I’ve heard it said that there are two types of pepper growers: those who have lost plants, heavy with fruit, in a gusty thunderstorm, and those who will.
Don’t gamble on the security of your crop – the safest strategy is to support your pepper plants with stakes or cages. Staking is a standard procedure with commercially-grown peppers, because staking increases yields of high quality fruits. Staking also helps make better use of space while allowing easier access to plants. Fewer fruits are lost to broken limbs, or to various rots and bugs found in peppers that come into contact with soil or mulch. Staked peppers stay productive for a longer time because fewer branches are lost to breakage, and you don’t have to worry every time the wind starts to blow.
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Single stakes provide ample support for ‘Sweet Banana’ peppers
Staking Pepper Plants
Different types of peppers vary in their growth habits, which may be stiffly upright, big and bushy, low and spreading, or somewhere in between. Most garden peppers classified as Capsicum annuum grow into upright plants, while C. chinense and C. baccatum peppers, grown for intense flavor, tend to be bushier.
You can get a good idea of how any pepper wants to grow by the time it starts making its second set of fruits, which is also the best time to install stakes and cages. Until then, pepper seedlings exposed to wind benefit by developing a tough main stem.
Do install stakes or cages before the second set of fruits gains size, because these are the ones that will make the plant top heavy and prone to falling over.
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Tomato cages support large-fruited ‘Lipstick’ peppers. In the rear, upright ‘Jalapenos’ are tied to stakes
Growing Peppers in Tomato Cages
Pepper varieties that produce large-fruited bells or big elongated peppers tend to be branching plants that grow well in tomato cages. While short two- and three-ring cages are too small for all but the most dwarf tomatoes, they are ideal for peppers.
Try to match the size of your tomato cages with the peppers you are growing. Thrifty cayennes are happy in small, lightweight cages, while big, main season peppers need tomato cages made with heavy-gauge wire.
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A ‘Buena Mulata’ cayenne pepper is well matched to a lightweight tomato cage
Some gardeners take a different approach by planting three or four peppers in a circle around the outside of a tomato cage. The main stems are tied to the cage as they grow, and the inside of the cage serves as a depository for compost, and trickle irrigation from jugs.
In wind-prone areas, it’s a good idea to add an upright stake when growing peppers in tomato cages. Last year a friend conducted an accidental experiment by growing some peppers in staked cages, some in regular cages, and a few with no support. After an especially violent thunderstorm, the staked cages stood firm, the regular cages needed some fixing, and the unstaked plants were a total loss.
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The thin, spreading branches of variegated ‘Fish’ pepper are supported with elastic strung between three stakes
Best Ways to Tie Pepper Plants to Supports
Peppers are brittle plants by nature, so they benefit from a support system that allows for some movement and is a bit of a loose fit. Jute twine is a good choice for tying up peppers because it is compostable when snipped into pieces at the end of the season. Fabric strips cut from old tee shirts make great ties because they stretch without tearing. Thin elastic woven between stakes can provide similar benefits to peppers with bushy growth habits.
Avoid attaching pepper branches to support structures using tight wire or plastic clips that might not allow for growth and movement. It’s better to keep ties somewhat loose, so that the peppers are leaning against their support rather than being restricted by it.
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As with tomatoes, individual pepper branches may need tying up when they become heavy with ripening fruits
Staking peppers is not a once-and-done deal, because plants or individual branches may need additional support when they load up with fruit. Ripeness is worth waiting for, because fully ripe red peppers taste great and have twice as much vitamin C and 11 times more beta carotene compared to green peppers.
Your pepper plants may surprise you, too. I grow at least one new-to-me pepper every year, and they sometimes grow much larger – or smaller – than the catalogs suggest. The second time you grow a certain variety, you will have a much better idea of what type of support it needs and will be in a better position to deliver the goods.
