Bellpapers

Introduction – Hydroponics is a suitable system of growing crops in which nutrients, space, fertilizer, and labor are efficiently used. You can use hydroponics to grow Capsicum any time of the year. It is possible to increase Capsicum size and production with this type of indoor growing system. The plants receive a constant food source from the nutrient-rich water, and they have few problems with pests and diseases that are found in soil-grown plants. Hydroponic Capsicum can taste better than regular soil peppers because you can adjust the daylight hours and increase the nutrient levels easily. Hydroponic systems for growing Capsicum Several types of hydroponic systems are available. Best for is the deep-water or ebb-and-flow types, which are ideal for growing Capsicum. Capsicum is a slightly more advanced hydroponic plant and doesn’t let them grow to their full height, instead, prune and pinch plants at about 8 inches to Capsicum growth. Dutch Bucket system Deepwater culture or ebb and flow systems are best for Capsicum.

Prepare seedbed for growing Capsicum hydroponically

To grow your Capsicum in the best possible environment, you need to prepare the environment you will be growing your seeds in. It is recommended to start with new netting in which to start seeds. The netting must be porous enough to allow a sturdy root system to grow. Hydroponic Capsicum grows pretty big, so they need all the support they can get. By using Styrofoam or other support will help the plant to stay upright as it grows.

Water and nutrients for growing Capsicum hydroponically

The optimal pH for Capsicum growing hydroponically is between 6.0 to 6.5. A low pH level can be corrected by adding sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide to the water. Small amounts of one or the other must be used. Never touch hydroxides with wet hands and handle them as little as possible and when you do, use sturdy water-resistant gloves. If possible, test any pH adjustments on a single plant before you continue to make adjustments to the entire nutrient solution.The water and nutrients in the hydroponics system’s pump bucket need daily testing with a hydroponics water meter. The meter provides the pH level and nutrient levels available in the water. Use a liquid hydroponics solution to keep the water pH between 6.0 and 6.5, employing the water meter reading as a guide. A digital water meter can provide exact solution and nutrient amounts, or refer to the booklet included with the meter to translate the readings to the solution measurement. Apply a complete hydroponics nutrient solution or liquid-soluble fertilizer in the amount recommended for the water meter test results.Hydroponic nutrients play an important role in the final yield of a bell pepper plant. You must use a fertilizer with a 5-10-10 NPK ratio on bell pepper plants. The higher potassium and phosphorus levels in a 5-10-10 fertilizer will encourage the pepper plants to spend less energy on growing new plant leaves and instead focus that energy on fruit production.

Conditions required for growing Capsicum hydroponically

Grow time – About 90 days

Best pH – 6.0 to 6.5

Light – Plan to provide up to 18 hours of light for these plants each day, and raise your light rack as the plants grow, keeping plants 6 inches from the lights.

The process of growing Capsicum plants hydroponically

• Fill the hydroponics unit with water, and let it run for 2 or 3 days before planting the Capsicum. Then, add hydroponics nutrients to the water, using the package instructions for the volume of water in the system.
• Remove the Bell pepper seedlings from their growing container. Dip the root ball in a room-temperature bucket of water to gently loosen the soil around the plant roots. Remove as much soil as possible without damaging the plant roots. Then, you can leave a small amount of soil on the roots when planting into the hydroponics system.
• Plant each soilless Bell pepper plant into a netted pot containing a soilless hydroponics medium. Set the Bell pepper plants slightly deeper than they were growing in the original container. Plant one pepper in each netted pot, and space the pots 9 inches apart in the hydroponics system.
• Set up indoor grow lights over top of the hydroponics system so that the bulb is about 6 to 8 inches above the top of the pepper plants. Put a timer on the lights so that they stay on for about 10 to 12 hours each day. Raise the lights as the Bell pepper plants grow taller to prevent burning the foliage.
• Prune the pepper plants by pinching off 2 or 3 stem buds when the plants are about 6 to 8 inches tall to limit branch growth and force the plant energy toward pepper production. Remove 1 or 2 buds from each pepper branch as they appear, which will increase the size of peppers produced from the remaining buds.
• Shake the pepper plants 2 or 3 times a week when the buds open, to help with pollination. Place a small household fan near the hydroponics system and set it to low, to assist with pollination.
• Start applying root enhancers to the growing medium. After a month, start applying primary nutrients, add 2ml per liter of water, and apply it twice a week for almost 2 months. For the first 3 weeks trim off the flower buds, so that the plant will direct its effort toward growing stronger and grow more flowers later. And make sure you water them properly.
• Start harvesting your hydroponic Capsicum once they reach the required or sufficient size. Usually, Capsicum takes 90 to 120 days after germination.

Harvesting hydroponic Capsicum

Capsicums are ready for harvesting once they have approximately 85-90 percent of their surface colored. Capsicum should be removed from plants using a sharp knife; if you try to simply pull the fruit off the plants, both the fruit and plant can get damaged.

Hydroponic Capsicum/Bell pepper yield per plan

The average hydroponic Bell pepper yield per plant can be significantly higher than a soil-grown pepper plant. A hydroponic bell pepper plant can produce a yield of about 30 to 40 Kg. of peppers per plant. While the average Bell pepper plant grown in soil will only yield around 2 to 4 kg.per plant. The average yield of hydroponic Capsicum depends on several factors such as the pepper variety, nutrient levels, and the type of hydroponic system that they were grown in.