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Post by Use Less on May 30, 2015 14:46:33 GMT
I recall a farmer friend telling me to plant my green pepper plants close together, but the reputable online sources say 18-24" between plants, and more between rows. What'sa good plan? I'm in western NYS, not too elevated. My soil drains very quickly. Thanks.
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Post by Muller's Lane Farm on May 30, 2015 15:39:45 GMT
Mine are planted between 12"-18" apart
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Post by seaeagle on May 30, 2015 16:24:01 GMT
www.almanac.com/plant/bell-peppersFarmers Almanac says to plant 2 peppers plants as one and then space them.I have done this and continue to do this although I have them paired about 6 inches apart. It works
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Post by paquebot on May 30, 2015 18:18:45 GMT
Depends upon the variety or type. Some can handle 12" and others too close at 24". One of my previous seed offers had two peppers. Ukrainian only got a foot tall and could be planted at 12" spacing. Peppadew grew 3' tall and 3' wide and filled every inch at 24" spacing. Almost everything this year is at 18" for hot and 24" for large sweet bells.
Martin
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Post by solargeek on May 30, 2015 18:50:46 GMT
It is so windy here all the time, my peppers touch. They seem to like it. As Jim pointed out below, I get a better yield when they touch.
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2015 19:14:44 GMT
I've been refining my pepper cultivation here for about ten years. Last year I had a number of test groups.
Jalapenos grown in the manner recommended locally (planted in the ground, 36" apart, in tomato cages for support). Yield (for 8 plants) was 6 peppers, total.
Four jalapenos planted in a "tire full of dirt" and tied to stakes yielded 31 peppers.
Four bell peppers planted in the locally-recommended manner (in the ground, 36" apart, in tomato cages for support) yielded an average of 1.2 pounds of peppers per plant. Four bell peppers planted in a "tire full of dirt" yielded an average of 2.8 pounds of peppers per plant. Four bell peppers planted in a "fixed" raised bed (basically a box full of dirt) spaced 18" apart in staggered rows 12" apart, and tied to stakes, yielded an average of 8.1 pounds per plant.
This year, I've got jalapenos planted 3 to a tire (eventually to be tied to stakes), and will have more grown in a fixed raised bed and tied to stakes. The most-successful bell pepper planting from last year is repeated to see if it was a fluke, and more are planted 3 to a tire. I'll also be growing cayenne peppers in a fixed raised bed at 12" spacing, in the soil mix that has worked best for them in the past; I'll be repeating that with more jalapenos (because, like, you can never have too many jalapenos!).
So for here (eastern Nebraska), I'd suggest planting them in a fixed raised bed full of really good soil, spaced 18" apart in the row, with rows 12" apart. Tie them to stakes to support them as they grow.
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Post by 1shotwade on May 31, 2015 16:42:36 GMT
I normally space all my garden farther apart than recommended. I see it like this. A 1 acre pond can only support "X" pounds of fish. The more fish you put in the pond the smaller the harvest will be.If you do not crowd then you will get fewer fish but larger fish.If you do crowd them you get more fish but smaller fish.
Same thing for a garden.All other things being equal,the more space you give a plant the larger the plant.The less space you give that plant the smaller the plant. And just as in fish,the totals that you get also includes the entire plant when you only use the fruits so the smaller the plant the lower the rate of yield and the higher the waste.
Wade
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Post by paquebot on May 31, 2015 20:05:07 GMT
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Post by seaeagle on Jun 2, 2015 13:24:03 GMT
Just out of curiosity I went and measured my pepper plant spacing.They are paired 10 to 12 inches apart and then spaced 2 feet apart.That sort of sounds like when Jim had his best results.That was some nice research Jim. Thank You for that.I would never plant them as close as Farmer's Almanac says(2 plants in a 4 inch pot).If you want early big Bells, Fat and Sassy or it is also called King Arthur are earlier than most and go right till frost.
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Post by Skandi on Jun 2, 2015 14:01:13 GMT
Watching with interst. will be planting mine in the greenhouse soon. (waiting for them to get big enough to withstand a slug nibble) I don't think I need to worry about 7' roots I've never seen a pepper over 1' tall! We're rather marginal for them here, even under glass.
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Post by 1shotwade on Jun 2, 2015 15:24:54 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2015 3:35:27 GMT
I'm a bit familiar with the book you linked to (and even found my copy when I checked my bookshelves--always a surprise when I can find a book I'm sure I have!). The book was very informative, but seemed to be describing conditions for optimal vegetative growth as well as yields, and for commercial production. Since I'm just growing for my own use, in a garden rather than a field, I can get away with bending the rules. . . but if I were growing lots of plants, unsupported in an open field, I'd be planting them farther apart so the plants could survive the winds better. The thought behind the initial experiments in planting closely was based on what I saw in Central America. It wasn't uncommon to see a number of first-year peppers growing so closely together that it was obvious the seeds had all sprouted from the same pepper. They seemed to be competing as to which plant could produce the first, and the most, peppers. By the second year, those multiple plants had usually been naturally thinned to a more-conventional spacing, though still more closely than Weaver and Bruner thought was optimum. One fall I "planted" jalapenos by dropping whole peppers on the ground, and covering them with about an inch of leaf mulch. In the spring, each pepper grew into many plants, growing so closely that most were pushed to the side. The ones that grew tallest began flowering early and often. They weren't the sturdiest plants, but the yields were pretty good relative to what I was getting from carefully-spaced plants. After that, I began moving them closer to each other. When grown as an annual, I think--if you have full, all-day sunlight--they do better when the roots are a little crowded. This requires rich soil (or maybe the use of commercial fertilizers, but I haven't tried that). |
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Post by themotherhen on Jun 17, 2015 4:49:29 GMT
I normally space all my garden farther apart than recommended. I see it like this. A 1 acre pond can only support "X" pounds of fish. The more fish you put in the pond the smaller the harvest will be.If you do not crowd then you will get fewer fish but larger fish.If you do crowd them you get more fish but smaller fish. Same thing for a garden.All other things being equal,the more space you give a plant the larger the plant.The less space you give that plant the smaller the plant. And just as in fish,the totals that you get also includes the entire plant when you only use the fruits so the smaller the plant the lower the rate of yield and the higher the waste. Wade I use this method also for peppers and tomatoes. I am not that brave with corn yet. I had a disaster on my hands the last time I tried and have still not recovered. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2015 15:26:49 GMT
In the green house in big tree pots, spread around. In the garden double row, 12" apart 18" in row, alternating. Raised bed, 2 rows, 3' wide bed, 12" apart in the row, alternating....James
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Post by paquebot on Jun 17, 2015 22:54:08 GMT
A lot depends upon the variety or type. I've seen Kung Pao planted in big blocs spaced less than a foot in all directions. I grow a sweet Ukrainian pepper which tops out at about 15" in the best of soil and has no trouble with 12" spacing in bloc planting. Some here got Peppadew from me several years ago. They were monsters at 3' wide and over 3' high. A friend and I are growing at least 30 varieties between us this year with everything from the mildest sweet bells to Carolina Reaper. With many being new to us, all but a few are being given 18" between plants. With some, there may be wasted space between them when the plants reach mature size. Others may become entangled with each other. We prefer the former over the later.
Martin
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