GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post - Do red bell pepper seedlings take forever to grow?

George Shirley · 11-08-2006, 05:33 PM posted to rec.gardens.edible

wrote:
Early this year (in southern california) I got seeds from the red bell
peppers I got from the market and I planted a lot of them. They took a
long time to germinate. Then they stayed about 1 inch high for a REALLY
long time, like 3 monthis maybe. Then they finally started seriously
growing. Now I finally have 5 plants between 12" to 18" tall and they
all have bell peppers growing. Is this the normal growing pattern? I
think I probably didn't water them enough when they were seedlings and
the soil was probably too alkaline. Now I water them every day, keeping
the soil always moist, and I give them sulfur every once in a while and
they seem to be doing well.

I live in USDA zone 9b, warm and humid 10 months out of the year.
Peppers need feeding frequently as they bear, they also need water a
lot. We get large amounts of rain here on the Middle Coast but I stick a
finger in the soil around the peppers and see if it moist. If the soil
is moist down to about an inch it's generally enough. I use osmocote to
fertilize them and do it about every two months. Peppers, like tomatoes,
are heavy feeders when they are bearing. HTH

George