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 potassium? It’s the middle number when you look at fertilizer. If the potassium 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 potassium 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!