I’d say that the 8 inch plants would be OK to leave a few blossoms on, but pinching off the flowers for the 6 inch plants is a good idea. Although banana peppers are pretty prolific, you’ll ultimately get more (and larger) peppers if you let the plants get a little larger before producing fruit.

Enjoy your banana peppers!

Gail

That happens sometimes when the plants don’t get enough air circulation, or they are in a spot where the morning dew doesn’t disappear from the plants for quite some time after the sun rises. It can also happen if the plant is stressed for some other reason, like a sudden change in weather (like from going to mild temperatures to really hot within a few days).

At this point, all you can really do is pick the peppers as soon as you can, before they turn brown. Or, if they are turning brown when they are very small, pick them off as soon as you see it. Having a lot of fruit at one time is also somewhat stressful for the plant, so it needs plenty of water and light doses of fertilizer every couple of weeks (I like to do it about 1/3 strength).

I hope this helps, and that your peppers pull through!

I’ve had that happen a time or two, and it certainly is frustrating! Here are some of my thoughts.

If the seeds and soil aren’t kept warm enough, they may not sprout. Keeping the soil moist isn’t always enough; without being warm enough the seeds just won’t sprout. Warm means between 80 degrees and 90 degrees (fahrenheit). 85 degrees is a good temperature.

Some varieties need a long time before they do anything. Although banana peppers in general only need a week or two, I’ve had seeds take 4 weeks before sprouting.

If your seeds weren’t dried and stored properly, they may have died. Yes, seeds are alive, just really, really dormant.

I like to sprout seeds in a small cup, using sterile potting mix. Here’s a link to the way I plant peppers.

In your case, I am guessing that the miracle-gro was the culprit, as it contains extras that are great for plant growth, but not so good for sprouting pepper seeds.

I hope this has helped!

I’ll probably have to let any other readers jump in on this, if they have experience. Personally, I just cut off a piece of the plant and stick it in moist seed-starting soil in bright shade — not very scientific, but I also rarely do cuttings.

Likewise on the grafting — that I have never done, so I can’t advise you. However, if any other readers out there know a good source of information, please pass it along. Meanwhile, all I can suggest is to check out the search engine listing for grafting pepper plants.

Sorry I can’t be of more help!

I’ve had limited success with a gel rooting hormone, but I believe I may be missing something else in the process: where’s the best spot to cut, low lighting vs. intense lighting, should the treated/cut area be in the dark?

Assume that I cut from the plant, re-cut underwater to prevent air working into the plant, dip in hormone, and place treated cut site in water until multiple roots 1-1.5in in length show – which takes 2-4 weeks.

Additionally, and on a separate note, can lay-out the basics of grafting (if it’s possible for peppers to be grafted).

Thanks