Hydroponic Gardening - Sweet Peppers

Sweet peppers (also known as Capsicums) come in a variety of colors. This variety makes them appealing to many hydroponic gardeners. Sweet peppers are more difficult to grow than tomatoes, but with attention to their special requirement, greenhouse production can be very successful. Other than correct hydroponic nutrients, which are essential in all hydroponic gardening, light and temperature play a large part in the success or failure of your crop. Pollination and pest control follow closely behind. A final, yet extremely important factor in success requires knowing how much fruit each plant can produce without over-taxing it. Let’s look at the physical environment first.

Temperatures in the greenhouse where you have planted your hydroponic garden need to stay between 68 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the growing stages of the sweet peppers. Higher temperatures will see your peppers growing faster, but the fruit will be smaller and of poorer quality. Anything lower can result in losing flowers before they have had a chance to mature. Sweet peppers love light. This is a crop where good quality grow lights are almost essential. Depending on natural lighting will see your crops failing while attempting indoor gardening. Air humidity should remain below eighty percent.

Some hydroponic vegetable gardening sees plants self-pollinating. This is not the case with sweet peppers. It is possible to manually pollinate your plants using a small paintbrush or cotton swab and gently rubbing it across the center of each flower. Commercial pesticides are never recommended for hydroponic gardens. If the need arises, however, relying on products found at hydroponic supply places such as
will be safer for both your plants and you.

It is tempting to allow your sweet peppers to produce as much fruit as they will, but this can result in poor quality fruit and unhealthy plants. The first flower on each plant needs to be removed. This creates stronger fruit in successive blooms. Often the plant itself will shed this flower, but manual removal may be necessary. When a plant is expected to support too many fruits, the roots can begin to rot and leave the plants susceptible to disease. For this reason, it is necessary to prune excess fruit as it starts to grow. Younger plants can’t handle as much fruit as older ones. A suggested rule of thumb in hydroponics is to limit the fruit on each plant to between twelve and twenty on young plants and no more than forty on older ones. The earlier the hydroponic gardener removes the excess fruit, the healthier the plant will remain.

By taking the time to stock your greenhouse with the correct hydroponic nutrients, an adequate number of grow lights and proper pollination, you will help your indoor garden of sweet peppers succeed. It is well worth the effort and will make your hydroponic vegetable gardening a pleasurable experience. Finally, if you want to harvest robust, abundant fruits and vegetables you should check out the seven best-kept secrets of hydroponics at http://www.advancednutrients.com/freereport/.
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