What Is the Price of Chili Seeds? A Detailed Guide to Growing Methods

Chili pepper, also known as lazi, lajiao, haijiao, etc., is an annual or limited-perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Capsicum in the Solanaceae family. It originated in the tropical regions of Central and South America, and is now widely cultivated around the world. In China, it is mainly distributed in Sichuan, Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Henan, Hebei and other places. Let's take a look at chili seed prices and growing methods below!

How much is a packet of chili seeds?

Note: There are many cultivated varieties of chili, and their seed prices vary by variety. When purchasing, be sure to look at the variety first (mainly its characteristics, yield, etc.) and then the price. Therefore, the prices above are for reference only, and the specific price is subject to the actual situation!

What varieties of chili are there?

1. Cherry pepper type: Leaves are medium-sized, round, ovate or elliptic; the fruit is small like a cherry, round or oblate, red, yellow or slightly purple, used for dried chili or ornamental purposes, such as Chengdu Kouzi pepper and Wuse pepper in Sichuan.

2. Cone pepper type: Similar to cherry pepper, the plant is short, but the fruit is conical or cylindrical and mostly grows upward, with a spicy taste, such as the Jixin pepper of Cangping, Guangdong.

3. Clustered pepper type: Leaves are narrow and long; the fruit grows in clusters and points upward, dark red in color, with thin flesh, very strong spiciness and high oil content, mostly grown as dried chili. It is late-maturing, heat-tolerant and strongly resistant to viruses, such as the Qixing pepper of Sichuan.

4. Long pepper type: The plant ranges from short to tall, with strong branching; leaves are relatively small or medium-sized; the fruit generally hangs down, is long-horn-shaped with a pointed tip and slightly curved, resembling a bull's horn, ram's horn or a line, such as the Dajiao pepper and Changsha Niujiao.

5. Sweet bell pepper type: The plant is medium-sized and sturdy, with weaker branching; leaves are thick, long-ovate or elliptic; the fruit is plump and the flesh is thick, such as the large bell pepper, large sweet pepper and small round pepper.

Chili Seedling Raising Techniques

1. Seed treatment: Chili seedlings are generally raised from the Spring Equinox to Qingming. Soak the seeds in 0.5% trisodium phosphate, 300-400 times potassium permanganate, or 1% thiourea for 20-30 minutes to kill pathogens on the seeds. After repeated rinsing, soak them in warm water at 25-30 degrees for 8-12 hours.

2. Sowing and seedling raising: After the chili seedbed is prepared, water it thoroughly, then spray with 3000 times Lüheng No. 1 for disinfection, then spread a thin layer of fine soil, evenly scatter the seeds onto the seedbed, cover with a 0.5-1 cm thick layer of fine soil, and finally cover with a small tunnel to retain moisture and increase temperature.

3. Seedling stage management: After sowing chili, seedlings can emerge in 6-7 days when the daytime temperature is 25-34.7 degrees and the soil temperature is around 20 degrees. After 70% of the seedlings have pushed through the soil, spread 0.5 cm of fine soil over the seedbed while there is no water on the leaf surface. The seedbed must have sufficient water supply, but the soil must not be too wet.

Chili Growing Methods

1. Land preparation and fertilization: Chili has a long growing period and a weak root system. Before transplanting, plow the soil 10-15 cm deep and apply 5000 kg of barnyard manure per mu, which can be mixed with 15-20 kg of superphosphate. Use short irrigation and short drainage ditches, with all ditches connected, so that the field does not accumulate water after rain.

2. Timely transplanting: Chili is best transplanted in furrows or on flat ground. At transplanting, cover with shallow soil, then gradually earth up to close the ridges. After transplanting, relying only on drought to harden the seedlings will damage the root system, so during the chili seedling stage, manage with light seedling hardening or none at all, and promote growth throughout.

3. Transplanting density: Chili has a compact plant type and is suitable for dense planting, which has great potential for increasing yield, especially for green peppers grown all the way into autumn. The usual density is 3000-4000 holes per mu, with a row spacing of 50-60 cm and a plant spacing of 25-30 cm, generally using 2 or 3 plants per hole.

4. Cultivation and weeding: After chili transplanting and survival, carry out one shallow cultivation in time. When the plants begin to grow, carry out one focused cultivation. Before the plants close the rows, cultivate once more. Cultivation should be combined with weeding and earthing up.

5. Reasonable fertilization: After chili transplanting, seize sunny days to apply a seedling-promoting fertilizer. After the first and second layers of fruit set, apply more fertilizer to promote fruit enlargement. After the fruit begins to be harvested, the soil requires even more sufficient fertilizer and water so that the plants can grow and bear fruit normally.

6. Drainage and irrigation: When irrigating chili, be sure to decide the irrigation time according to the weather forecast. The irrigation depth should not exceed three-quarters of the furrow, and it should be done at night or early morning, with rapid irrigation and rapid drainage.

7. Timely harvesting: Chili grown for fresh eating is mostly harvested as green fruit, though red fruit can also be harvested, while chili grown for drying must be harvested as red ripe fruit. Harvesting should be timely, otherwise it affects plant growth and fruiting.

Chili Pest and Disease Control

1. Damping-off

[Damage] Damping-off mostly occurs at the seedling stage. In the early stage of the disease, water-soaked lesions appear at the base of the stem, which then rot, causing the seedlings to fall over.

[Control] It can be controlled by water management and chemicals. In the early stage of the disease, spray with 58% metalaxyl · mancozeb 500 times solution or 72.2% propamocarb hydrochloride 600 times solution.

2. Phytophthora blight

[Damage] It harms stems, leaves and fruits. When the stem is infected, brown lesions appear on the diseased part in the early stage, and later the branch or the entire stem dies. When leaves are infected, water-soaked spots appear initially and later turn dark brown and soft-rot.

[Control] It can be controlled with 72% cymoxanil · mancozeb 500 times solution, or 64% hymexazol · mancozeb 600 times solution.

3. Bacterial wilt

[Damage] Bacterial wilt mostly occurs from full flowering to early fruiting. In the early stage of the disease, individual branches may wilt first, then it spreads to the whole plant. The entire plant wilts and dies, but the leaves do not fall off.

[Control] In the early stage of the disease, use 72% agricultural streptomycin 2000 times solution or 14% copper ammonia complex 300 times solution to drench the roots, promptly remove diseased plants from the field, and spread lime for disinfection.

4. Anthracnose

[Damage] Infected fruits produce grayish-brown lesions with concentric rings, on which dense small black dots form. When dry, the lesions shrink and are prone to cracking.

[Control] It can be controlled with 25% prochloraz 500-750 times solution or 70% thiophanate-methyl 800 times solution.

5. Viral disease

[Damage] In plants with viral disease, symptoms such as mosaic, deformity and clustering appear at the top, causing leaf drop, flower drop and fruit drop.

[Control] Disinfect the seeds before sowing, and promptly spray 20% moroxydine · copper acetate 400-600 times solution or 1.5% zhibingling 1000 times solution before the disease occurs or in its early stage.

6. Mites

[Damage] Mites prevent the young and tender parts of the plant from growing normally, twist and deform young stems, make affected leaves stiff and curl downward and shrink, and turn the leaf undersides and fruits brown, causing the fruit to lose commercial value.

[Control] Acaricides such as 99% paraffinic mineral oil (Lüying) 150-250 times solution, 24% spirodiclofen (Manwei) 4000-6000 times solution, or 20% amitraz (Manke) 1000 times solution can be used, once every 6-7 days for 2-3 consecutive sprays.

7. Thrips

[Damage] Adult and nymph thrips rasp and suck the sap of heart leaves, tender buds, floral organs and young fruits, causing growth points to shrink, tender leaves to twist, flowers to drop, young fruits to become deformed, and the epidermis to turn brown, seriously affecting plant growth and reducing fruit quality.

[Control] When there are 3-5 insects per plant, pesticide spraying is needed. Alternately use 3% acetamiprid 1500 times solution, 10% imidacloprid 1500 times solution, or 5% lufenuron (Meichu) 1000 times plus 25% thiamethoxam (Aketai) 2000 times and other agents for control.

8. Tobacco cutworm

[Damage] The tobacco cutworm is an omnivorous, voracious pest that mainly harms tender leaves and young fruits.

[Control] Alternately use Spodoptera litura nuclear polyhedrosis virus 1000 times solution, 10% chlorfenapyr (Chujin) 1200-1800 times solution, or 48% chlorpyrifos 1000 times solution, and spray in the afternoon or evening for control.