Garden

[Cookie06]

I am growing green peppers for the first time. There are quite a few peppers on my plants, should I thin them? to make room for them to grow or do they just make room? Since I haven't grown these before, I am not sure about this one. Any help would be appreciate.

Thanks girls.

[Fressa]

I've grown a variety of peppers and I just left them alone. They will make room on their own because they grow a slightly different rates. It sounds like you are going to have a great veggie garden. Good Luck!

[lboone]

We grow several kinds each year. Don't pick them, they will all mature. You can have a plant LOADED with peppers. But do pick them as they mature, or when they are large enough to use. Your plant will keep producing if you do that, all the way until killed by frost. If you don't pick the peppers as they mature, you will notice the plant stops blooming and then you won't get anymore peppers. But if you pick them, it will bloom again. Remember, the plant is trying to make seeds when it makes the peppers!

If you start to get overloaded, chop and freeze them for use later in the year. You don't have to do anything special, I just chop and freeze in zip locks. Or clean and freeze whole for stuffed peppers. You might want to blanch those first.

Oh, and if you have an abundance of basil I pick all the large leaves off just before frost kills them. Wash them and let them dry. Then freeze in a bag or covered bowl. If I need basil during the winter, just break off some and crush fast before it thaws. You won't even have to chop it that way! It won't act just like fresh in a salad, but it is great to cook with.

[jaxs mom]

You mean bell peppers? Peppers are green when they are immature and later change color if they aren't picked while green. I grow a variety and I don't thin them on the plants.

[Another new name Sue]

I've grown them for years. It takes quite a while to get edible peppers, but mine bear clear into early winter here in CA. I usually let them turn red or at least start because they are very sweet then. If red, you can almost eat them like apples.

[Cookie06]

Yes I have been corrected, Bell Peppers. I just found out this year that green peppers are just immature red bell peppers, who knew??? Thanks for the tips. I will just leave them alone and let them grow.

[happycat]

On 6/29/2014 Cookie06 said:

Yes I have been corrected, Bell Peppers. I just found out this year that green peppers are just immature red bell peppers, who knew??? Thanks for the tips. I will just leave them alone and let them grow.

I did not know this either- good to know!

[addiegal]

I enjoy the yellow, orange and red varieties, but enjoy them green as well. Peppers are so good for us! Lots of vitamin C! But they will keep bearing here in TN until fall...I am sure you will enjoy growing them! Yum!