A Detailed Guide to Management Techniques for Sweet Peppers During the Color-Changing Stage

The sweet pepper is a type of chili pepper, also known as the persimmon pepper, large pepper, or bell pepper. Its fruit is relatively large, with a mild or even nonexistent spicy flavor, so it is generally eaten as a vegetable rather than used as a seasoning. During cultivation, the color change of sweet peppers is very important, and the fruit shape is related to the sweet pepper variety. So how should sweet peppers be managed during the color-changing stage? Let's take a look.

1. Temperature

First, pay attention to temperature. Sweet peppers have relatively strict temperature requirements during the color-changing stage. During the day, the suitable temperature is 28-30 degrees. If the temperature is too high, it will make pigment formation difficult, resulting in uneven color change and poor brightness. During cultivation, the temperature inside the greenhouse should be lowered by strengthening ventilation, installing shade nets, and spraying cooling agents so that color change proceeds normally.

2. Light

During the color-changing stage of sweet peppers, light conditions are extremely important. Insufficient light will lead to uneven color change, but direct exposure to strong light is also unsuitable, because if the light is too strong and shines directly on the fruit, it can easily cause sunscald fruit. When light is too strong in summer, sweet peppers only need a certain amount of scattered light to meet their color-changing needs. Therefore, during color change, the leaves near the fruit should not be removed; an appropriate number of leaves should be retained to avoid sunscald fruit. In cases of insufficient light, the greenhouse film should be wiped frequently to increase its light transmittance, and old leaves and yellow leaves should be removed promptly to increase light penetration between plants so that color change is uniform.

3. Fertilizer and Water

Many vegetable growers believe during cultivation that watering will affect the color change of sweet peppers, so during the color-changing stage they reduce the number of waterings and the amount of water applied. This causes the plants, due to insufficient water, to be unable to supply nutrients in time, forcing the plants to change color faster, resulting in dull fruit color, thin fruit skin, and low yield. During the color-changing stage of sweet peppers, watering should be done reasonably according to plant growth and soil moisture conditions. Watering can increase field humidity and lower temperature. When watering, potassium fertilizer can be dissolved in the water and applied together with the irrigation, which can both increase yield and promote normal color change in sweet peppers.

4. Spraying Coloring Agent

During cultivation, many growers, in order to make the fruit color brighter and the quality better, generally spray a chemical during the color-changing stage to speed up the color change of sweet peppers. This chemical is a coloring agent. When spraying, be sure to pay attention to the concentration; it must not be too high, otherwise the excessive ethephon concentration in it will cause plant aging and premature senescence.

The above is an introduction to management techniques for sweet peppers during the color-changing stage. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.