No matter whether yellow or red, mild or hot: in order for peppers to thrive, they have to be fertilized from time to time. We'll show you how to do it right.
As far as fertilizing pepper plants is concerned, opinions differ. Some hobby gardeners consider a single fertilization at planting to be sufficient, while others are of the opinion that the peppers need fertilizer on a regular basis. This is because the pepper is related to the tomato, which also needs a lot of nutrients to produce a good yield.
We have many years of experience in countries where peppers are grown in large quantities. Based on this experience, we also advise you to fertilize your pepper plants. We will now explain in more detail when the perfect time is, how often you should fertilize your peppers and with what.
How to fertilize peppers correctly
➤ Fertilization at planting time:
After you have grown the peppers, you can put the plants in the garden in May. If you do this, then you should add a good slow-release fertilizer to the soil right away. It is important that the fertilizer contains little nitrogen, but plenty of magnesium and other minerals. We recommend, for example, the NEUDORFF BioTrissol tomato fertilizer (available here), which is also suitable for peppers. However, only administer half the dose stated on the package.
You can also put a little algae extract or fertilizer with phosphorus in the excavated planting hole. These two components ensure that the plants form roots better and that rooting also takes place much faster.
➤ Fertilization during growth:
When the plants are busy growing, you should support them with foliar fertilization. For example, you can make nettle manure yourself and fertilize your peppers with it. Nettle manure is so well suited for fertilization because it is rich in minerals.
The application of nettle manure is very uncomplicated. Simply put some of the liquid manure in a spray bottle and spray the leaves of the plants with it regularly.
➤Fertilization during flowering:
When the flowering period is reached, you have to provide the pepper plants with minerals again so that they can set up good and also lots of fruit. When it comes to fertilizer, it is important that it contains little nitrogen. But the peppers need a lot of minerals, especially magnesium, and also various trace elements. So this time the plants should get the full dose of the vegetable fertilizer. In addition, you should also work some rock flour (available here) into the soil.
After a short time you should see a positive effect. If there are already fruits on the pepper plants, they will bloom again and new fruits will be formed shortly afterwards.