Growing your own pepper plants—whether sweet bell peppers or spicy jalapeños—is a fun and rewarding experience. These vibrant plants will thrive and produce a plentiful harvest with the right mix of sunlight, water, and nutrients. But they need proper care throughout the season to keep them healthy and productive. Factors like temperature, watering, fertilizing, and pest control all play a significant role in helping your peppers grow strong. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know to keep your pepper plants happy and thriving from seedling to harvest.
Pepper Seeds and Seedlings
Growing peppers starts with seeds and seedlings. Plant your pepper seeds indoors about 8–10 weeks before the last frost to get a head start on the season. Use well-draining seed trays filled with nutrient-rich soil to give them the best start. A seedling heat mat can help speed germination by keeping the soil warm. Once the seedlings sprout, ensure they get plenty of light—about 14–16 hours a day—either from a grow light or a bright, sunny window.
Transplanting and Growing
Once the risk of frost is gone and nighttime temperatures are consistently warm, it’s time to move your pepper seedlings outdoors. Pick a sunny spot with good airflow and enrich the soil with plenty of organic matter to give them a strong start. Make sure to space them out so they have room to grow. Peppers love full sun and thrive best when daytime temperatures are between 70–85°F.
Temperature and ideal conditions
Peppers are technically tender perennials, meaning they can grow year-round in warmer climates (USDA zones 9–11), but in most areas, they’re treated as annuals. They thrive in warm weather, with daytime temperatures between 70–80°F and slightly cooler nights around 60–70°F. When harvesting, wait until the peppers have an even color and feel firm to the touch for the best flavor and texture.
Blossom drop can happen when summer temperatures soar above 90°F. Each flower has the potential to turn into a pepper, but if the blooms fall off too soon, no fruit will form. Cold weather can also be a problem—if temperatures drop below 60°F, you might also notice blossoms falling off.
Caring for Mature Pepper Plants
To encourage bushy growth and stronger plants, pinch off the growing tips when your pepper plants reach about 6 inches tall. Peppers like consistently moist soil, so aim to give them about an inch of water per week and ensure the soil drains well. Adding mulch around the base helps retain moisture and keeps weeds under control.
A good rule of thumb for watering is to give peppers 1–2 inches of water whenever the top 1–2 inches of soil feel dry. After watering, check the moisture level by digging a few inches into the soil—it should be damp at least 6–12 inches deep, depending on your soil type.
Fertilize your peppers twice during the growing season: once about four weeks after planting and again four weeks later. Use a high-nitrogen granular fertilizer (like a 21-0-0 formula) at about ¼ teaspoon per plant. Sprinkle it on the soil about 6 inches from the plant’s base, then water deeply so the nutrients soak in. Beware of over-fertilization, as too much nitrogen can produce lush foliage but limited fruit production.
Once the soil warms up to around 75°F, add mulch to help maintain moisture and reduce weeds. Use seed-free hay, compost, shredded bark, organic grass clippings, pine straw, or leaf mold. Spread the mulch 2–4 inches deep, but keep it about 3 inches away from the base of each plant to prevent rot.
Growing tips
Mulch is excellent for controlling weeds and preventing the soil from drying out too fast. It also helps regulate soil temperature, keeping it steady during hot and cool weather.
To keep your pepper plants healthy, regularly pull weeds by hand or use a hoe to loosen them gently. This ensures that water, fertilizer, and nutrients go to your peppers instead of being stolen by unwanted weeds.
Harvesting
Pick peppers throughout the season by gently pinching or clipping them off about halfway up the stem. Harvest when they reach their full color—whether green, red, orange, yellow, or purple—and feel firm to the touch.
Pepper plants don’t need pruning as they grow. Once you’ve finished harvesting, you can either let them die naturally when frost hits or pull them up and discard them. If you live in a frost-free climate, your pepper plants may survive the winter and start producing again next season.
To prevent the spread of disease, clean your pruning shears after harvesting. Soak the blades in a solution of nine parts water to one part bleach for about five minutes, then rinse and dry them before storing.
Pests: Identification and Treatments
Aphids
Young pepper plants are especially at risk for pests like aphids. Check them weekly, focusing on the undersides of leaves and inside flowers. If tiny green, white, or brown bugs cluster together or notice curling leaves, aphids might be the problem. These pests suck sap from the plant, which can weaken it and slow down pepper growth.
To get rid of aphids, wipe them off with a damp cloth or spray them away with a strong stream of water from the hose.
Aphids can also spread mosaic virus, a disease that causes leaves to turn light green with a mottled or “mosaic” pattern. Unfortunately, there’s no cure once a plant is infected. If possible, isolate the affected plant—this works well if it’s in a container—or remove and destroy it to prevent the virus from spreading. Since aphids can transfer the disease to healthy plants, acting quickly is important.
Tip: After handling a diseased plant, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water to prevent the virus from spreading to other plants.
Spider Mites
Spider mites are tiny white bugs that leave behind fine webbing on leaves. They feed by sucking sap from the plant, which can weaken your peppers over time.
To get rid of them, clean the leaves and monitor your plants daily. If that doesn’t work, try using a mild horticultural soap spray to keep them under control.
Fruitworms
Fruitworms are small caterpillars about 1 to 1 1/3 inches long. They can be brown, pale green, or light tan. They burrow into peppers and chew holes, ruining the fruit.
When you spot them, pick them off by hand and remove them. Look for holes in ripening peppers and leaves, as these are signs that fruitworms might be around.
Hornworms
Hornworms are big green caterpillars that munch on pepper plant leaves and tender stems.
If you spot them, pick them off immediately and remove them. Watch for holes in the leaves and ripening peppers—these are signs that hornworms might be causing trouble.
Taking care of pepper plants means paying attention to their needs at every stage. From starting seeds with grow lights and heat mats to raising strong seedlings, your effort will lead to healthy, thriving plants. Once it’s time to move them outside, choosing a sunny spot with good drainage, keeping up with watering, and giving them enough space to grow are all key to success. Staying on top of pests and diseases will also help keep your plants in shape.
Whether you’re growing sweet bell peppers for fresh salads, vibrant varieties to brighten your garden, or spicy peppers to bring some heat to your dishes, knowing how they grow and what they need is essential. By following these tips, you’ll set yourself up for a successful harvest filled with a mix of flavors, colors, and cooking possibilities. Gardening is both an art and a science—you’ll fine-tune your approach over time and get even better results!