What Size Pots for Pepper Growing?

Starting Seeds

• Most varieties of pepper can be started from seed in a variety of small containers before being transferred to larger pots for the growing season. Germinate pepper seeds in cake pans, old milk cartons, plastic trays, used dairy containers or peat pots. Preshaped planting pellets also work well and are available at most home and garden centers. Start the peppers 4 to 8 weeks before the desired transplant date in a warm area that receives full sunlight.

Mature Plants

• Once the peppers have produced their first set of 2 to 3 true leaves, not cotyledons, they are ready for transplant into the proper-sized container for the growing season. Cotyledons, or seed leaves, are the first to appear when a seedling sprouts and are different in shape than later leaves. True leaves are the second and third leaves produced by a seedling and are differently shaped, resembling the leaves of the mature plant.

  Peppers require relatively large containers, at least 12 inches wide and 16 inches deep. Provide container-grown peppers with a minimum of 2 gallons of planting medium per plant, although several plants may be combined in a single container of sufficient size. A 5-gallon bucket, for example, provides a large enough rooting zone to grow two pepper plants. Most varieties of pepper will grow well in containers, although some are better suited to container culture. Varieties known to thrive in containers include Canape, Jalapeno, Keystone Resistant Giant, Red Cherry and Yolo Wonder.

Container Planting Medium

• Peppers grown in containers require different a growing medium than those grown in the ground. Potting mixes for container culture should be relatively light, retain moisture, drain easily and have a high level of nutrients to support plant growth. Although many planting mixes formulated for container gardening are available at home and garden centers, some gardeners choose to mix their own planting medium, often at a significant cost savings. These mixes, called soilless mixtures, usually consist of peat moss, vermiculite, limestone and fertilizers. Although many recipes exist, blending equal parts of sand, garden soil and peat moss with the proper amount of fertilizer yields a planting medium suitable for growing most vegetables.

Further Cultural Considerations

• Peppers grown in containers can benefit from staking or some other means of support. Support peppers with stakes and plant ties or a wire tomato cage. Ensure the support system is anchored in the pot before planting; inserting stakes or a cage into a pot with a mature plant can damage the root system. Peppers grown in containers are more susceptible to moisture stress than those grown in the ground and thus require more frequent inspection and watering.