Pepper Plant Care with Pepper Joe's Live Seedlings

Congratulations on purchasing your live pepper plants from Pepper Joe's! You're probably thinking, now what?

If you're unsure about the next steps of pepper plant care, don't fret! We'll give you everything you need to know for your new pepper seedlings to thrive and have a fantastic growing season! Follow our instructional step-by-step guide listed below.

Unbox & Transplant the Pepper Seedlings

1. Unboxing Live Plants

Our live plants are safely shipped in our custom plant packaging. This packaging is designed to secure the live plant and the rock wool. Rock wool is a lightweight hydroponic growing substrate. It is a dense mass of fine, intertwined fibres. The density inside the rock wool is used to keep a protective layer around the seedling's roots for close-to-ideal levels of moisture and oxygen. It also keeps the roots sterile from pests, disease, and other variable seeds like weeds. When unboxing the live plant, do not remove the rock wool from the live plant. Doing this will potentially damage the immature roots and kill off your seedling before you ever place it in the soil!

2. Put in a One Gallon Container or Larger

Place the rock wool end of your live plant 2-3 inches into your favorite potting soil and give it a good water. It is important to water your plants after their long journey and keep an eye on the amount of moisture in the soil to ensure your seedling stays well-hydrated. Be careful not to overwater your plants. Overwatering is very harmful to pepper plants. For more information, check out our How Often to Water Pepper Plants blog.

3. Keep Pepper Plants Indoors for at Least 1 Week

Plants adjust to small, gradual changes in their environment better than sudden shifts, which is what the hardening off process is all about. Just as you get burned when you bare your untanned skin to the sun, leaves of plants started indoors will develop pale, sunburned patches if they are suddenly exposed to too much sun. The story has a happier ending when you introduce seedlings to the sun and sheltered breezes gradually, over a period of one to three weeks. Read more below on how to harden off your Pepper Joe's pepper plants to ensure they have the chance to adjust to their new environment.

Don't Forget to Harden Pepper Plants

Hardening off your pepper plants requires carefully transplanting the seedlings from inside to the outdoors. This is a slow, gradual process as plants adjust to small changes in their environment better than sudden shifts. You'll want to ensure your plan out the process ahead of time before you officially set your pepper seedlings outdoors.

WATCH: How to Harden Off & Transplant Pepper Plants in 6 Easy Steps

gardener pruning pepper plant care for pepper seedling

Think of it this way: just as you get burned when you bare your untanned skin to the sun, leaves of plants started indoors will develop pale, sunburned patches if they are suddenly exposed to too much sun. The story has a happier ending when you introduce seedlings to bright light and sheltered breezes gradually, over a period of one to three weeks.

Keep in mind that pepper seedlings don't tolerate cold weather too well. The soil environment should be perfect for your plants, reaching temperatures of at least 60 degrees, and all awareness of frost is done. The key is to not disturb the pepper plant's roots as they adjust to their new outdoor environment.

Routine Upkeep & Care

On average, our live pepper plants will start producing peppers in 60-90 days. While they're growing, each variety will undergo different changes in growth and production.

Feed your plants nutrients. Your plant needs essential nutrients to thrive and boast great yields of peppers. We have a great selection of fertilizers and plant health products to help give your seedlings the boost they need.
Look out for pests. Common pepper plant pests like aphids and spider mites look to wreak havoc on your newly-planted seedlings. Use a soapy water solution or stronger pesticide to keep pests, pathogens, and other invasive species at bay.

LEARN: Tips & Tricks on How to Get Rid of Pests

Prune your plant as needed. Giving your pepper plants a trim allows more sunlight to hit the plant and promotes areas of new growth such as where pepper pods form and develop.

WATCH: How to Prune Pepper Plants in 5 Easy Steps

You can learn more tips and tricks on how to care for your new pepper plant by visiting our Grow With Joe blog page today!

Live Pepper Plants from Pepper Joe's

rows of pepper seedlings care for pepper plants

Growing peppers from seed can become a tedious, time-consuming process. Live pepper plants from Pepper Joe's help you skip the seeds and get right to the fun of planting and caring for healthy established pepper plants. You can choose so many different options from super hot pepper plants to our rare and exotic plant varieties!

Each of our pepper plants has been hand-picked and cared for by our team of pepper-growing experts. Our team works hard to ensure you get a quick and safe delivery of your favorite pepper plants to your doorstep!

PLEASE NOTIFY US IMMEDIATELY IF YOUR PLANT ARRIVES DEAD OR IN POOR CONDITION. PICTURES ARE REQUIRED. WE CANNOT REFUND PLANTS IF THEY HAVE BEEN IN YOUR POSSESSION FOR MORE THAN 48 HOURS.