Topping pepper plants involves strategically removing the uppermost growth tip of the plant, usually at the main stem's apex. This process encourages the plant to develop lateral branches and a bushier growth pattern.
Topping off your pepper plants is an essential step in ensuring a healthy and productive harvest. By removing the top portion of the plant, you can encourage the growth of lateral branches, which will ultimately lead to more fruit production.
Prune plants heavily by cutting all shoots and side branches back by about six inches, or to a point just above the topmost fruit. Remove branches that do not hold any fruits. Finally, remove any flowers you see on the plant as well as small fruits that do not have time to ripen before the first frost.
Topping off your pepper plants is an essential step in ensuring a healthy and productive harvest. By removing the top portion of the plant, you can encourage the growth of lateral branches, which will ultimately lead to more fruit production.
This makes the first fruit grow big while aborting the fruiting process on the succeeding flowers, creating a fruiting gap. This is the reason why it's to better stop the first flower from becoming a fruit by cutting or pinching.
Epsom salt delivers an immediate shot-in-the-arm of magnesium to the plants and boosts growth when applied as a foliar spray. Mix 2 tablespoons of Epsom salt in an average size spray bottle... shake it vigorously and apply to plant every 2 weeks with a thorough soaking.
Poor Pollination Can Cause Plants Flowering But Not Fruiting
Pepper plants contain both male and female parts. The male part of the flower (the anther) releases pollen so that the female part (the stigma) of the flower can grow fruit. However, this pollination process does not happen automatically.
One tip: prune them both! It is recommended to prune your tomato and pepper plants at planting and during establishment, and depending on variety, throughout the harvest season as well.
On 30” beds, 2 rows of Peppers can be planted diagonally, at 18” apart; expect yields of 10-20# per plant over the harvest season. This translates to about 3 peppers per week. On 4' beds, 2 rows of Peppers can be planted parallel, at 18” apart; expect yields of 10-20# per plant over the harvest season.
About 3 to 4 weeks before frost is expected, you can prune a bit harder to focus your plant's energy towards ripening whatever peppers remain on the plant. Cut away any branches that aren't bearing fruit. Then clip back all stems and branches by 6 inches or make your cuts right above the uppermost fruit on your plant.
💡 Triggers for Flowering
Pepper plants are sun worshippers, needing at least six hours of full light a day to produce healthy flowers.
Topping pumpkins just before autumn accelerates the maturation of the last pumpkins of the season. Topping is also useful for basil: by removing apical inflorescences before they produce seeds, you actually stimulate the production of leaves, preventing them from losing aroma and drying out.
For pepper plants, a balanced fertilizer with equal proportions of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K) is recommended. However, pepper plants respond positively to higher nitrogen concentrations during the flowering stage.
Some of these flowers turn into pepper pods, and others drop from the plant. While it's natural for some pepper flowers to fall off your plant, too many can be a sign that something isn't going right.
For potted plants, Scott recommends applying the Epsom salt solution once per month. When planting a magnesium-loving plant in your garden, such as roses, Scott recommends adding a light sprinkle of Epsom salt to the soil before planting it into the garden.
Prevent Fungal Disease
MAKE IT: Mix 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 2-3 drops of liquid soap in 1 liter of water. Spray the solution on the infected plants. Baking soda helps the plants become less acidic and prevents fungal growth.
If your soil is low in calcium, add a fertilizer with calcium or amend the soil with bone meal. Peppers can also get powdery mildew if your conditions are cool and moist. A vegetable garden-safe fungicide that treats powdery mildew is your best bet here.
Pros of Topping
Higher Yields: With more branches comes more fruit. Topped pepper plants tend to produce a greater number of smaller fruits, increasing your overall yields. 2. Increased Branching: Topping encourages lateral branching, leading to more nodes where flowers and fruits can develop.
If a plant has finished blooming, that's a good time to both cut off the spent flowers and move it. However, don't cut the entire plant down to the roots. Plants need their leaves to collect sunlight they change into sugar to feed themselves and store energy before they go dormant.
Topping tomato plants is only beneficial for indeterminate varieties and isn't necessary for good health or high production.