Banana Pepper
Capsicum annuum
Start banana pepper indoors 6 weeks before your last spring frost, then plant out 2 weeks after your last spring frost. Space plants 18 in (46 cm) apart.
Photo: Jeffery Martin, CC0 · source
When to plant
Timed from your frost dates, so it holds wherever you garden. Give yours and every step below becomes a date.
Optimal Indoor Start
From seedRecommended- Start indoors6 weeks before your last spring frost
- Begin hardening off1 week after your last spring frost
- Plant out2 weeks after your last spring frost
- First harvestabout 75 days after planting out
Optimal Transplant
From seed- Plant out2 weeks after your last spring frost
- First harvestabout 75 days after planting out
Growing banana pepper
- Spacing in the row
- 18 in (46 cm)
- Between rows
- 30 in (76 cm)
- Planting depth
- 1/4 inch
- Sun
- Full Sun
- Soil
- Well-drained, fertile loam
- Germination
- 7-21 days at 25-30°C
- Harvest season
- Summer, Early Fall
- Mature height
- 18-36 inches
- Support
- Stake
- Life cycle
- Annual
Sow seeds 0.6 cm deep (1/4 inch) in warm soil with consistent moisture.
Watering. Maintain consistent soil moisture; avoid waterlogging. Deep watering is preferred.
Neighbours
The companion chart →Grows well beside
Basil
Carrot
Onion
Tomato
Nasturtium
Spinach
OreganoKeep apart from
Cabbage
Fennel
Kohlrabi
BroccoliFeeding
- Seedlings
- Balanced liquid fertilizer (e.g., 5-5-5) at half strength once true leaves appear.
- Growing
- Balanced liquid fertilizer (e.g., 5-5-5) every 2-4 weeks.
- Flowering and fruiting
- High potassium/phosphorus fertilizer (e.g., 5-10-10 or 2-3-1) to promote fruiting.
- How often
- Every 3-4 weeks from first fruit set until harvest. Work a balanced fertilizer in at planting, and avoid heavy nitrogen before fruit sets or the plant makes leaves instead of peppers.
- Note
- Avoid high nitrogen post-flowering to prevent leafy growth at expense of fruit.
Your banana pepper, planned to the day.
Canopy turns these timings into dates from your own frost data, places every plant at its spacing on your garden map, and tracks it all the way to harvest.