Red bell pepper (green at first, ripens to red) - pressing block 10x10 cm

Bell pepper is native to South America. The plant belongs to the nightshade family and is related to tomato and eggplant, among others. It is an herbaceous, non-hardy plant.

There are many varieties in various shapes and colors: red, yellow, orange, purple and white. However, when unripe, they are all green. Green peppers are therefore not a separate species!

PLANTING:
Peppers absolutely need heat and light to grow well. If you want to work on growing a full-fledged bell pepper plant yourself from a seed, you have quite a bit of work to do:

-The ideal germination temperature is 23°C.
-After 12 to 14 days, when the plants are approximately 5 cm tall, the first real leaf appears between the germination leaves and the plants can be pricked out.
-During the further cultivation a minimum temperature of 18°C must be maintained, at lower temperatures the growth stops.
-To grow a plant of about 40 cm you need about 7 weeks.

cultivation tips:
A humus-rich, moisture-containing soil with a good structure is ideal. Before beginning cultivation, provide a good basic fertilizer, preferably organic.

The soil temperature at planting out should be at least 15°C, otherwise a bell pepper plant will not grow and the risk of root problems increases. In practice this means that it is best to plant out in a greenhouse at the earliest by the end of April. A cultivation in the open air is not really recommended and will only be successful in a warm summer.

Planting distance: 80 x 50 cm (3 plants/m).
When planting, make sure the root ball is about 1 cm above the ground. Do not plant the root ball completely under the soil, as this increases the risk of foot rot. Water generously immediately after planting, preferably heated to about 20°C.

PruningIf
you do not prune bell pepper plants, you will get a highly branched, bushy plant with a fruit here and there. You can harvest quickly, but the yield will not be as big.

If you want a large yield, both the shoots and the fruit need to be pruned appropriately.
- In the beginning, sweet peppers grow as 1 stalk and no pruning is necessary. After about 10 leaves, the main stalk splits. From then on, it is best to keep 2 main stems in order to maintain the most vigor.
- After each subsequent leaf, the shoots will split again.
- The first 5-6 flowers that appear should be removed to maintain sufficient vigor.
- Top each time the weakest of the split side shoots after the first leaf. In this way, we maintain a main stem with side shoots that are always topped on the first leaf.
-Remove all flowers on the side shoots. If you leave too many fruits on the plant, the growth will come to a standstill.

The plant will grow faster each time it is harvested.
In full summer and with sufficiently large and vigorous plants, more fruit can also be kept on the side shoots.

If you want the fruits to continue to color then the plant will remain "loaded" longer and the harvest will be lower.
If you are satisfied with green peppers then you will have a larger harvest. In a greenhouse, you can harvest until the end of October.

PROBLEMS AND DISEASES:
-Nose rot: Rotten spots at the end of the fruit, due to the plant not being able to carry enough moisture to the fruit.
Cause:
Soil too dry.
A soil that is too salty, too heavily fertilized (usually with chemical fertilizers)
Too little lime in the soil-Burnt spots
: Burning of the fruit hanging in too bright a sun at high temperature. Leave enough leaves on the plant to prevent this, or possibly whitewash the greenhouse.
-Foot rot: the foot of the plant rots because it is too wet. Therefore make sure that the plant is not planted too deep. Do not water the foot of the plant directly but in an excavated gutter or a dug-in pot next to it.
-Spider mites and white flies: ask your garden center for advice