How to Grow Peppers
On this page
Sow peppers once soil temperature reaches 18°C.
This is a frost-tender crop — it will not survive below about 8°C — so the growing year is built around starting it under cover and moving it out only once the risk of frost has passed.
The short answer
- Site
- 6+ hours of sun, soil pH 6–6.5
- Biggest risk
- Grey mould
Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.
Pepper (Capsicum annuum)
11 sources cited · Verified
Soil & Growing Conditions
Quick Facts
| Factor | Value |
|---|---|
| Soil pH | 6 - 6.5 |
| Sunlight | 6-6 hours direct sun |
| Germination temp | 18°C |
| Optimal growing temp | 21.1-29.4°C |
| Minimum survivable temp | 8°C |
| Drainage | RHS: "well-drained, fertile, moisture-retentive soil" in the "warmest, sunniest spot", ideally against a south-facing wall outdoors. |
| Edible parts | fruits |
At a Glance
Growth Stages
| Stage | BBCH | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sowing and germination | 0 | Sow indoors — pepper is never direct sown outside its warm native range. UK: mid-February to early March for a greenhouse crop, late March to early April for an outdoor one (RHS). USA: sow about 2 weeks before the last frost, allowing 8–10 weeks to raise the transplant (Utah State). Canada: start at least 8 weeks before planting out — around 18 March for a 13 May frost-free date in Saskatoon (USask). Sources give different germination temperatures and the span is genuine, not a rounding difference: RHS 18–21°C (65–70°F); USask 25–29°C giving germination in 10–21 days; Utah State 80°F (27°C) until the seed root emerges, then grown on at 65–75°F (18–24°C). The practical reading is that the floor for reliable germination is around 18°C and speed increases up to about 29°C. RHS does not state a sowing depth. |
| Seedling and potting on | 1 | Once seedlings emerge, hold at 16–18°C (60–64°F) in bright light and keep the compost evenly moist. Move each seedling into its own 7.5–9cm (3–3.5in) pot as soon as it has two true leaves, keeping the temperature high to maintain growth (RHS). Utah State grows seedlings on at 65–75°F (18–24°C) after the radicle emerges. |
| Hardening off and planting out | 1 | PLANTING DEPTH AND SPACING. Harden off over about two weeks before any move outdoors (RHS). Spacing differs by source and by climate: RHS 38–45cm (15–18in) apart, or 30cm (1ft) for compact cultivars; Utah State 18in (45cm) in the row with 18–24in (45–60cm) between rows; USask 45cm in the row with at least 50cm between rows. The three agree closely at about 45cm in-row. In containers use one plant per pot at least 30cm (1ft) wide, or two to three per standard growing bag (RHS). Timing is governed by temperature, not date: RHS gives late April in a heated greenhouse, mid-May unheated, and late May or June outdoors, and only once overnight temperatures are reliably above 12°C (54°F). Utah State transplants when soil reaches 60°F (15.5°C) or after all frost danger has passed. USask advises waiting until all danger of frost has passed, a week or two after the last frost date. Do not lay organic mulch until soil has warmed to 75°F/24°C (Utah State). |
| Vegetative growth | 3 | Water to keep soil or compost evenly moist; Utah State gives 1–2 inches per week. Insert a sturdy bamboo cane at planting — the plant becomes top-heavy under a full crop and side shoots carrying fruit can be tied in with soft twine (RHS). Side dress with 1/4 tablespoon of 21-0-0 fertiliser at 4 and 8 weeks after transplanting (Utah State). Pinching out the growing tip is not usually needed, but doing so once the plant reaches about 30cm (1ft) produces a larger crop of smaller fruits (RHS). |
| Flowering | 6 | The temperature-critical stage, and where most pepper crops are decided. Flowers abort on nights below 55°F (13°C) or days above 90°F (32°C) (Utah State). RHS gives the same limits from the other direction: plants tolerate a minimum night temperature of 12°C (54°F) but grow better above 15°C (59°F), and temperatures over 30°C (86°F) reduce fruiting. Begin a weekly high-potassium liquid feed as soon as flowering starts (RHS). |
| Fruit development | 7 | Fruit reaches full size while still green. Consistent moisture matters most through this stage — irregular watering is the direct cause of blossom end rot, which USask names as the main pepper problem in Canadian gardens. Keep feeding weekly with a high-potassium fertiliser. |
| Ripening and harvest | 8 | Colouring takes a further 35–45 days from flowering to full colour (Utah State) — the single figure that decides whether a short-season grower picks green or waits. Pick when fruits are swollen and glossy; most cultivars ripen green to red, some to yellow, orange or purple, and all sweeten as they colour (RHS). Green fruit is mature enough to pick once firm and waxy to the touch (USask). Utah State's harvest test is firm, plump, smooth-skinned fruit, or fully coloured but still firm. Peppers that need more than 75 days to maturity will probably not fully mature in an average Saskatchewan season; transplants generally need 75–85 days (USask). Store 1–2 weeks at 50–55°F / 10–13°C (Utah State). |
Harvest & Storage
Diseases
Pests
Nutrient Issues
Companion Planting
Plan your Peppers planting
Timing for Peppers follows soil temperature and frost, not the calendar date. The Global vegetable planting calendar explains the method. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.
Growing Pepper in another region
Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.
Sources
These 2 sources are specific to this region. The full list of 11 sources behind this guide (Clemson Cooperative Extension, FAO EcoCrop, Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and others) is in the references of our UK guide to peppers; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What soil pH do peppers need?
A pH of about 6–6.5. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.
What problems affect peppers?
Our data links 2 diseases and 3 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.
Plan next season before the problems start
This page gives you the thresholds; the planner turns them into your own calendar. It works from what you can observe and measure in your garden rather than from dates written for somebody else’s latitude.
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How this guide is put together
The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against international horticultural research and extension sources. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.
Related Problem Guides
Last verified 2026-08-06
Where To Go From Here
Take this crop from reading into a written plan for your own beds.
Keep going
Plan the next step
Use the printable SoilCommander planner for your region to turn this guide into sowing dates, bed layouts and weekly garden tasks.