Pepper Growth Requirements

Want to try your hand at growing peppers?  It’s really not hard!

Whether your choice is bell, sweet or hot, you’ll find the guidelines for sun and warmth below.

Growing Peppers

Like most fruits and vegetables, peppers require at least 6 hours or direct sunlight a day. Peppers also require warm weather — frost will kill them. The ideal temperatures for most (not all!) peppers is the 80’s to 90’s during the day, with nights in the 60’s and 70’s. (Temperatures in degrees Farenheit.)

And you know something strange?  When it comes to hot (chile) peppers, the hotter the climate the better!  Well, maybe that’s not strange…

Peppers will grow and set fruit in warmer weather, as well as in cooler weather; they just won’t be quite as productive. Keep your local temperatures in mind when selecting pepper varieties. For example, a grower in the cool Pacific Northwest would be better off with early peppers (those that mature in 70 days or less), as well as peppers that are bred for cooler weather.

Live in a hot climate?  As mentioned before, peppers, and especially chile peppers, like it hot!  Just make sure that the peppers don’t get too much direct sunlight in the afternoons, or they might just shrivel up on you.  Morning sun and afternoon light shade in the South is just the ticket.

So, keep your local climate in mind when selecting pepper varieties. Oh, and an adequate water supply is essential for peppers to produce fruits; an average of an inch of water per week is considered optimal, but if you live in a dry climate, you might want to provide a bit more.