate. Before sowing, sort the seeds, discarding any dark or broken ones.

Germination

It's difficult to predict how long it will take for seeds to germinate, but seedlings need to be grown on time. To avoid confusion about the timing, treat the seeds with growth stimulants. You can use store-bought products or prepare a nutrient solution yourself:

• Nutrition: Add a tablespoon of crushed wood ash to 0.5 liters of water, mix well, and let the mixture steep for 2 days. Next, soak the seeds in the resulting solution (in a cloth bag) for 4 or 5 hours.
• Soaking – the seeds can be soaked without rinsing or drying after being treated with the nutrient mixture. Prepare a piece of cheesecloth and spread the seeds across it. Now fold the cheesecloth so that all the seeds are inside, but, if possible, not touching each other. Dampen the bundle, place it on a saucer, and place it in a transparent bag, trapping air inside.

The seed container should be kept warm; temperatures between 23–28°C are considered optimal for germination. The first sprouts will appear in 2 or 3 days, and you can now begin sowing.

Planting seedlings

Place the seeds in a prepared container filled with soil, spacing them 1, 5, or 2 cm apart. Now cover the seedlings with a centimeter of soil and water with settled, room-temperature water. After sowing, cover the container with a transparent cloth and place in a warm place (25–27°C).

Remove the covering periodically and moisten the soil; it's crucial that it doesn't dry out. The first shoots will emerge in 1 or 2 weeks. When sprouts appear, remove the bag or glass and move the seedlings to a bright windowsill. What you need to know:

• During the day, the room temperature should be maintained at 22–25 °C, and at night at 16–18;
• There should be no drafts in the room with seedlings, as excessively dry air is harmful to young plants;
• Watering should begin as soon as the top layer of soil begins to dry out. The water should be warm. Avoid under- or over-watering seedlings.
• Pepper needs about 9 hours of light a day, but if possible, it needs additional lighting.

Approximately 20 to 25 days after germination, the seedlings develop two true leaves. This is the time to transplant the seedlings.

Picking

The best seedlings are selected for transplanting, with those that sprout first considered especially good. Two hours before transplanting, the plants are watered generously. Fill the prepared containers with soil and make holes up to 6 cm deep. Carefully transfer the seedlings, along with the root ball, into the containers. The seedling stems are buried no more than 2 cm deep. Now the seedlings should be watered generously.

Before planting outdoors, constantly monitor soil moisture. Avoid lowering the air temperature and neglect supplemental lighting. Hardening off the plants begins 10-14 days before planting. You can move the plant to a cooler room or open the windows, initially for 15 minutes at a time and gradually increase the time.

Watering

The first watering of peppers is done immediately after planting, the second after 5 or 7 days. Thereafter, the crop is watered every 7-10 days. Initially, one liter of water per plant is sufficient, then gradually increase the amount to 3 liters. The soil should be loosened every two weeks. Watering is stopped two or three weeks before harvest.

Fertilizers

Seedlings are fertilized every two weeks. Experienced gardeners recommend using Cytovit complex fertilizer (1 ml per liter of water). After planting, fertilize the plants as follows:

• Two weeks after planting, feed the peppers with mullein or chicken manure. Use 1 liter of the former fertilizer or half a liter of the latter per 10 liters of water. Pour no more than a liter of the solution under each plant.
• The second feeding is carried out during the flowering period. You can use potassium sulfate, superphosphate, ammonium nitrate (according to the instructions), or the same solutions as for the first feeding, but with the addition of 2 tablespoons of monopotassium phosphate;
• The following fertilizing is carried out during the period of formation and filling of fruits; it is advisable to alternate the fertilizer.

Nitrogen fertilizers—mullein, chicken manure, ammonium nitrate, and urea—are especially important during flowering. During fruiting, peppers require phosphorus (superphosphate), and wood ash can also be added to the soil at this time (2 cups per 1 m²).

Mulching

This procedure can protect peppers from rapid moisture evaporation during dry periods. Straw, freshly cut or pre-dried grass, and a thin layer of rotted sawdust can be used as mulch.

Bush formation

Side shoots on pepper plants rob the main branches, where the best fruit is produced. Most varieties and hybrids are trained into 2 or 3 stems. All side shoots and leaves at the base of the plant should be removed (leaving stumps about 3 mm long) up to the main fork. Side shoots on the main branch should be pinched off after the first fruit sets.

Properly formed bushes will be well-ventilated and exposed to light, and the fruit will receive all the necessary nutrition from the soil. Don't neglect pruning, as all the extra leaves and branches will sap the plant's strength. Peppers that form on extra stems will be small, thin-walled, and tough, and they're unlikely to ripen before frost sets in.

The most productive varieties of pepper

Armed with useful information and important tips on growing peppers, you can now select seeds for your garden. Let's look at the most prolific varieties that actively set fruit and consistently produce good harvests.

Early varieties

These peppers ripen 70–110 days after germination. These varieties are most often purchased by gardeners in cooler regions with short summers:

Winnie the Pooh

A variety with cluster-shaped fruits, bred in Russia (1891). It is versatile in use and is resistant to diseases, high, and low temperatures. Winnie-the-Pooh is approved for cultivation in any conditions.

The bushes grow up to 40 cm tall and are neat and standard. The peppers are thick-walled, juicy, cone-shaped, red, smooth, and slightly ribbed, weighing from 40 to 70 grams. The flavor is pleasantly sweet, but leans toward neutral. The fruits ripen evenly, yielding up to 5 kilograms per square meter per season.

Dwarf

This variety is approved for cultivation in protected ground or under plastic shelters. This dwarf variety tolerates slight temperature drops and rarely gets sick, but it requires mineral fertilizers. The plant, no taller than 40 cm, is neat and sparsely branched. The peppers are juicy and tasty, red, cone-shaped, thick-walled, and weigh up to 90 grams. The average yield is 5 kg/m².

Martin

This variety is highly prized for its high yield (7 kg/m²) and uniform ripening. The bushes are compact, reaching just over half a meter in the open ground and up to 80 cm in a greenhouse. It is highly resistant to fungi, rot, and bacteria. Swallow grows in any conditions. The fruits are red, thick-walled, cone-shaped, and weigh up to 100 grams. The taste is excellent.

Snow White

A variety with good disease resistance. It is highly undesirable to grow it in open ground, except in the south. The plants are dense, no taller than half a meter, and neat. The fruits are thick-walled, elongated-cuboid, red, weighing 100 to 150 grams. The flesh is slightly fibrous, juicy, and tasty, with a distinct peppery aroma. Yields up to 7 kg/m².

Mid-season varieties

Here we'll describe varieties that ripen 120 or 130 days after germination. These peppers are versatile and can be grown in all regions:

California Miracle

This variety can be planted in any conditions and exhibits good resistance to temperature fluctuations and diseases. The bushes grow up to 70 cm tall and are compact. The fruits are cube-shaped, red, thick-walled (9–10 mm), weighing up to 150 grams. The peppers have a rich flavor and aroma, making them versatile. Yields range from 5 to 7 kg/m².

A gift from Moldova

The semi-standard bush grows to about 60 cm in height, making it a versatile variety that is resistant to all adverse conditions. With proper care, the yield is approximately 5 kg/m². This variety can be planted both indoors and outdoors.

The fruits are cone-shaped, red, thick-walled, and weigh up to 120 grams. The flesh is very pleasantly textured, sweet and juicy, with a rich peppery aroma. This variety is easy to care for, suitable for gardening novices.

The Orange King

This variety can be grown outdoors only in southern regions; otherwise, it's planted in a greenhouse. It has good disease resistance, and its fruit is versatile. The bush is tall (requires support and staking), dense, and compact.

The peppers are prismatic, shiny, thick-walled, and orange, weighing up to 250 grams. The flesh is juicy, without any bitterness, offering only sweetness and a vibrant aroma. With proper care, they yield up to 6 kilograms per square meter outdoors, and up to 7.5 kilograms indoors.

Late-ripening varieties

Peppers ripen 140 days after the first shoots emerge. They are best grown in areas with long summers and warm early autumn months. The best varieties and hybrids are:

Gladiator

A Dutch variety, suitable for any growing conditions and resistant to many diseases. The bushes are medium-sized and spreading. The fruits are cube-shaped, slightly ribbed, yellow, and weigh up to 350 grams. The walls are approximately 13 mm thick, the flesh is juicy and tender, sweet, and very pleasant to the taste. It has a subtle peppery aroma. These peppers are versatile, with yields up to 12 kg/m².

Black Cardinal

A high-yielding (up to 10 kg/m²) sweet pepper hybrid native to Italy, it boasts excellent resistance to disease and adverse weather conditions. The bush is medium-height, standard, and compact. These peppers are versatile. Black Cardinal peppers require a high degree of fertilization.

The fruits are cone-shaped, thick-walled, dark purple, and glossy, weighing between 70 and 150 grams. The flesh is juicy and tender, with a rich, sweet flavor and a distinct peppery aroma. The peppers store well and are easily transported over long distances.

Madonna

This sweet pepper hybrid, best grown in greenhouses and under plastic covers, thrives even in partial shade. It's easy to grow and resistant to various adverse conditions, and its fruits are versatile.

The bush is vigorous, branched, and has short internodes. The fruits are block-shaped, thick-walled (10–13 mm), red, and weigh up to 250 grams. The flavor is rich and pleasant, and the flesh is firm and juicy. The average yield is 6 kg/m².

Finally, I'd like to share a little trick that will help you get a bountiful harvest of sweet peppers. Although the plant is self-pollinating, it does appreciate the help of beneficial insects. You can attract pollinators by spraying the peppers with a sugar solution (100 grams per 10 liters of water) with the addition of boric acid dissolved in hot water.

Reviews

Sergey

When growing seedlings, to prevent them from leaning toward the window, I use reflectors, a mirror, or foil-covered cardboard. Supplemental light is, of course, difficult to manage without; the seedlings become stretched and weaken, which is very bad for peppers. Among my favorite, productive varieties, I'd like to highlight the Dwarf variety. It's very easy to care for, has a pleasant flavor, and has never let me down.

Victoria

I'd like to highlight two varieties from the list: Winnie the Pooh and Gift of Moldova. I grow them in a greenhouse in the Leningrad region. These peppers are tried and true; I've been planting them for many years, and every year they delight me with abundant harvests of beautiful, tasty, and versatile fruits. Last year, I bought the Black Cardinal variety and really liked it. It's easy to grow, but the fruits change color when cooked.