When to Pick Peppers
I’ve been getting a lot of questions lately on when is the best time to pick peppers. At first I thought “isn’t it obvious?”, then I remembered something that happened at the grocery store a few years back. So I retract the thought, and here’s why.
Shopping for Peppers
One day David (hubby) and I were grocery shopping and were looking at the peppers. I was putting some green peppers in my cart, and was debating some red and some yellow peppers. Then David mentioned to get the red peppers, because they were a different variety from the green.
I looked at him funny and said, “The red and the yellow peppers are just the ripe version of the green peppers .” He hadn’t realized that the green ones were just not ripened, not a different kind altogether.
When to Pick Peppers
Peppers are great because you can pick them at any point of the growing process. Now I do like them to be pretty much fully grown (i.e. as large as I think they are going to get), but I pick them green, partially ripened and then fully ripe — it all depends on what’s for dinner! (And what kind of pepper, as you’ll read below.)
What’s also neat about peppers is that you can pick them green and they will ripen on the kitchen counter (or wherever you put your tomatoes to ripen). However, if I am picking them to ripen, I like to wait until they are just starting to turn color before I pluck ‘em from the plant.
Ocassionally, I do leave my peppers on the plant until ripe, but usually those are my non-bell-type peppers. For my bell peppers, I like to pick them earlier. The heat and humidity of where I live can sometimes let mold into the bell pepper’s interior, and when I cut open the pepper — yuck!
However, I don’t usually have that problem with other pepper types — banana, horn-shaped or hot. It’s just the bells that seem to want to mold on me. So I either pick them green or when they are just starting to ripen. That might not hold true for everyone, for for you folks in less humid climates, you’ll have to experiment.
Hmmm, I think I hear some peppers calling me from the vine! I’ll make like Peter Piper and pick some peppers. Catch you later!
Hi, i am growing peppers in containers on my garage roof in southern England, the plants are doing well, bearing plenty of fruit, but the fruit is small, about 1/2 the size of a tennis ball. I wanted to leave them on the plant to turn red, but they grow no larger & the bottom of the fruit is turning brown & appears to be starting to rot.
Any ideas what i am doing wrong please.
Hi Bilko,
You might not be doing anything wrong, and here are some thoughts.
First, you might have some peppers that naturally are smaller than the peppers you see in the grocery stores — there are lots of varieties, and they have a wide range of sizes.
Two, your climate is a bit cooler than is usual for peppers, who like lots of warmth. That may contribute somewhat to a smaller fruit size than someone growing in a warmer climate or in a greenhouse.
If your plants have a lot of fruit, that could be an issue when it comes to fruit size. The more fruits on the plants, the smaller each fruit will grow; it’s just a matter of how much the plant can handle, as far as nutriational resources.
Finally, are your plants getting enough phosphorus? It’s the middle number when you look at fertilizer. If the phosphorus number is smaller than the first number (nitrogen), then that is also contributing to a smaller fruit size. Peppers, along with their relatives tomatoes and eggplants, need extra phosphorus for good fruits.
So, you may as well bring in the fruits to ripen indoors, since they seem to be only 1/2 a tennis ball in size. That will also help prevent the bottom rotting.
Best wishes, and hope this helps!
Hi
I have grow some sweet chocolate peppers for the first time. Do i have to wait for them to ripen on the plant or will they change colour once picked.
Thanks Sheree
Hi Sheree,
You can do either — wait til they ripen on the plant, or pick them green and let them ripen to the chocolate color on the kitchen counter (like you would a tomato).
Best wishes!
I know this thread is old. Bilko, in addition to what was discussed, it sounds like you might be suffering from Blossom End Rot. Keep the nitrogen down once flowering begins, especially the ammonium type (NH4) in favor of a (little) nitrate (NO3), make sure calcium is available (calcium nitrate does both here), and of course phosphorus is so important when flowering and fruiting. BER often has lots to do with too much water and the inability of the plant to mobilize calcium in the right places in the plant since calcium is immobile once fixed in plant tissues.
RIGHT NOW I HAVE FLOWERS ON MY PEPPER PLANTS WHEN WILL I START GETTING PEPPERS
Hi Michael,
You’re almost there! Once the flowers start falling off, you should start seeing tiny peppers where the flowers were. Not all of the flowers will have peppers, but most probably will.
As to when you will actually have peppers that you can pick and eat, that depends entirely on the kind of pepper you planted — some take a long time, and others are fairly quick.
Best wishes with your peppers!
Gail
Hi,
I’m growing “peter peppers”. My neighbor gave them to me and told me that that’s their name. They are quite hot. Will the seeds that are inside these peppers germinate? I guess that’s a question that pertains to all peppers. Do the seeds in various peppers germinate if put in soil the way you describe it.
thank, Kevin
Hi Kevin,
Thanks for the question! I do know about Peter Peppers (and they are rather interesting), and have grown them myself.
In answer to your question, yes – you can save seeds from ripe peppers and then plant them. Just make sure that the seeds are clean and dry before you plant them (no membranes sticking on them, etc.)
If you grow your Peter Pepper close to another variety of pepper, you might get a cross between the two varieties, although that could make things very interesting.
Best wishes with your peppers!
Gail
Hi Gail,
When is the best point to pick my Hinklehatz peppers?
Hi Carly,
The Hinkelhatz hot pepper isn’t one I’ve every grown, so it really depends on how hot you want the peppers — if you let them get ripe (turn to red) they will be the hottest.
It sounds like an interesting pepper! I see that traditionally it’s used to make pepper vinegar and pickling. If that is how you want to use them, I’d suggest picking them before they turn red.
Hope this helps!
Gail