Pluck, there goes the pepper blossom
Thursday, April 05, 2007
I have good news and bad news about my indoor pepper growing endeavors. The good news is that one of my plants -- a banana pepper -- has its first blossom already. (So soon!) The bad news is that I'm going to have to snip it off.
I like snipping off vegetable blossoms just about as much as I like thinning out carrots. One of my readers said his wife refers to thinning as "massacre of the innocents," and that's pretty much how I feel about this process, too. If I want a bigger, stronger plant, though, that first blossom and its neighboring buds have got to go.
*Deep breath*
Here goes.
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9 Comments:
Oh yes, I understand how you feel.... ;-))) I always feel so sad when I cut our hedge... I always feel sorry for all my shrubs - but it is definitivly a "MUST" in order to make them stronger and even more prettier!
Happy gardening!
A beautiful photo! And I do understand, but in my case it's those old potted plants that needs to go. I always grieve when I have to throw away a perfectly healthy plant.
Wow, your pepper plant is so big! I'd love to see your nursery setup; I think I started mine around the same time you did, but they're nowhere near big enough to flower yet! You must have some special magic: or some very strong grow lights!
Don't worry, it will be worth it in the long run. :)
What a lovely flower.Just take a deep breath and close your eyes when you have the scissors close.If you need to do it for growing peppers you need to do it!
Beautiful photo!
Just visiting for Green Thumb Sunday and wondering if you're still playing or not?
I feel your pain. "Massacre of the innocents" is exactly how I feel about thinning. I keep telling them "It's for your own good" but of course that's only true for the ones that don't get thinned.
I too hate thinning out. I usually move the "unwanted" plants to another part of the garden.
When I root plants like impatiens, I have to remove the flowers, it's painful!!
Glad you got a nice picture before you snipped it off. That should make you feel a bit better.
You are right that it is hard to do, but you will have much better peppers in the long run. With veggies, we are supposed to focus more on the harvest, right?
Now, if you start plucking blooms off of your annual flowers we will call you crazy!
I love seeing pepper plants bloom. Last year was my first time growing peppers (jalapenos and habaneros) and was thrilled with how well they grew.
I'm not sure that I understand why you have to pinch off the blooms (I'm a relatively new gardener).
Take care
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