Can you green peppers

Learning a few pepper-growing basics is all it takes to experience the garden-to-table goodness of homegrown bells. When thinking of sweet bell peppers, supermarket standards may come to mind. Big, glossy, green bells are grocery staples, and bright, shiny red bells follow close behind.

But when you grow your own peppers, the menu expands to hundreds of varieties. Most, but not all, start out green and then mature in color and sweetness.

Pepper varieties range from deep purple and chocolate-brown to creamy ivory, vivid yellow or fiery orange. Color isn't your only homegrown option. Plant and pepper sizes vary, too. Garden favorites such as King Arthur pepper grow 2 to 3 feet tall and wide, with thick-walled, blocky, green-to-red peppers at 4 inches square. Contrast that with the 1- to 2-inch, red mini-bells of Cupid or the golden minis of Sweet Golden Baby Belle.

At less than 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide, these compact plants are perfect for containers or small urban spaces. Peppers are treated as annual vegetables in most gardens, but they're actually tender perennial fruits, like their close relatives tomatoes and eggplants. These tropical natives like hot temperatures and fertile soil.

Plant in a location with well-drained soil and full, direct sun at least six to eight hours each day. You'll be rewarded with healthy plants and abundant fruit. Peppers are very sensitive to cold; rush them outside in spring and you'll regret it. In all but the hottest climates, you'll need to start seeds indoors six to eight weeks before your area's last anticipated spring frost or purchase small seedlings to transplant.

Wait until all danger of frost has passed and nighttime temperatures stay consistently near 60 degrees Fahrenheit before you move pepper plants outside. When choosing a site for your bell peppers, stick to garden spots where tomatoes, eggplants, other peppers or potatoes haven't grown for at least three years.

You can also stuff peppers with seasoned bread crumbs or meat and bake them. The best varieties of sweet peppers for growing in Texas include:. Peppers grow in all types of soils but do best in heavier, well-drained soils.

Plant them in areas that receive at least 6 hours of sunlight each day. Several weeks before planting, work the soil 8 to 10 inches deep and rake it several times to break up the large clods. Work the soil only when it is dry enough not to stick to garden tools.

Incorporate large amounts of organic matter into the soil, especially if you are working with heavy clay. You can use compost, peat moss, rotted hay, or other organic matter.

Because a few plants will feed most families, it is best to buy pepper plants rather than grow them from seed. Buy healthy plants that are 4 to 6 inches tall Fig. About three to four hot pepper plants and eight to ten sweet pepper plants usually are enough for a family of four. Figure 1. When buying pepper plants, choose those that are dark green and 4 to 6 inches tall. Peppers grow best in warm weather. Plant them only when all danger of cold weather has passed.

Plant fall peppers 12 to 16 weeks before the first expected frost. Space the rows at least 3 feet apart. Before planting, fill the holes with water and let it soak in. Figure 2. Move the plants carefully from the box or flat, and set them in the transplant holes.

Leave as much soil as possible around the roots. Fill the hole with soil and pack it loosely around the plant. Do not cover the roots deeper than the original soil ball. Green peppers like plenty of sunlight and moist, warm soil.

If using seed, plant under a shelter about eight weeks before you anticipate the last frost in your area, then transplant. Step 1 When planting green peppers loosen the soil deeply and mix in fertiliser, manure or compost thoroughly and evenly using a rake. For best results, add a dressing of organic fertiliser. Use one handful of to every 1m2 or four handfuls of manure or compost. Draw the ridges and furrows at least 1m apart.

Plant the seedlings at least 40cm apart along the waterline on the ridges. Stakes will keep the plants upright. Step 2 Plant your seedlings about three weeks after the last frost. Plant the seedlings at least 40cm apart along the waterline on the ridges not the top.

Step 3 Always water the roots, never the peppers. You can do this by using flood or drip irrigation.