This is another installment about growing vegetables in containers. Click on Gardening Tutorials to see more in the series.
I love growing peppers. There is such a wide selection of sizes, colors and shapes, not to mention flavors and levels of heat, that there is truly a pepper to suit everyone’s tastes. This easy to grow vegetable is a popular choice for backyard gardeners all over the world. But you can still grow them even if you don’t have a garden.
Growing peppers in containers is fun, and the plants make a decorative addition to patios, decks and balconies. Also, folks in colder climates can get a jump on the season by getting these heat-loving plants going in containers before the soil warms up. Even gardeners with in-ground gardens can grow a pepper (or two) this way, like I do.
Happy Yummy pepper
To start, you’ll need a container at least 12 inches in diameter. Make sure it’s at least 12 inches deep too, and has a drainage hole. I prefer one a bit bigger, in the 14-16 inch diameter range. Bigger pots make for bigger plants and more peppers, plus you won’t have to water them quite so often. Smart Pots or Grow Bags are another good option, and those in the 10 gallon size should work well for peppers.
Water and light are two of the most important things a pepper plant needs. A location with full sun is the best, but in areas with hot summers they can tolerate a bit of afternoon shade. Peppers need a spot where they can get at least eight hours of sun in order to perform well. I sit mine where they get sun all day, and they do great.
Carmen peppers
You can grow all varieties of peppers in a container, but beginners might do better to start with some that were bred with containers in mind. Orange Blaze and Carmen are two All-America Selections sweet peppers that do great in containers, while Cayennetta and Holy Mole are two AAS hot peppers that are perfect in pots. Plant breeders are always working to introduce more vegetables that work well in containers, and this year the AAS selected three new pepper varieties: Pretty N Sweet, Emerald Fire and Flaming Flare. Plants for all these should be widely available in garden centers in the U.S., and seeds too if you want to start them yourself.
Once you’ve decided on a pepper, you need to fill your container with a good quality potting soil. Don’t be tempted to use soil from your yard or garden. The plants will prefer a loose, well-drained mix that is generous in organic matter. I like to use a peat based organic potting soil (like Pro-mix or FoxFarm) and add a handful or two of compost. I also add some slow release organic fertilizer (Espoma Tomato-tone) and mix it in well before planting. Your local garden center should be able to supply you with all the materials you need.
planting pepper in 14″ container
Peppers like warm weather, so wait until all danger of frost is over for your area before planting. You can always move the container inside if a sudden cold spell threatens. Set the young pepper plant in the potting soil at the same height it was growing, or slightly deeper. Water well to begin with, and then check the soil often and water as necessary. Once the plant starts growing, and the weather warms up, you may need to water daily. And when the peppers start coming on, you may need to water twice daily.
hot pepper (Aji Angelo) two months after planting
The frequent watering required by the container plants will wash away nutrients faster than if they were planted in the ground. To compensate, every couple of weeks you should fertilize using a water soluble fertilizer. Avoid using fertilizers that are high in nitrogen, as they can promote lush foliage growth with fewer peppers. I like to use a fish and seaweed blend (Neptune’s Harvest 2-3-1) to make sure the peppers get all of the major and minor nutrients they need.
Aji Angelo pepper
Growing peppers in containers is a great way for beginners and veteran gardeners alike to enjoy this popular and nutritious vegetable. With a little time and effort, you can be reaping the rewards of fresh homegrown peppers all summer and fall.
I wish I could keep up with container grown plants, but I tend to forget to water them often enough. So I’ve mostly given up trying. I’ll still do mint in containers, but not even I seem to be able to kill mint.
Mint is a tough plant for sure. Amazingly, I have killed mint in a container, and recently too. I forgot to water it! I have probably killed at least one of everything at some point.
I’ve tried planting peppers and hot varieties did pretty well, but the sweet ones produced 1 or 2 peppers only 🙁 Not sure what went wrong. Will try again with some of the Aji’s this year.
Hi Jenny! I do think sometimes the hot peppers do better in containers than the sweet ones. Carmen is one sweet hybrid that does well, and Jimmy Nardello is an o/p one that I have had luck with. I want to try Tolli’s Sweet Italian in a pot this year. It did quite well planted in the ground last year.
Great tutorial! I would love to grow peppers in pots – think of all the extra varieties I could grow….. But with the distraction of young kids running around, I know I would forget to water those pots. Definitely something to consider for the future, though.
Watering is a big thing, for sure. I keep my potted plants out near the kitchen garden, where I am likely to go several times a day. Still, it is confining to have a lot of container plants that need daily watering.
I alway grow a few peppers in pots, especially baccatums, they are more cold tolerant than annuums so I can often get them to overwinter outside if I keep them near the house. It does seem that hot peppers do better than sweet one in containers, but I think that small fruited peppers either sweet or hot generally do better. Great tutorial!
Thanks Michelle. It’s good to hear your observations too. I have an Aji Angelo overwintering now, and I am looking forward to early harvests from it again this year. And thanks once again for sharing the seeds with me!
Wonderful tutorial that I will be sharing! I have grown peppers in pots with great success in the past. I have seeds for an Asian pepper to try this year and I plan on growing a couple plants in large pots so I can bring them in and try to overwinter them.
Thanks Rachel! Like I commented to Michelle, I have an Aji Angelo plant I overwintered inside, and as soon as the soil warms up I will plant it out in the ground. I did that last year and got a big jump on ripe peppers with this variety, not to mention a large number of peppers on a huge plant.
Nice tutorial, thanks. I have tried peppers in pots so I can bring them indoors for the winter. They seem to croak almost right away. Must be the dry indoor environment here in the NE. It was a surprise to me to see Carmen does well in containers. I grew it last year in the garden and it is a favorite of mine and will repeat this year.
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Great tutorial! I love peppers and grow some smaller varieties in pots too. You’re look great!
Thanks for linking up with Green Thumb Thursday. We’d love for you to link up again this week!
~Lisa
Hi there! I was Googling about Yummy pepper, and I stumbled into your blog. What a wonderful warm postings you have! I’ve been an avid home grower.
I’m curious if Yummy stabilized for you? F1 Yummy peppers are wonderful, but I was looking for OP. Of course I found it on TotallyTomatoes site where I frequent. Somehow you managed to save seeds, but the next generation apparently turned out hot. I’m contemplating whether to order seeds from TotallyTomatoes. We don’t eat hot peppers, and I’ve been surprised by the second generation of seeds in the past. Your thoughts?
The Yummy seeds I had were not F1 hybrids. If I’m not mistaken, the ones sold by Totally Tomato are open-pollinated. What I found was a ‘rogue’ plant that was not true to type – not a Yummy pepper.
I am still trying to stabilize that strain. I now have a sweet version and a hot version, but they do not always come up true to type. You should be able to save seed from a Yummy and not have that problem.