Chili Pepper Plant Care: How to Grow Chili Pepper Plants

Chili peppers are the fruit of plants belonging to the genus Capsicum. Some of the most common chili peppers—including jalapeño and habanero peppers—are cultivars of plants from the species Capsicum annuum, while some of the world's hottest peppers, including ghost peppers and Carolina reapers, are cultivars of C. chinense. Still others, such as Tabasco peppers and Thai chiles, are cultivars of C. Frutescens. Many of the world's hot pepper plants are native to Mexico and are now cultivated in warm weather regions all over the world including parts of America, Africa, and the Caribbean.

Chili peppers come in a range of heat levels measured by the Scoville scale, a tool for measuring the spiciness or pungency of hot peppers. The scale measures the amount of capsaicin (the chemical compound that causes spicy heat) in a pepper and assigns it a number rating in Scoville Heat Units (SHUs). The higher the SHU, the spicier the pepper.

The list of chili pepper plants is long and contains both hot peppers and sweet peppers. Hot chili pepper varieties include jalapeño, serrano, aji, cayenne, and Scotch bonnets—just to name a few. Sweet peppers, or peppers low on the Scoville scale, include bell peppers, Hungarian sweets, poblanos (also known as anchos when dried), and Anaheim peppers.

Chili pepper plants are fairly low-maintenance when the proper conditions are provided. Keep the following factors in mind when growing chili pepper plants for the first time.

1. 1. Climate: Gardeners living in USDA hardiness zones eight and above can directly sow pepper seeds after the last frost when ground temperatures are warm and the soil is dry. However, pepper plant germination can be started indoors before the growing season begins.
2. 2. Light: Chili pepper plants need full sun to thrive. Place your plants in an area of your garden that gets six to eight hours of sunlight a day.
3. 3. Water: An inch of water per week will be enough to keep chili plants sufficiently watered. Drought-stressed plants will wilt and drop their flowers. If you live in an arid region, apply a layer of mulch around the base of the plants to help with moisture retention.
4. 4. Soil: Chili pepper plants need well-draining soil that is rich in organic matter. Soil that is not overly fertilized tends to produce hotter peppers.
5. 5. Temperature: The ideal temperature for growing pepper plants is between seventy and ninety degrees Fahrenheit. Hotter or colder temperatures may cause the plants to wilt and reduce pepper production.
6. 6. Pests: Aphids and thrips can infect older pepper plants. They tend to spread diseases to the plant that can not be cured. Apply a natural insecticide like neem oil to the base of the plants to deter pests. If you notice a pest infestation, destroy the plant to prevent it from spreading diseases to nearby pepper plants.
7. 7. Harvest: Cut off peppers using scissors or sharp gardening shears. Avoid pulling peppers off of the stems as this can damage the plant. Peppers will continue to mature after they're harvested. For the best, hottest results, harvest peppers once they reach an edible size but have not fully ripened.
8. 8. Fertilize: Pepper plants do not require fertilization, but it can be beneficial to apply a balanced, organic fertilizer at the start of the growing season and again when the plants begin to flower. Beware of overfeeding pepper plants as too many nutrients can cause them to become bushy and underproductive.

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