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For many, it will be a discovery that black pepper is not only a fragrant, bitter spice, but also a bell pepper familiar to gardeners, growing everywhere in home gardens. Yes, yes, an ordinary pepper, but with an unusual color. There are quite a few varieties of black peppers, but not all gardeners know about them, and some simply do not dare to grow them. But there is nothing difficult in growing a variety of black pepper!
Seed sowing
Sowing seeds begins from mid-February, if you do not have time, you can postpone sowing until the first days of March. The land harvested since autumn must be brought into a warm room, give it time to warm up well, loosen and pour warm water. Sow the seeds of black pepper in a container with earth and cover it with a film until the seeds germinate.
Then even seeds 3 or 4 years old will germinate, and on the tenth day at most, friendly shoots will appear. The seed container should not stand on the battery, as the earth will dry out and the germinated sprouts will simply die. It is allowed to find this container near the battery to create the necessary temperature for germination.
Actions after emergence
When the seedlings become massive, you need to lower the temperature around the peppers. How to do it? It is necessary to take the container with seedlings into a greenhouse, preferably heated, in which it is necessary to maintain a temperature of about + 15 ° C. This procedure is called seedling hardening. Then the temperature should be raised to about 25 degrees.
Seedling of seedlings
After two or three true leaves appear, the seedlings should be pruned using peat pots. Before starting a dive, the ground in a container with peppers must be well watered so that when removing the seedlings, do not harm them and pull them out along with the roots.
At this stage, top dressing with complex fertilizer is desirable. It is necessary to carefully monitor that no pests such as aphids, spider mites or whiteheads appear. At the first sign of pests, it is necessary to carry out processing.
If the seedling is grown in compliance with these rules, then a couple of months after germination, it should have 12 well-developed leaves, a strong stem, and its height should be at least 25 cm.
Planting seedlings in the ground should be after the installation of stable warm weather, the soil should have time to warm up to at least +10 degrees. It would be nice to add humus or compost to it. Plants should not be planted densely, observing an interval of 35-45 cm. A handful of wood ash can be thrown into each hole.
When the peppers take root, you can fertilize in the form of complex fertilizers and urea. This procedure is usually done twice per season.
But filling it is also not good. If it is hot outside, it is enough to water the pepper two or three times a week with not cold water.
Recently, many new varieties of pepper of all colors of the rainbow have appeared, among them black or close to black in color.
Varieties of black peppers
A common feature of black peppers is the similarity in taste with green ones. When roasted, black pepper changes its original color towards greenish. It is very good in a salad or when preparing a vegetable stew.
“Black Sugar”
A variety of pepper from the category of sweet (Bulgarian). Quite an early hybrid, full maturity occurs 100 or 110 days after germination. This variety feels great both in the greenhouse and in the open field. The height of the bush is about 0,8 m, the fruits are cone-shaped with a sharp tip, the weight of the fruit is about 90 grams, thick-walled (up to 6 mm). The color changes from dark purple to dark cherry. Juicy and sweet in taste. In the greenhouse it yields about 7 kg per square meter.
“Purple Bell”
Very early variety (75-85 days from germination).
It grows well in open ground, the height of the bush does not exceed 80 cm. The fruit has a shape slightly resembling a cube, large, with an approximate weight of 170 grams, with a wall thickness of up to 7 mm. The variety is resistant to viral diseases such as tobacco mosaic and potato virus.
“Black Horse”
Refers to early ripe varieties (95-100 days). It grows both in an open garden and under a film. It grows quite tall and gives a high yield (up to 15 fruits per bush), so a support garter is required. The fruits are powerful, the weight reaches 0,25 kg / piece, the color changes from dark purple to dark red, the walls are plump (up to 1 cm). The taste of the fruits is excellent, they are very juicy and sweet. This variety adapts to adverse weather conditions, resistant to viruses. The harvest reaches 7,5 kg per square meter.
“Bagira”
One name is worth it! Very beautiful, glossy fruits with great taste reach a weight of up to 0,35 kg, thick-walled (up to 0,9 cm), the color changes from black chocolate to red chocolate. The variety is early, the bush is low – about 50 cm. It is grown both under the film and in the open garden.
“Mulatto”
Mid-season hybrid (about 130 days). Grows in a greenhouse. The bush is quite sprawling, has an average height. Fruits with a glossy sheen, with the shape of an elongated cube, the weight of the fruit is about 170 grams, the walls are about 7 mm thick. It has a strong peppery aroma. The variety tolerates a slight cold snap well.
“Sweet Chocolate”
The variety was bred by Siberian breeders. Late ripening (about 135 days from germination). The height of the bush is about 0,8 m. The fruits are elongated pyramidal, weighing 125 grams. The color is first dark green, then chocolate, what is most interesting, the color inside the fruit is red. Feels great both in the greenhouse and in the open garden. Good immunity to pepper diseases.
“Black Cardinal”
The variety belongs to mid-season (about 120 days). The bush grows up to 0,6 m. The fruit changes color from black to bright red, resembles a truncated pyramid in shape. The taste of pepper is sweet, with juicy pulp. The yield of this variety is surprising – about ten kilograms per square meter.
“Gypsy Baron”
Amazingly beautiful plant! Low bush (45-50 cm) with green-purple leaves and flowers, compact. The fruits are small, only 7-8 cm long, blue to purple and black in color, and when ripe, mother-of-pearl. Peppers grow in a peculiar way – with the tips up in the form of an elegant bouquet. It looks very nice in winter preparations. The variety is extremely productive (up to 8 kg / sq.m)