Cultivation Techniques and Management Methods for Facing-Heaven Chilies

The facing-heaven chili (Capsicum annuum) belongs to the Solanaceae family, genus Capsicum, and is a variety of hot pepper. It is a perennial herbaceous plant, often grown as an annual crop. Also known as three-cherry pepper or sky-eagle pepper. The facing-heaven chili fruit is fine in texture and thick in flesh. It has a strong spicy flavor and contains capsaicin oil, capsaicin, capsicine, red pigment and various other active ingredients; its carotene and vitamin content ranks first among vegetables. Not only is it nutritionally rich as a food seasoning, it also has multiple effects such as stimulating nerves, increasing appetite, aiding digestion and preventing digestive tract diseases, and it also has extremely high ornamental value.

Cultivation techniques for facing-heaven chilies:

1. Seed treatment

Before raising seedlings, sun-dry the seeds for 2-3 days to improve the germination rate and germination vigor. Then place the seeds in 55°C warm water, stirring constantly; when the water temperature drops to 30°C, stop stirring, add water and soak for 7-10 hours, then remove, wash off the mucilage, drain the water and set aside for sowing.

2. Sowing and seedling raising

Generally, seedlings are raised in sunny cold frames or in the open field in mid-to-late March, to extend the harvest period and increase yield. Before sowing, water the seedbed thoroughly; sow 6-8 grams per square meter, cover with 2 cm of soil after sowing, then scatter poisoned bait to control underground pests, and finally cover the seedbed surface with plastic film to increase temperature and retain moisture. After the seedlings emerge uniformly, remove the plastic film, and transplant when the seedlings are 45-60 days old.

Land preparation and fertilization: Choose a sandy loam plot with high, dry terrain that can be both irrigated and drained for planting. During land preparation, apply 5000 kg of high-quality farmyard manure and 30 kg of superphosphate per mu. If farmyard manure is insufficient, replace it with a three-element compound fertilizer.

3. Transplanting

Generally transplant from mid-to-late April to early May; wheat-stubble peppers are transplanted after the wheat harvest. Transplant with a row spacing of 40-50 cm and a plant spacing of 20-30 cm, planting two plants per hole.

Facing-heaven chilies like moisture but fear waterlogging, so it is best to choose loam, sandy loam or clay loam that retains fertilizer and is loose and airy. The soil pH value should be 6.5-8. Per mu, apply 3-5 cubic meters of fully decomposed high-quality farmyard manure, or 50-80 kg of a nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium three-element (each containing 16%) compound fertilizer, which can be adjusted appropriately according to soil fertility. To facilitate irrigation and drainage, high-ridge cultivation should be adopted, with a ridge width of 0.6-1 m (planting 2-3 rows), a ditch width of 0.2 m between ridges, and a vertical ridge height of 0.2 m; in this way, water can be drained promptly during heavy rain, and during drought only the ditches are watered, keeping the ridge surface loose and airy, which benefits seedling growth and development. For ventilation and light penetration, the ridges should run north-south. Before transplanting, water the seedbed thoroughly once to promote new root growth in the seedlings and make it easier to lift them. The lifted seedlings should be lifted, planted and watered with the settling water immediately; to promote early and rapid growth of the seedlings, quick-acting chemical fertilizer can be added to the settling water, using 4 kg of urea and 2 kg of monopotassium phosphate per mu, dissolved in 1500 kg of water.

4. Management

Water thoroughly at transplanting; especially after the wheat harvest when temperatures are high, water thoroughly, then water lightly a few days later to help the seedlings recover. From seedling recovery to the flowering and fruit-setting stage, control water appropriately to raise soil temperature, promote root development and prevent excessive vegetative growth. After flowering and fruit setting, increase the amount of watering. During the full fruiting period, apply urea once every half month. Apply 10-15 kg per mu each time to promote high yield and prevent premature aging. In the middle and late growth stages, spray 0.3% monopotassium phosphate solution twice to prevent disease and increase yield. During the growth period, earth up around the roots several times to prevent waterlogging and lodging. Bright red, glossy peppers can be picked in several rounds, or all at once.

5. Pest and disease control

The main diseases are viral disease and anthracnose. Viral disease is spread by aphids, so aphids must be controlled regularly starting from the seedling stage. In the early stage of viral disease, choose potassium permanganate, naphthalene acetic acid, plant disease spirit, virus A or little-leaf enemy for spray control. For anthracnose, choose 50% thiophanate-methyl, chlorothalonil or fosetyl-aluminum for control. The main pests are cotton bollworm and tobacco budworm; choose phoxim or pyrethroid insecticides for control to ensure there are no wormholes on the red peppers.

(1) Diseases. The diseases harming facing-heaven chilies include damping-off, root rot, viral disease and phytophthora blight, which should be prevented and controlled early, adhering to the principle that prevention is more important than cure. July to August is the period when phytophthora blight occurs frequently; spray once every 7-8 days, and carbendazim or chlorothalonil can be chosen for spraying.

(2) Insect pests. The main ones are cotton bollworm, tobacco budworm and corn borer, etc., which can be sprayed with 3000-fold beta-cypermethrin solution or 5000-fold Kaiser emulsifiable concentrate, etc. Usually check frequently and carefully, and control when there are few and small pests. In dry weather, pay attention to controlling red spider mites and aphids, etc.