How I grow peppers and tomatoes on the windowsill

Tomatoes and peppers are perennial plants in nature. At home, one plant can grow and bear fruit well for several years. But I noticed that the plant of the second and subsequent years does not bear fruit as abundantly and looks unpresentable like the first year. Therefore, I prefer to renew the plants every 2 years by planting prepared seeds from last year.

When I sow seeds for seedlings

Recently, the range of varieties for home gardening on the windowsill has expanded significantly. Special, low-growing and abundantly fruiting varieties of tomatoes and peppers were developed. Such plants feel good at home and grow well in pots, cache-pots or boxes. One of the main tasks of a “gardener” is choosing the right variety and following simple agricultural practices.

When to sow pepper

The best way to sow peppers from February to March. However, at home you can create the necessary conditions all year round. I planted in both January and September, the pepper grows well and bears fruit with short rest breaks.

The most common varieties of hot and sweet peppers:

• Ogonyok,
• carnival,
• topic,
• Forty brothers
• Yarik,
• Watercolor,
• Dwarf,
• Firstborn of Siberia,
• Etude,
• Curiously,
• Martin.

When to sow a tomato

The best time to plant tomatoes is from March to April. It can also be planted in the summer months.

The most common varieties for growing at home in pots:

• Orange miracle
• Rowan beads,
• Balcony miracle,
• baby,
• Rowan beads,
• Pearl,
• Pinocchio,
• Room surprise.

These varieties are included in the State Variety Register and are recommended for growing at home. All these varieties can be successfully grown on a loggia, balcony, in greenhouses and even in open ground.

Photo: seeds of peppers and tomatoes for home growing

How to prepare seeds before sowing

Seeds purchased in a store, as a rule, already have special treatment and are ready for planting. The manufacturer disinfects them and sometimes even protects the seeds with a special coating. Granulated seeds are protected from drying out and external damage, and contain micronutrient supplements that provide additional nutrition during germination. Seeds in granules can be immediately planted in the substrate without home disinfection in potassium permanganate.

Soaking

Be sure to soak all purchased seeds for 10 – 15 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate. The solution should be of medium intensity (lilac-pink color). If there is no potassium permanganate, but there is phytosporin, then you can pickle the seeds in it. Fitosporin is diluted according to the instructions on the package.

• By soaking the seeds, the seeds will swell and all infections and pathogens will die.
• Good seeds will sink to the bottom, while empty and dried ones will float to the surface.
• We mercilessly throw out the floating seeds.

I stimulate

After soaking, wash the seeds and dip them in a biostimulator solution (Epin, Zircon) for a day. We dilute the growth stimulator according to the instructions.

Warming up

1. After soaking, I place the seeds on damp gauze, a paper napkin or a piece of cotton cloth.
2. I put them in a plastic bag and put them in a warm place, maybe even above the radiator.

The temperature must not be lower than + 20 °C.

How to sow seeds

As soon as you see the sprouts hatching, you immediately need to plant the seeds in the ground. Don’t wait for them to grow up; when planting, you can easily break off the regrown sprout, and the plant will die or take a long time to recover.

I’m preparing the ground

We take loose and nutritious soil for planting. You can buy ready-made nutrient soil for seedlings, or you can prepare it yourself.

• For tomatoes:

1. take 1 part of garden soil,
2. add 1 part sand or perlite, 1 part peat, 1 part humus or compost,
3. Mix everything thoroughly and the substrate is ready.

• For the peppers:

everything is the same, just add some of the ash, and instead of garden soil, dig it up where meadow clover grows.

I plant in a common container

It is best to plant the seeds all at once in one container. It has been noticed that when the seeds are next to each other, the shoots are friendly and simultaneous.

They can also be planted individually, for example, in peat tablets or small cups. The seeds will also sprout, there will be no need to pick and injure the root system. In this case, you save your time.

I planted this way and that way. I came to the conclusion that this year I will plant everything together, and not separately, and then dive.

When planting in separate containers, it is best to plant 2 seeds in 1 container. If 1 plant is weak or accidentally dies, the second one will be replaced. We discard weak plants and replant stronger ones in their place.

Nuances of sowing

1. We deepen the seeds by 1.5 – 2 cm.
2. We water using a spray bottle to prevent the seeds from being drawn deeper into the ground.
3. We place the planted seeds under film or in a plastic bag – we create greenhouse conditions.
4. We make small holes on the polyethylene for ventilation.

I’m waiting for the shoots

Place in a bright and warm place. For good seedlings, it is advisable to provide good light. It must be at least 10 hours a day. If you cannot provide such natural lighting, then organize illumination with phytolamps.

• Until the seeds sprout, the surface of the soil should always be moist, but not wet.
• If you over-water the seeds, they may become moldy and rot.
• As soon as you see the first shoots, immediately remove the polyethylene, otherwise the first shoots may rot and die.

When all the seeds have sprouted and the seedlings have their first true leaves, we pick (transplant) them into separate pots.

Picking and culling of seedlings

I always select plants after germination.

• The strongest plants will come from those seeds that sprout first.
• The very last ones can be safely thrown away – these are weak plants, most likely they will grow like that.

I keep the fattest ones for myself, and I mercilessly throw out those that sprout late or grow crookedly. I don’t skimp on seeds when planting and always try to stock up on a large number of seeds so that I can make this kind of selection in the spring. My seedlings turn out to be strong, and in the future I reap good harvests.

Transplanting into separate pots

When replanting, I just cull the plants. You can immediately see what to leave and what to remove.

Before I start diving, I generously water the container where the seedlings are growing so that there is liquid. The roots are then easily separated from each other, and the plant receives minimal injury.

1. I plant them in pots from 2 to 5 liters, with large drainage holes. The soil should be loose and nutritious, as for planting.
2. Use your finger to make a hole in the pot and carefully place the plant in it. I lightly compact the earth around the root.
3. We water the planted seedling generously; it is best to spray it with Epin solution.
4. Place in a warm and bright place, out of direct sunlight.
5. When we notice that the plants have begun to grow, it will be visible in 3 days; you can also place them in a sunny place.

How do I care for indoor peppers?

Indoor peppers can even be planted in open ground for the summer. True, in the ground it will grow into a rather large bush, and then you will need to look for a suitable pot. It tolerates replanting well if the roots are not damaged.

Place and light

• Pepper loves a lot of light and moisture. A south window would be ideal for it.
• The pot with the plant must be constantly rotated so that it grows evenly.
• Does not like drafts and sudden drops in temperature.
• In the warm season, it is best to take the plants outside or onto the balcony.

Watering, loosening, spraying

• Frequent loosening and spraying will have a beneficial effect on the condition of homemade peppers. It’s best to do this every day.
• Water as the top layer of soil dries out.
• Water at the root so that drops of water do not fall on the leaves.

Pollination

Most often, varieties of domestic peppers are self-pollinating, but there are exceptions.

Once, I waited for fruits for 3 months until I realized that without my pollination, they would not appear. Observe, if after flowering for a month the fruits do not set on their own, then pollinate manually.

Harvest

Collect fruits on time so that the plant does not spend a lot of energy maintaining them.

Try to leave 5 – 7 fruits on the bush. As a rule, there are a lot of them.

Top dressing

• We fertilize once every 2 weeks with universal fertilizers, biohumus.
• loves very much of ashyou can periodically sprinkle it on top and mix it with the ground.
• If you cook “green manure” from nettles and other herbs, then the pepper will thank you with a bountiful harvest and good growth.

Caring for indoor tomato

Homemade tomato loves bright, sunny places. The temperature should be at least 14-16 °C, during flowering and fruiting from +20 to +27 °C.

Watering, loosening, spraying

Watering is moderate, as the top layer of soil dries out. By watering with water not taken from the tap, plants grow much better.

• It is best to water in the evening, with warm, settled (rain or snow) water.
• Water carefully, at the root, so that water does not get on the leaves.
• Periodically loosen the soil and take a warm shower. After a shower, make sure that the plant is not exposed to direct sunlight, as the leaf may burn.

Over time, the leaves of the plant will dry out from below. Remove dry leaves and pinch the shoots.

Pollination

When the flowers appear, they will need to be pollinated by hand, otherwise you won’t get a harvest. You can pollinate with your fingertip, toothpick, brush or cotton swab.

If the weather permits, take the plant to the balcony or outside, where pollination will be natural.

Reproduction by stepsons

Propagating tomatoes at home is easy. You can collect seeds from ripe fruits or break off a twig or shoot and root it.

1. We take stepsons approximately 20 cm long.
2. We remove all the leaves and twigs from the bottom, exposing the trunk for the development of roots.
3. At the top, shorten each leaf by half. Carefully cut with scissors. This way the plant will spend less energy on maintaining them and will direct all the energy to growing roots.
4. The lower tip is best treated with root.
5. We put the stepson in water and wait for the roots to appear.

With this propagation, the harvest will appear a month earlier than when grown from seeds. By the way, if you plant such a bush in the ground after spring frosts, the plant will only thank you for it. You will get an even more lush bush with more fruits.

Closer to autumn, the plant is carefully dug up with minimal trauma to the roots and planted in a pot. We place the pot in a dark place and let the plant take root in the new conditions; for the winter we bring it indoors and place it on the windowsill; in early spring it will bloom and bear fruit much earlier.

If you do not plan to dig up the plant, then we prepare the seeds in the fall and sow them again in the spring.

Do-it-yourself seed harvesting and storage

I always save the varieties I like and in the future I sow only my own seeds. As a rule, seeds collected in the fall have 100% germination.

• For seeds, I choose the largest and most beautiful fruit. I don’t regret it, but on the contrary, I think about the future and make my own selection.
• I put the fruits of peppers and tomatoes on a plate and wait for them to naturally ripen.
• When the vegetables begin to fall apart easily on their own, I take out the seeds and rinse them in running water.
• I lay them out flat and let them dry completely.

I store them in paper bags that I make myself from paper. I sign each bag: the name of the variety and the year. You can store pepper and tomato seeds for 3 to 5 years. But remember that germination rate decreases over the years. It is better to periodically plant 1 – 2 plants per year and renew the seeds with fresh ones.

I put the seeds in a paper shoe box in a dark, cool place.