Indoor Chillis

[sleepyowl]

Because mine keep getting eaten by slugs outside please could i have some tips on growing them inside

[Ratty]

I only ever grow chillis indoors because they prefer the warmth. I have no real tips other than keep them in a pot & don't water too frequently!

[hamster]

I looked into this a while back and yes you can keep them indoors as perennials. I was inspired by some friends of my bf's family who have a chilli plant in their dining room that was taller than me and covered in little red chillis! There are some varieties that apparently are better suited to being kept in this way, of which prairie fire is one (that is the one I got and it has produced some very mini chillis, some of which are now turning red). There was a really useful link about it, which I'll see if I can find for you.

[sleepyowl]

Thanks, I just hop the cats won't try & eat the chillis as the litter trays will not be pleasant

[Thomzo]

I've never tried to grow them outside. I didn't realise you could in the UK.

A largish pot helps but mine are in pots between 3 and 6 inch diameter. They still fruit well. Don't let them sit in water and they like lots of warmth and sun. A south-facing window sill or conservatory suits them fine.

My cats aren't at all interested in mine so I guess the smell probably puts them off.

Zoe

[Cheezy]

I start mine off in a heated propagator around Feb. Move the seedlings into the mini green house, pot them on start leaving them out side from the end of May, bring them into cold frames/mini green house in poor weather, Currently enjoying the rain
They're all in fruit. I keep mine in pots but more hardy varieties (like Hungarian hot wax) can be grown direct in soil.

Mine are in pots because, I'll put some into the green house to finish fruiting from November, the ones that have finished fruiting I'll bring inside (the office window has loads, and in the kitchen), usually with feeding these will flower again around the end of December and will friut with chillies ready in March, so you can have chillies all year round.

Only thing is I find that they attract loads of pests which have no preditors inside , so you need to keep an eye on them when you bring them in.

[QuizMaster]

My window ledges are full of "ring of fire".
I started them in seed trays in January. Now some of them are over 3 feet tall, though the smaller ones have a heavier crop.
Living where we are, we could never put them outside. Even in mid-July a blast of north wind would do for them.
This year they are disease-free. Last year we had aphids and it was horrible. Eggs, larvae and flies everywhere, and I mean everywhere. Every flower, every leaf, every fruit was covered.
I blame shop-bought basil. This year no other plants are allowed into the house (apart from the old faithful aloe vera, which is a whole other story).
I've never tried keeping them over winter. I'll try it with one plant this year to see what happens. Do they keep getting bigger? How big to they get eventually?

[Cheezy]

depends on the variety. they do get a bit bigger, but tend to branch more. When you bring them in it's a good idea to repot in to a bigger pot , that'll give them th eboost they need to produce more flowers and growth. Also worth a general sea weed fertiliser feed to encourage some new growth.

My caynne get too big for the office window

[sleepyowl]

Thanks for the replies they have been most helpful