Soil can harbor diseases and viruses that can be fatal to your pepper plants. Bottom pruning is simply cutting off low branches from the plant, keeping leaves up and away from the soil. We highly encourage growers to bottom prune their pepper plants. However, there are two other times at which pruning may be beneficial. It is typically the only pruning that will need to be done for home gardeners. Having a stronger, thicker stem with a bushier shape will often lead to better pepper yields and a more resilient plant.Įarly growth pruning is the most common type of pruning. This can encourage stockier and fuller plant growth in the long run. This is not ideal for most pepper plant varieties, and thus we can prune away some of the plant. ‘True’ leaves are the leaves that grow after the initial set of ‘seed’ leaves.Īt this stage, your plant may look slightly tall or ‘leggy’ in stature. After 4-6 weeks of growing indoors under grow lights, your plants should be about 6-8 inches tall with a few sets of true leaves. The first time to consider pruning pepper plants is shortly after seeds sprout. Here are the major growth stages during which pruning may be helpful for peppers. Be sure to consider carefully whether pruning is even necessary for your plants. There are four different scenarios during the growing season when pruning may be beneficial to pepper plants. So let’s start with this: When exactly is the best time to prune pepper plants? It can also be harmful to prune at the wrong time. This could lead to slower growth due to a lack of photosynthesis. You wouldn’t want to take away too many of the plant’s leaves.

However, it is important to only prune if it is necessary or beneficial. The areas of the plant that you remove quickly recover and fill in with new growth from the remaining nodes (more on nodes later). Topping pepper plants typically leads to sturdier, stronger, fuller plants, often with higher yields. By taking away certain branches, you allow the plant to focus growth and energy elsewhere.

Pruning pepper plants is a simple method of reshaping your plants. This involves learning why we prune our plants, when to prune, what tools to use, and which parts of the pepper plant should come off. In this article, we will show you how to prune pepper plants the right way. It involves cutting away portions of your plants to improve their overall shape and productivity.

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