When Do Hunan People's Favorite Chilies Get Sown? Planting Techniques and Fertilizer Choices

For Hunan people, chilies are an indispensable ingredient on the dining table, and they are also a must-have dish to go with rice. So, do you know when chilies are generally sown? What are the planting techniques? What fertilizer is good to apply? Let's take a look together here:

1. When are chilies generally sown?

The planting time for chilies should be determined according to local climate conditions, because chilies have a heat-loving habit. Spring sowing and early summer sowing are most suitable. The best sowing period is from March to July. Properly early sowing will allow chilies to grow more fully and bear several more rounds of chilies.

In the Guangdong region, chilies can be planted all year round, but the most suitable growing periods are spring planting and autumn planting. For spring planting, the sowing period is from late January to early February, the transplanting period is from mid-March to early April, and the harvest period is from May to July. For autumn planting, the sowing period is in early August, the transplanting period is in September, and the harvest period is from October to December.

2. What are the planting techniques? What fertilizer is good to apply?

1. Sowing

When sowing chilies, you can skip sprouting and sow directly. Bury all the seeds, water thoroughly, then use gentle flooding irrigation normally, keep the soil moist, and wait for germination. If sprouting is done, that is, planting after the seeds have sprouted white roots, it will improve the uniformity of emergence. Under normal conditions, after sowing, full emergence will occur within 7 to 14 days. When the seedlings grow to 17 to 20 cm and have 6 to 8 true leaves, they can be transplanted and set out.

2. Watering

After sowing or covering, spray water once more with a fine mist nozzle, watering thoroughly, so that the seeds fully contact the substrate and covering material.

3. Film covering

Covering the sowing pot with glass, plastic film, or plastic sheeting can maintain air humidity and can also keep and increase warmth in winter. In summer, the film may be omitted, and if covered, it must not be sealed; both sides must be ventilated.

4. Shading

If sowing in summer, shading must be provided; otherwise, the light is too strong and water evaporates vigorously, which will affect seed germination. With sufficient sunlight, sufficient water supply, and proper pinching, there will be many chilies. Basically no fertilizer was applied, and rice-washing water was occasionally used for irrigation, which can also count as green vegetables.

5. Fertilizing

Fertilizing is generally carried out together with watering as foliar topdressing. Every 7 to 10 days, mix 0.1% urea with 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate and 0.1% zinc sulfate and spray evenly. The fertilizer solution should be used immediately after mixing.

In the high-temperature summer season, the amount of watering can be appropriately increased. Due to the constraints of their living environment, potted small chilies mostly have low fertility levels and are prone to flower and fruit drop. Therefore, while strengthening fertilizer and water management, 0.0025% to 0.003% parachlorophenoxyacetic acid (PCPA) should also be sprayed during the flowering period to prevent the plants from dropping flowers and fruits.

3. What are the benefits of eating chilies?

Every 100 grams of chilies contains as much as 198 mg of vitamin C, ranking first among vegetables. The content of vitamin B, carotene, and minerals such as calcium and iron is also relatively rich. Medical experts believe that chilies can relieve cold pain in the chest and abdomen, stop dysentery, kill and inhibit parasites in the stomach and abdomen, and control heart disease and coronary arteriosclerosis. They can also stimulate the oral mucosa, cause gastric peristalsis, promote saliva secretion, enhance appetite, and promote digestion.

Because spicy foods have functions such as sterilization, preservation, seasoning, nutrition, and dispelling cold, they have played a positive role in human disease prevention, treatment, gene improvement, and the promotion of human evolution. Therefore, adding a little chili to your daily recipes is of great benefit to your health.

Chilies are also a very stimulating food and are the favorite of many people. In particular, Sichuan people are famous for eating spicy food. Chilies not only stimulate our appetite with their spiciness, but also have great effects in warming the stomach and dispelling cold, and have a very good effect on treating indigestion.