Growing and caring for chilli plants

[bergs]

Hi, I'm trying to over winter my Chillies. Last season they were all coming on strong when Autumn came. I thought that if I tried to keep the plants alive it would give me a head start this season. I'm in Victoria (cool temperate).

I have googled it, but it's mainly British and American area guides. I trimmed them back fairly harshly and located the potted ones in a sheltered spot in the garden and backed the watering right off. They are a mixed variety.

So far one is showing signs of shooting. There has been a fair bit of die back which I have now trimmed off. The weather is not far away from getting a bit warmer, so the hopefully, they will take off again and give me earlier crops.

I had preserved (pickled) quite a few but stocks have run out.

Has anyone else had any success in over wintering Chillies? If so please share your methods with us.

Thanks and Cheers🍻Bergs

[bergs]

I'm very happy in the way that the chillies hang on over winter. I have my small chillies I grew last season from my own seed which are still flowering and producing the occasional ripe fruit. I have put them under a plastic cover but only over the top of them. They are also well sheltered from the west by some large Lillypillies. I'm in the Geelong region so we don't get an over abundance of frosts. I'm about to sow more chilli seeds in the next week or so. The weather is starting to get warmer with the nights not so cold lately. Bring on Spring....
Cheers bergs

[Jason]

They still look pretty good to me @bergs. Nice work!

Although all my fresh fruit is long gone, I'm still enjoying the jalapenos I preserved. They are great with pulled pork and coleslaw. I also like them with burgers and steak sandwiches.

Jason

[bergs]

I have just looked at my chillies and I have come to the conclusion that I will take them out and dig the ground over and plant some new plants. My reasoning is that my Lillypillies have taken over the area so, I will dig out the roots etc. and then plant new plants either my seedlings or from a grower. I generally buy from the market and find their plants very successful.
Cheers bergs

[Isobel]

Hi all,

Is it too early to plant some jalapeno seeds? I am in Melbourne but will keep them on the kitchen window until they get big enough to pop in the garden.

Thanks!

[bergs]

Hi Isobel,

It's still a bit cool for the chilli seeds to germinate without having a heating device (heat mat etc.) The kitchen window would be ok during the day as long as the sun comes in but may still get a bit cool overnight. 

I've had my chilli seeds in a plastic box for over a month now and they haven't germinated yet. I'm in Geelong and by the look of it the weather still has some cold spells to come.

It will improve so bring it on. Great time of theyear.

Cheers bergs

[bergs]

Hello again,

I have come to the conclusion that to get your chilli seeds up in time to be planted out when the weather warms up (probably the end of September or later in Vic.) you need to plant them in about early July and use some sort of temperature control. 

My reasoning for this is that the seeds I sowed at the end of July have still not germinated and by the time they do, the seedlings at the nurseries will be three times the size and basically ready to plant out.

I removed my Jalapenos so I could dig out the roots of the tree.

I have a Piquante Chilli in a pot. The Son in Law gave it to me and it apparently grows like a tree and will grow in the shade.

Seed I planted from my Nellie Kellie Chilli last season is still growing well, but I think it has cross pollinated with some Birdseye because they are much smaller than the original plant the seeds were collected off. 

I put some boards up to stop the cold south winds and some plastic over the top.

My Black Pearl is still fruiting. It was over wintered under cover in my fernery.

Cheersbergs

[Jason]

Hi @bergs,

Thanks for the update. I planted some seeds last weekend and have them on a windowsill. I think I do have an electrical pad that went under a hermit crab tank when the boys were smaller - I might dig it out and put it under the jalapeno pot!

Sorry about editing your post but it had some strange formatting - hopefully it is easier to read now. 

Jason 

[bergs]

Hi Jason, the heat pad is a good idea. Son in Law is using the heater from his old fish tank. Vasili is selling heat pads. He said on 3AW last week he was getting them from a wholesaler for about $10.00 but apparently the public can't access them from there.
I don't know what I did with the text from the last post but I couldn't get it to go right. Thanks for straightening it up.
The pots around the chillies in the above photo have no bottoms in them. They are there to try and deter the Blackbirds from scratching them out of the ground.
Thanks and Cheers bergs

[QuailFlock]

I gave up with raising a few types of plants from seeds - chilli, capsicums and eggplants. They take too long to sprout and need to be over 15 degrees. It's more cost effective and sure of what varieties you get to get the seedlings from nursery.

[Jason]

@bergs and @QuailFlock,

Here's my current set-up. I'm using the heat pad and the old hermit crab tank. Should be pretty toasty in there! Apologies for the low-quality photo but you'll get the idea...

Jason