In our last fun filled episode, Tue, 23 Sep 2003 06:32:14
GMT, pascarj proclaimed:

No matter how many varieties I try, or how I grow them, I cannot get a
bell pepper bigger than a tennis ball. And I only seem to get 2 or 3
peppers per plant. I don't understand this because I can grow hot
peppers like crazy.

Hot peppers do seem to be hardier than bells, don't they?
Where I used to live, the tress were slowly encroaching on
my gardening space. Sunlight was becoming marginal for most
vegetables, but I noticed that the hot peppers were much
more forgiving of the shade than the bells. They also seem
more resistant to common diseases like bacterial spot, and
less prone to blossom end rot. Generally, mind you, not
always or absolutely.

I think, but I won't swear to it, that all bell peppers are
_C. annuum_. The more I grow peppers, the more it appears
to me that _C. annuum_ is the least hardy of the pepper
species. This could be a perspective problem, of course, _C.
annuum_ has by far the most varieties of peppers; and it
could be that the ones I select are among the least hardy.


What is the secret to large, stuffing size bell peppers? Any help will
be thankfully accepted.

First off, what is your general location/zone? Next what
varieties have you tried? What's your garden like, as in,
how do you prepare the soil? What, if any, fertilizers do
you use?

Give us something to work with, and I bet someone here
will have some solid suggestions.


Pam


--
"Maybe you'd like to ask the Wizard for a heart."
"ElissaAnn"