Is it possible to overfeed chilli plants?

June 7, 2020June 8, 2020 / BirdhouseChillies / 3 Comments

Yes. End of post.

If you’d like to know more about how then read on.

It is true that supplementary plant food can support your plant being the very best it can be. However, it is also true that too much of good thing can lead to many issues. Just like in us humans.

Get your chillies’ basic diet right – something that contains good levels of the core nutrients. Only after that, add a little extra. Only if needed. Sometimes less is more.

You can overfeed your chilli plants in a number of ways:

Give them too much feed in one hit;
Feed them too often;
Not disperse built up of nutrient salts.

Lots of chilli growers favour a nutrient poor growing medium. This allows them to add whatever goodies they want, in the quantities they want, when the plant needs it. If you do opt for a more nutritious compost as part of your mix, remember that this will usually contain a general plant food that can last up to six weeks. Read the label to know what you are starting with before even thinking about adding extra.

After settling on your basic soil mix (this is our fave soil mix right now) how can you ensure you are giving the right amount of the right type of feed to your chillies?

Let’s start with the core components of a feed and then move on to quantity afterwards. If you want a clear guide to general fertilisers, the RHS guide is right here. Not chilli specific but well worth a read. Here’s The Birdhouse version with our precious chilli plants in mind…

Let’s get our heads around NPK

NPK, say WHAT?!

You know, check the back of that bottle of Miracle Gro liquid feed lurking on the top shelf in your shed – the one that has been there since 1994. See the ingredient list (NPK) next to some dodgy numbers (24: 8: 16)? That. That is the NPK number.

The NPK number can be interpreted and used in a few ways. It does not take a PhD to understand NPK but a little explanation goes a long way. The first thing is to know what N, P and K are and what they do…

N = Nitrogen Leaves are the powerhouse of the plant. They are packed full of chlorophyll, the green stuff. Chlorophyll uses the energy from sunlight to convert water and CO2 into plant sugar energy. A major component of chlorophyll is…you guessed it…Nitrogen. Boom! You want healthy leaves get some Nitrogen in yer plants!

P = Phosphorus- Tissue development is what Phosphorus is all about. A vigorous root system, strong supportive stems and full seed development all happen as a result of the right P balance. Phosphorus =Workhorse.

K = Potassium– In charge of transport and defence within the plant. This means levels of photosynthesis, uptake of nutrients from the roots AND removal of wastes are all reliant on the correct levels of potassium. Potassium also supports strong cell wall production, making plants better equipped to deal with infection, drought and pests. And it helps fruit set. You are our all round HERO, Potassium!

We have written previously about role of these macro plant nutrients in detail. Do look at at our blog post: NPK Values for chilli plants

A large percentage of feeds, fertilsers and magic cures for plants contain these three wonder nutrients. UK law says the quantity of NP and good old K must be stated on the label of each product.

Overdo (or underdo for that matter) any one of these core nutrients then your plants will not thank you. Get the balance right and you will have more chillies. Simple.

Ratio

The second way to consider the NPK number is as a ratio. The elements are always in the same order to avoid confusion. Ask yourself, are the N, P & K values balanced or imbalanced? Average chicken manure pellets have a 4:2:1 ratio. More nitrogen. Tomorite is 4:3:8, more potassium. A fertilister that contains a balance of N, P & K would have numbers the same or very close.

Just make sure you are looking at the correct percentages. You want the less obvious, pure element percentage – not the chemical compound percentage, e.g. Phosphorus Pentoxide 4.4% is actually only 1.9% Phosphorus. Granted this is a touch confusing but, using the same example, the true numbers are in brackets with their chemical symbol, e.g. Phosphorus Pentoxide 4.4 % (P 1.9%). Think you’ve got it? You can test your new found decoding skills on the labels below:

**Baby Bio**: the NPK declared as 10.6: 4.4: 1.7, this is the ratio of the compounds containing NPK. On closer inspection, the available elemental NPK is actually 10.6: 1.9: 1.4, less Phosphorus that the label would first indicate.

**Tomorite:** 4: 3: 8 is what the label says but if you want to know the levels of each macro nutrient ACTUALLY available to your plants look at the numbers in the brackets 4: 1.3: 6.6.

As a result of being able to crack the code of the NPK ratio, you can decide which fertiliser will suit your chillies’ needs at different times in their life. Growing first leaves? …choose feed that has a larger N number than the P and the K. Time to set fruit? …then perhaps opt for a K heavy ratio.

**Miracle Gro All Purpose Plant Food:** 17: 9: 11 is what they say. Look at the element % though and you are down to 17: 3.9: 9.1

Just don’t overdo it. Always better to be a little under what the labels say than to double up and hope for double the chillies.

Concentration

The third way of using NPK is the SIZE of the numbers…the 7s in Growmore’s 7: 7: 7 means 7%. The higher the number the higher the concentration of the nutrient within the packet. The lower the number the less of each nutrient is in there. Chilli Focus is 3: 1: 4.4, so a relatively low concentration. Some specialist feeds will have higher numbers, for example TopRose Gold 12: 5: 10.

If you’re interested in the NPK value of pretty much any kind of organic item you could use as a fertilser then check out NPK of everything chart from The Nutrient Company. From apple leaves, to bat guano to leather scraps to insect frass. It’s all right there.

Talking of organic, some fertilisers are synthetic chemicals and others are derived from organic source. It is up to you which you choose. The natural route can be the slower route as organic compounds are somewhat larger and take time to break down and release the nutrients required. Organics can be homegrown, homemade and as natural as your own style of gardening. You are less likely to ‘burn’ your plants with a ‘hot’ mix of organics than synthetic versions of the same chemical. However, synthetics are quicker to act, good for exact measurements and excellent as a remedy for a growth issue.

If you opt for a super high strength feed, watch out. It would be tempting and easy to make a mix that is stronger than it should be, expecially with small quantities. Perhaps invest in a measuring jug or syringe?

Now we know what the NPK number is, how should we administer them?

Before you pump up the volume on the feed, think about…

Checking the nutritional value of your soil. Especially important with potted chilli plants. Soil choice will provide your plants with their first foods. Baby plants need baby food, a low nutrient soil mix and dilute levels of fertiliser (if any) will give the best results.
Consider how long the existing soil nutrients will last before adding anything extra;
Think about what the plant is up to, does it need a higher percentage of one nutrient for this particular point of growth? e.g. is it flowering?

Once you are clear on the above you can add feed via the soil, watering, top dressing or as a foliar feed.

Feeding through the soil…

If you decide to use a low nutrition compost mix then a handful of a general purpose feed could be for you. Gromore, that sort of thing.

Depending on the plant growth stage (e.g. is it in vegetative or bloom stage) this can dictate the type of additonal feed a plant needs. When the plants are seedlings it makes sense that they would need very dilute amounts of general goodness, perhaps with an added boost of nitrogen to really get the leaves going. A light soil mix, with a careful handful of chicken manure pellets thrown in could do this. Gently does it for the baby plants though (can we say this enough?) Chicken manure pellets have an NPK value of approximately 4: 2: 1. Again, better to be more dilute than overwhelm the little darlings.

As the plants mature they continue to need feeding. The good thing about chillies is that they regularly need potting on. This gives you a chance to pop a little extra food (or none at all) in the mix if you feel they need perking up. Or to change the menu. A fish, blood & bone mix (5: 5: 6.5) could be useful with more mature plants. Remember that lots of compost bases (your own homegrown black gold, supermarket multipurpose, Jack Magic, John Inness Number whatever) all contain nutrition already so go easy on the added stuff.

Some growers stick with soil based feeding only but generally, soil additives will last six weeks or so, any longer and extra will be required. So, in their final growing medium it could become important to feed via other methods than mixing into the soil.

How else can we add nutrients?

Via watering, top dressing or a foliar spray.

We have been using Chilli Focus liquid feed (2.7: 0.4: 3.6) for the last few seasons. It is gentle (at the correct dilution); somewhat organic and has kelp for an all round boost.

Another chance to hone your new found skills of plant food label interpretation. Certificate in the post.

Deep into the flowering & fruiting season, we still only feed about once a week, depending on the weather. We use a 10ml to 1L dilution for the feed, with water as needed in between. We always water and feed from the bottom unless flushing the soil through.

Too much feed will actually build up the nutrient salts to toxic levels in the soil. This could stunt growth, cause root burn or all manner of undesirable side effects. CAREFUL!

Eek! How do we stop salts building up in the soil?

Firstly, by adding less feed. On sunny days, the plant is working at full rate and doing everything it can to grow, flower and fruit. It is using the nutrients at the fastest pace then. A feed on a day like this is perfect. However, things slow down somewhat on cloudy days, especially earlier in the UK season when daylight hours are shorter. Ease up on the feed at these times, maybe less water too as everything is slower. Just feed tomorrow instead. Less feeding, less chance of salts building up.

Secondly, in the flowering season, it can be important to give plants a detox. Pick a super sunny day, where photosynthesis and transpiration rates are high and ‘top water’ the pots. Use a sprinkle setting on your hose, or a rose on the watering can and gently allow the water to trickle through from the top of the soil and run out of the holes in the bottom. This will collect and dissolve any nutrient salts that have built up earlier in the season, redistribute them into the soil and the plant can then resue them. Do not feed directly after this!

Err, just a sec, back to kelp…what is that good for?

It’s a wonderstuff. No, really.

Alys Fowler explains the benefits of a seaweed feed. And James Carr writing on Fine Gardening tells you all about the chemical composition of the average seaweed feed ‘A. nodosum contains at least 60 elements, including many of those known to be essential for terrestrial plants: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), boron, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, molybdenum, sulfur, and zinc.’

We like seaweed for its natural, gentle and all-round boost it can give our plants. We’d love to have a go at collecting, using and refining a seaweed mulch and feed ourselves but we’re not quite ready to go there yet. One day.

Foliar application of nutrients

A foliar spray can be used to apply certain nutritional boosts. Dilute seaweed extract can be applied this way. As can dissolved Epsom salts. Epsom salts are Magnesium Sulphate and are used 1tsp dissolved per litre to boost the ‘green’ in leaves.

Even Chilli Focus can be applied as a foliar spray as plants can absorb a large percentage of required nutrients into their structure via their leaves & stems. This is especially helpful in areas that have high pH soil and chillies are planted in open ground. High pH can limit the uptake of nutrients. However, for the general chillihead hobby grower, foliar sprays tend to be kept for remedies rather than general feeds.

A few words of caution for foliar feeding:

Timing and temperature Don’t cover your plants with a foliar feed in full, bright, hot sunlight, you’ll surely burn them as the droplets turn to lenses and maginify the sun’s rays. Ouch! Keep it to morning or evening (when stomata are fully open) and when the temperatures are under 27 degrees. Fast evaporation of water in full midday sun could also leave nutrient salts exposed on the leaf and ‘burn’ the plant chemically. Double ouch!
Humidity Spraying increases humidity. Super high humidity could tip your chilli plants into the danger zone. They might not be able to cool themselves effectively. Plant cooling down happens by transpiration: opening of the stomata (pores) on the leaves and allowing water out into the environment. If the surrounding air is very humid (nearly full of water already) this process cannot happen properly. Plants will overheat. Hardly the effect you are intending when applying a foliar feed or remedy.
Concentration Make sure the spray is a high concentration. This seems to go against everything we have been saying about low levels of feed but this is different. A spray that contains a lower concentration of the nutrients than found in the actual plant could end up drawing out the plants’ own nutrients…from the higher concentration to the lower. This is obviously not what you want to happen.
Spray size. The finest possible mist setting is the best one. You want to coat the leaves but not form large droplets. The finer the mist the quicker and more effective the absorbtion of the nutrients.

Leaf Health

Leaves are a wonderful indicator of health in chilli plants. A regular leaf check will give you an insight into what is going on. Take your time though. You might end up creating an unecessary secondary issue if you misdiagnose. For example: one sees cluster of crinkled new growth on one’s Scotch Bonnet. One might be tempted to grab a Cal-Mag spray and apply. Whilst this could be signs of a calcium definiciency it is just as likely be overwatering or a hidden colony of aphids. Take a day or so to diagnose before rushing in with extra nutrients. You could be the cause of an imbalance, rather than a knight in shining armour.

A very popular, handy graphic showing the symptoms of chemical deficiencies in your chilli plants

So NP & K are not the only tools in the kit then?

Nope, meet a few more of the team…

Magnesium- Chlorophyll could not do its crazy chemistry without the prescence of Magnesium. Cell division, protein production, enzyme activation and respiration all happen smoothly because Magnesium is there. As is the uptake, transportation and metabolisim of Phosphorus.

Calcium- cell walls just aren’t the same without the correct levels of calcium. It literally holds them together. Low Calcium can cause serious issues in every area of the plant: crinkled and distorted new leaves and buds; older leaves wilt much quicker and fruit is likely to get ‘blossom end rot’.

Sulphur – essential in the formation of chlorophyll (yes that old chestnut) It is a component of an enzyme involved in nitrogen uptake. Low sulphur = low nitrogen, even if it is available. It can be hard to tell a sulphur deficiency from a nitrogen one.

There are many more micro nutrients required for super plant fuction. Look for a feed that contains a good few of them to support your plants.

And finally, a quick word about…top dressing

It is unusual to top dress in pot grown plants, as chillies often are, but it can be handy to apply a general feed this way for chillies growing in open ground. Natural rain and watering from the top can cause nutrients to leach away from the plant quicker than in pot grown plants. Apply a granular feed around the base of the plant and water in thoroughly to disperse the fertiliser evenly. A good shower prevents burn from concentrated chemical fertilser on the leaves neat the soil surface or roots near the top. As always, do not be tempted to put extra grains of fertilser down.

A few of the symptoms of fertiliser burn can be found in this Gardening Know How article.

In conclusion YES, you can overfeed your chilli plants. Try not to.

It’s tempting to go nuts with plant food in the hope that more feed equals more chillies. But STOP, and consider whether your plants need that extra food, it might do more harm than good.

The Pros and Cons of Where to Grow Chillies in the UK

May 28, 2020May 28, 2020 / BirdhouseChillies / Leave a comment

We have tried it everywhere: chillies indoors… chillies outdoors… chillies in pots… in the ground… even a hanging basket. In the kids’ flower patch… on their bedroom windowsills… in a milk bottle… greenhouse… polytunnel… grow room. You name it, we’ve tried it…well, not on a spaceship but we hear chillies do very well up there!

During late Spring in the UK we all do the dance of the chilli plants: in and out of the greenhouse, attempting to harden off whilst not melting the plants in sub zero night temperatures. Location is key and conditions seem to change on an hourly basis. The forecast fluctuates between nights of minus two and days of 25 degrees.

Where’s a plant to go?!

So, exactly where are we growing our chillies?

No straight forward answer, sorry!

Each location has general pros and cons. In addition to those, each location also depends on unique factors to do with one’s own set up. For example: Greenhouses … is your greenhouse heated? Is it in full sun all day? Is it under a massive oak tree (see final photo)? Does it have a cat that likes to chew your plants, then sit on them? Will you be planting in the ground or in pots? Does the neighbour use pesticides right next to the door? All these variables ALSO need to be factored in when considering if a greenhouse is best for your chillies.

So, first let us consider what chilli plants prefer for optimum growth & yield in terms of:

Light;
Temperature;
Humidity;
Nutrition and pH;
Support/protection/space;
Pollination.

And then think of how to provide these at each general location. By no means definitive but here’s a visual to help compare…

At the Birdhouse, our outdoor growing season for chillies is limited to mid May to mid October. This is just not long enough for many of the chilli vareties we love to grow and so we extend by using lighter, warmer, safer places for our plants at either end of the season: namely the house early on and greenhouse & polytunnel in Autumn.

So here we go, this is how we do it…

Light:

In the house for Germination: We germinate in a transparent propagator. Light is not a required element for actual germination of chilli seeds – although one of our hacks to get tricky seeds to germinate is to fluctuate light exposure on the seeds. We place our propagator right next to a window. The emergent seedlings are then tight little plants, not the leggy beasts created by some in a darkened airing cupboard.

Birdhouse Seedling Headquarters is set up in a spare room of the house. Our light kit comprises two items: a low-tech south facing sunny windowsill and a high-tech full spectrum grow light. The great outdoors is just too darn dark to even consider in January.

Germinate near a window to avoid leggy seedlings

Under Grow lights for seedlings: As soon as a seedling starts to show strong green cotyledon we move them to a paper pot under the a blue spectrum grow light for 16 hours a day. As they grow true leaves & eventually show roots from the bottom they progress to 9cm square pots under the grow light or on the windowsill. At this stage roatation is crucial as we only have one grow light and limited windowsill space. The plants will bend towards the sunlight so moving them around encourages them to bend the other way, strengthening their stems.

On the Windowsill for established seedlings: Space becomes limited as plants get bigger. Certain plants prefer to grow under the grow lights, Chinense types, especially. Others can cope on a sunny windowsill as long as they are turned to allow equal access to the light. In the UK the days are lengthening nicely in April.

Into the Greenhouse for growing plants: Once the plants are developing well they move to the greenhouse. Our greenhouse is next to a big oak tree but receives sun from 11am until sunset.

Young plants move up to the greenhouse. Protect leaves from direct sun as the raised UV light levels can damage them. Bubblewrap early on acts both as an insulator and light shade.

Paint-on shading can help protect leaves from scorching later on.

Spill out into the polytunnel to avoid overcrowding: the hardier types move out to the polytunnel when more space is needed. There are good light levels in there with the added bonus of built-in UV protection.

Planting outside: it is worth taking your time to harden the chillies off. This is for a number of reasons but, in terms of light, sunburn is an ugly thing that reduces photosynthesis. Just 10 mins in direct sun can scorch the leaves permanently. Make use of dappled shade, partially cloudy days or only put your plants in direct sun at the beginning or the end of the day. A week of this and they’ll be tough enough. Careful with the watering, droplets on leaves magnify the sun’s rays and will leave burnt patches.

Back into the Greenhouse for the last few pods: All outdoor light levels are subject to the time of year so that means that when Autumn approaches productivity drops off. We wait for the remaining fruit to ripen and then compost everything. No need for light there.

Temperature

Dans la Maison pour le Germination: Chillies like it hot. At germination stage we keep our seeds in a heated propagator between 25-36 degrees. This makes for pretty good germination rates. The propagator is heated at the base. We place our Chinense seeds down there and the others nearer the cooler top area.

Tourjours dans la maison pour les Petit Babies: Seedlings are kept on heat mats in our grow room, under the warm grow light. This really boosts their growth and stops the external temperature fluctuations affecting them too much. At this stage constant temperature stresses them least. We water from the base with warm water. They stay in the house until space runs out: windowsills, dining table, anywhere that keeps them out of the icy blasts of a British Spring.

A la Serre: Then it is off to the heated greenhouse. Our chillies are kept warmer than our children (probably better fed too, ha!) We only move them out of the house if we can keep the greenhouse at a minimum of 10 degrees at night. On the odd night it gets colder we feel like very bad parents indeed.

A heater with a thermostat is your friend here. Ours is placed under the staging as direct hot air can cause the leaves to wilt and ultimately die off. Our greenhouse is set on a raised pad of concrete slabs. These store warmth during the day to release at night. Every little helps.

Bubblewrap, an electric heater and a warm stone floor all help keep the heat in and warm the plants at night

Et les plantes adultes: As a rule, at flowering and fruiting stage, we do not like our greenhouse to drop below 10 degrees at night or head above 35 degrees during the day. Flower drop, leaf wilt and less fruit setting is the result of temperatures outside of this range. A healthy difference between day and night temperatures is welcome though. Most chilli plants seem to do better with a bit of a break from high heat.

The more hardy chilli types…pubescens in our case, are sent off to the polytunnel as soon as outside night temperatures are hovering near to 10. We did this at the end of April in 2020.

Light a candle, place a terracotta pot on feet over the top. The terracotta absorbs and radiates the heat and keeps the temperature up far better than a naked flame. Safer too!

In May, there can sometimes be a cold snap, at a time when you least suspect it. Not great for an unheated polytunnel so we have a paraffin heater and candles under terracotta pots to keep the cold at bay. These strategies have meant that our brave San Pedro Rojos and Turbo Pubes have recently survived a week of zero nights in the tunnel. Huzzah!

As Summer approaches, our priority moves towards cooling down, not heating up. A fan, ventilation through doors and windows and some shading will be options then. We generally leave the door wide open all Summer long. It still gets steamy in there but the air flow is better. This is our first Summer witha polytunnel but we fully expect to just roll up both doors and leave them there!

A la fin: As the evenings cool off we shut the greenhouse and polytunnel doors and only open up again during sunny days. Just long enough to keep those last few plants going to harvest their final fruit. Any plants still fruiting outside can be brought back inside to ripen off the last pods.

Humidity

Initially in the house: When germinating our seeds we pay special attention to the humidity of their environment. We soak seeds to give them an initial hit of moisture. We lay them onto an almost dripping paper towel inside a plastic takeaway container – no expense spared here! And spray. We click down three of the four corners down. This keeps the moisture in and around the seed but gives a little air flow. We regularly spray as the water evaporates.

Tea soaked seeds in almost selaed takeaway box

As the seedlings mature, they are placed into paper pots of warmed, damp soil. They are watered from the base and misted if need be. The grow light and fan can be drying so we have spray bottles at the ready. Seedlings can rapidly deteriorate when dehydrated and many never recover. Keep it moist!

Chinense varieties do like humidity a little higher whereas the other are fine at moderate levels. Indoors, a regular misting will allow you to tailor humidity to each plant.

Humidity for older plants: Once the plants are in the greenhouse and they are watered from the base and the humidity levels are high during the day. Perfect for the Chinenses. The polytunnel gets a real humidity hit early morning as that is when the sun is first on it. We open the doors up mid morning to get air flowing through. Better for the Baccatums.

Outdoors, the wind and the sun can really dry chilli plants out. A good drink in the morning will help plants stay hydrated all day. Annuums will be fine in this environment. Pubescens have hairy leaves to collect their very own ‘cloud’ around their leaves. Humidity sorted.

Nutrition and pH.

At each stage of growth the nutrition levels need to be right for the plant. Growing in any sort of container means essential nutrients have to be added by you. They won’t appear magically.

In containers: Too much feed can be detrimental so don’t think more is better. Minerals can build up in soil and cause all sorts of trouble. Follow the instructions on the back of the bottle and make sure you give the plants plenty of water in between feeds. If in doubt, give less. Don’t forget to consider the existing nutritional value the soil you are using. Homemade compost and shop bought multipurpose can be surprisingly rich. Check the pH of your growing medium. An optimal range would be 6.0-6.8. Slightly acidic.

Open Ground: If you are planting out into your garden, or even into open beds within a greenhouse or polytunnel it is wise to prepare the ground with a basic feed first and then top up as is needed. We like to add Birdhouse compost to ‘feed’ the soil, a sprinkle of blood, fish and bone mix. And, this year, a banana compost, hopefully to support good strong, drought resistant plants. Our local soil is chalky, well above pH 7.0, often closer to 8.0. Far too alkaline for chillies really. This can be corrected with an addition of sulphur in early Spring. Then we use Chilli Focus weekly to keep those chillies focussed!

Soil will need to be revitalised if you plant in the same place each year. A thick top mulch and a sprinkle of Sulphur dust in the Autumn will mean beds are ready for action the following Spring.

Support/Protection/Space

Each chilli plant will need to be given enough space to be its best self. This is actually one of our (many) chilli failings. Too many plants, crowded in together. We’re trying really hard this year to pot up into the biggest pots possible – incrementally of course. A larger pot footprint then gives each plant more breathing room to do its own thing. Already the size and balance of the plants looks far healthier this year.

Some plants really do require support: stakes, frames, string, wires, whatever. There is nothing more heart breaking than a full branch of chillies being snapped off. A cane in the right place at the right time will help plants stand up strong. This is particularly important for chillies planted in the ground with little else around them.

And then protection…depending on where you have chosen your chillies’ final growing place, you may need to fend off unwanted visitors (strong sunshine initially, wind, birds, greenfly, slugs & snails, weeds, diseases, pets, frost and children) This is especially true when planting outside.

In a greenhouse the greenfly is omnipresent…ready to pop out thrips at an alarming rate. It is up to you how you choose to deal with them. We are squishers here. Ladybird farmers too. And later in the season, we encourage as many hoverflies as possible. And if all that fails, a night or two out in the open for an infected plant will generally clear the greenfly off and stop other plants being infected. Other folk try neem, Bug Off and soapy water. Up to you but be warned. You will have a greenfly in a greenhouse. Fact.

And eventually, back to the original question of where we grow our chillies?

Given the UK climate, growing undercover gives an extended season. Warm and light seems just right. We like to grow in pots as Birdhouse soil is be predominantly chalk, with an extra sprinkle of flint. For more infomation about our potting soil mix check out our previous blog post:

The Quest to Find the Best Soil

Here is where we will be growing our chillies at the Birdhouse this year:

Where will you grow yours?

The quest to find the best soil

February 6, 2019 / BirdhouseChillies / 3 Comments

Just which compost to choose for our precious chillies?

Loam. Peat. Coir. Grit. Vermiculite. Sand. Clay. Silt. Perlite. Manure. Compost. Sand. So much to consider.

The options are a little overwhelming but let’s dig down to what we know about chilli plants to see if we can come up with our perfect potting medium.

Cultural roots

Considering the geographical heritage of our chilli plants should hopefully give some guidance to the type of soil required for perfect chilli production. Chillies originated from Mexico. They gradually became mainstream as part of the Columbian Exchange in the 15th & 16th Centuries. A large percentage of the soil in Mexico is shallow to medium depth, dry, free draining, not layered or super structured, contains gravel, often fertile, pH leaning towards acid: 5.5-6.5. (Food Agricultural Organisation for the United Nations state that Leptosol, Regosol and Calcisol make up nearly 65% of the soil in Mexico if you want the scientific terms) Replicating this soil composition seems like a good starting point for creating the perfect chilli compost.

Back here in the UK

However, where chillies come from is not the only factor in soil choice. Surely where they are actually going to grow plays a part too. The UK offers a dizzying range of soil types, some of which would be incredibly inhospitable to a poor little chilli plant. Our Hampshire soil is about 6 inches top soil and then solid chalk. Not sure what our chilli amigos would say to that. A slightly acid, sandy loam in the South Hams of Devon would be perfect for growing chillies in the ground. With that in mind, we will be planting in pots.

Our UK weather is such that too much organic matter, such as peat or manure, silt or clay could easily become water logged and get cold. No one likes a soggy cold bottom, especially not chilli plants.

The potting soil in question will have two main functions for our plants: 1. to provide a habitat for our chilli roots to do their thing. 2. To be a vessel for the chemical requirements for great plant growth and chilli production. Let’s tackle each function separately.

A cosy home

We want the roots to have plenty of space to stretch out. Soil is typically 50% solids (mineral and organic) and 50% spaces, about half of which is occupied by water and soluble and suspended nutrients. A light, airy soil, with small particles would match the requirements. The roots can work their way through the gaps.

We will be gradually moving our chillies into progressively bigger pots. They sulk for ages if the pot size goes up too quickly. The indicator that they need to move home is when their roots poke through the bottom. Watering from the bottom should avoid compaction (which leads to a reduction of spaces within the soil available for root growth & essential gas, water and nutrient storage). Perhaps a layer of Horticultural grit in the base of each pot would avoid aforementioned sulky soggy bottom too.

Adding Perlite to the mix is another way to allow the soil mix to stay loose, encourage root growth and water drainage. No rotten roots here.

Feed the need

No great nutrient supply is needed from the soil solids as we will be feeding with Chilli Focus regularly. The organic components of the soil provided by the garden compost will ensure a good supply of microorganisms to exist alongside our chilli plants and work their bio magic. No doubt a few extra seeds will germinate as well but that is all part of the fun of doing things yourself.

We do not want too much green Nitrogen releasing organic matter. We hope to encourage good all round plant health and then fabulous flowering and fruiting. Extra Nitrogen may cause bushy green plants that forget to flower.

The seedlings are currently receiving a weekly feed of 5ml per litre of Chilli Focus. This will increase to 10mls per litre once a week when the plants have been pinched out and show some signs of flowers forming. At the height of flowering and fruiting the plants will have two feeds each week.

Vermiculite is another ingredient to consider. A natural product that is a good addition to any soil type. Added to clay soils it allows aeration and flow through the soil, reducing water logging and stunted or bound root growth. In sandy soils it soaks up water allowing retention where there would be very little otherwise. Good access to water, slowly released, means good access to those soluble and suspended nutrients. Sounds like Vermiculite is definitely going into our chilli mix.

So what does this all mean?

It’s looking like a hand mixed potting medium of 3/10 loam top soil, 2/10 coir, 2/10 organic homegrown well rotted compost, 1/10 grit for the bottom of the pot, 1/10 vermiculite to hold on to water and nutrients between watering and feeds, 1/10 perlite for free drainage within the soil. Probably very similar to John Inness No 2!

Clean up your act

January 16, 2019January 27, 2019 / BirdhouseChillies / Leave a comment

With the mild weekend weather, we ventured up to the greenhouse for a general clean up. All whitewash was scrubbed from the glass. Floors were swept. Surplus flower pots were removed and stored. Oh, how many there were! Just where do they come from? And why are they ALL different sizes & dimensions? All the odds and sods will be put to good use at the school Summer fete.

The inside of the greenhouse was given a good wash too. Followed with a vinegar rinse. That should deal with any critters that have taken up residence over the growing season! Dettol was the personal sponsor of the event. And has continued to sponsor the house for a few more days.

A brand new bubble wrapping system of suspension wires. A single wire was hung between the two points of the roof and large sheets of bubble wrap were draped over. This made the task considerably more simple than last year. Snug as a bug in a rug.

Now the greenhouse is ready, willing and able to host the yet-to-even-be-sown chilli seedlings. Current daytime temperature 16 degrees, night time temp was a balmy 10 degrees. Let’s see what happens when the snow fairy has visited.

Chitting Chitting Bang Bang

March 20, 2018January 27, 2019 / BirdhouseChillies / Leave a comment

After somewhat disappointing results from our first attempts at chilli seed germination, the decision has been made to pay more attention to temperature and watering. South Devon Chilli Farm say that 27-32 degrees is optimum chilli germination range and so that is where we strive to be. They also state that surface watering and using warm water are ways to reduce the shock the seeds/seedlings might feel at this delicate stage in their lives. Heard and understood.

Finding a suitably warm (but not too hot) location is far trickier than one would think. On top of a radiator…too hot, 37 degrees or so. On the windowsill…too chilly, 22 degrees or there abouts. In the airing cupboard…too hot again when the heating is on. Back in the heated propagator? Not warm enough with the current weather conditions (snow and an Easterly wind that finds previously unknown gaps around the windows) What to do?

After copious temperature guaging with Old Faithful, the seeds are now, by day, chitting on a sunny, south facing windowsill, above a radiator, and in the bottom of the airing cupboard overnight. Let’s see where that gets us.

The seeds have been placed into clean, plastic takeaway boxes. The boxes are lined with damp capillary matting. Lids down, one corner slightly askew. No soil involved so we can really see what is going on.

In the previous planting of seeds Aji Limon was the first seed to poke its head above the surface of the soil. Closely followed by Jalapeno. Wonder who will show their face first this time?

Really hoping for some germination from Serrano, Long Hot Cayenne, Tobago Seasoning and Go Chu as there was 0% success last attempt

Birdhouse Chillies

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