Why peppers don’t set in a greenhouse: what to do to get a rich harvest
Some gardeners are faced with this problem: after planting, the pepper grows and develops well, even blooms, but, alas, does not bear fruit. The reason is the absence of ovaries on the bushes.
From the article you will learn why barren flowers appear and how to fix the problem quickly and competently.
Why don't peppers set in a greenhouse?
In closed ground, situations often arise when peppers do not form flowers, and even if they bloom, they do not set fruit.
To save the harvest, you need to understand the reasons. The formation of barren flowers is influenced by many factors - lack of potassium and boron, low and high temperatures, agricultural errors. These reasons need to be identified and eliminated.
Plants bloom, but there are no ovaries or fruits
If pepper grown in a greenhouse blooms on time and abundantly, but without the formation of an ovary, then the main reason is the sterility of the pollen.
Why there is a problem with the formation of ovaries:
- significant temperature changes between day and night;
- the greenhouse is not ventilated due to rainy or cold weather;
- low light level, short daylight hours;
- lack of potassium and boron in the greenhouse soil - if there is a lack of these elements, the ovary does not form or immediately falls off;
- excessively humid air in a greenhouse makes pollen moist and heavy - in this state it cannot spread throughout the flowers;
- too warm air in the greenhouse, above 28°C, leads to absolute sterility of flower pollen;
- absence of insects that pollinate flowers.
Possible reasons
Peppers will not bloom if an excessive amount of fertilizer with a high nitrogen content has been added to the soil. The use of manure is not recommended - peppers react poorly to it.
If a crop sheds its ovaries during flowering, this may be a consequence of night frosts. Watering with cold water provokes disease culture.
These and other reasons are discussed in detail.
Temperature too high or low
Pepper is a heat-loving crop. From the moment the seedlings appear and throughout the entire period of growing the bush, it is recommended to maintain the temperature within 23-28°C. A significant deviation from this temperature regime will negatively affect all stages of the pepper growing season, including the fruiting period. If the temperature drops below 15°C at night, the soil cools and the plant's root system stops working. This leads to a stop in nutrition, flowers and ovaries fall off, and fruits are not formed.
If an ovary appears on the bushes, which slowly dries out before it has time to form a fruit, this is the result of the influence of cold air. In greenhouse conditions, this problem is eliminated by watering the soil at night with warm water. The heated earth will give off heat until the morning. For the same purpose, containers with warm water are installed in greenhouses at night. As water evaporates, it gradually heats the air.
When the temperature rises above 30°C on hot days, the pepper begins to shed buds, flowers, stalks, and ovaries. This problem can be eliminated by regular watering and irrigating the pepper bushes.
Attention! The shedding of flowers and ovaries also occurs when there is a sharp difference in day and night air temperatures.
Errors in site selection
The choice of site on which the greenhouse will be installed is of great importance for the proper cultivation of pepper and harvest. The soil under the greenhouse should not be dense, heavy, or highly acidic.
Close occurrence of groundwater is not allowed. The presence of a nearby reservoir also contributes to constant waterlogging of the soil. Pepper loves moisture, but in moderation. Excess moisture has a bad effect on the development of the plant: its growth is inhibited, buds and ovaries are not formed.
When water stagnates, the root system is poorly supplied with oxygen. This affects the green mass of the bush: the leaves turn pale, turn yellow and fall off. The bush remains without buds and flowers. Bushes can develop root rot or other diseases that occur when grown in unfavorable conditions. Solving this problem when it arises is extremely difficult - it is better to choose a suitable place to install the greenhouse in advance.
Great importance is given to the illumination of the site. The greenhouse is not installed in the shade of tall trees, on the shady side of the house. The crop will not grow in dark areas.
The greenhouse is placed in well-lit areas, preferably in areas with a southern slope. With a slight tilt, uniform illumination of all bushes is achieved. Daylight hours should be at least 12 hours. Any deviation from the norm of illumination leads to the dropping of flowers and ovaries. Therefore, in prolonged cloudy weather, plants require additional lighting.
Nutritional deficiencies
Insufficient soil fertility leads to inadequate plant development.Before growing peppers, the soil in the greenhouse is enriched with organic fertilizers, wood ash, and vermicompost. At the initial stage of the growing season, nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers are applied to the soil. Can feed seedlings with Ammophos solution.
Before flowering begins, the soil is saturated with potassium and phosphorus fertilizers. Lack of phosphorus and potassium leads to weak or absent flowering. In the absence of phosphorus fertilizers, plants gradually shed flowers and ovaries. This problem will be eliminated by applying complex fertilizers - spraying with “Ideal”, “Surprise”, “Impulse+” preparations.
Attention! Pepper feeding carried out in the morning. The process of pollination and formation of the ovary occurs during the day. Evening feeding will not bring results, since the plants rest at night and all processes are suspended.
Before planting the buds, stop feeding with nitrogen fertilizers. Saturation of the soil with nitrogen promotes the active growth of green mass, but not flowers and fruits.
Use organic fertilizers with caution - bird droppings, cow manure, humus.
Poor pollination
Peppers form ovaries only after cross-pollination of flowers.
If the temperature drops significantly at night, no pollen is produced and pollination becomes impossible.
If on hot, dry days the air temperature rises to 30°C or higher, this leads to complete sterility of the pollen.
The process of pollination involves the transfer of pollen from the stamens to the pistil. To do this, it must be light and volatile. At the beginning of pepper flowering, irrigation is carried out carefully, since wet pollen loses its properties, becoming heavy.In this state, it becomes impossible to transfer it from one flower to another. The anther of the flower should develop in a dry, warm state.
Insects play a major role in pollination. To attract them to the greenhouse, the leaves of the plants are sprayed with sweet syrup, and honey plants are planted between the rows.
Pollination can be stimulated using the preparations “Bud” and “Ovary”. Flowering bushes are sprayed with stimulating drugs in the morning. However, the fruits obtained in this way differ in taste and appearance from fruits grown as a result of natural pollination.
Advice. You can get new full-fledged ovaries after removing the barren flowers.
What to do
To eliminate the causes of barren flowers and achieve full fruiting, you must follow the growing rules:
- observe the irrigation regime to prevent drying out and waterlogging of the soil;
- water at room temperature;
- when fertilizing, choose complex fertilizers with a low nitrogen content; the fertilizer must contain boron;
- if necessary, additionally illuminate the greenhouse room;
- Ventilate the greenhouse regularly - air flow helps move pollen.
- humidify the air in a timely manner in hot weather;
- If possible, adjust the temperature regime - when it gets cold at night, place containers with warm water;
- during the growing season, pinch the tops - the more side shoots there are, the more ovaries will appear;
- promptly pick off flowers on which the ovary has not formed;
- carry out artificial pollination - gently shake the bushes, use fans, transfer pollen with a brush from one flower to neighboring ones;
- observe agricultural cultivation techniques - watering, loosening, crop rotation.
If the pollination process was successful, this will be noticeable in the flower after 3-4 days. The petals of a pollinated flower bend back.
How to prevent problems
To ensure timely fruiting of peppers, preventive measures are taken in advance. They choose the right place to install the greenhouse, think through methods of ventilation, lighting, heating and irrigation.
High quality seeds are used for sowing. Before planting, they are disinfected, warmed, and treated with growth stimulants. Plant seedlings on timewithout overexposing it and not allowing it to bloom in pots.
Bushes are planted in pairs, at a short distance from each other. This is necessary for cross pollination.
Before flowering, apply fertilizers with potassium, boron, phosphorus and limit fertilizing with nitrogen.
Useful tips
Experienced gardeners use special techniques when growing peppers:
- In the northern regions, already in August they begin to cover the beds with pepper with light agrofibre. This allows you to accumulate heat during the day and release it to the plants at night.
- They make beds from west to east to better illuminate the bushes so that they do not create shadows for each other.
- Before the formation of the ovary, immunomodulators “Epin Extra” and “Zircon” are used to prepare the crop for possible adverse weather conditions.
- Spray the ovaries with a mixture of yeast and water. This is a good feeding and fruit growth stimulator.
- The fruits are pruned as soon as they reach the stage of technical maturity - they acquire the color corresponding to the variety. This serves as an impetus for the formation of new ovaries.
Conclusion
Pepper is considered a demanding crop.To get a harvest, you will have to make a lot of effort. By observing the recommended agrotechnical standards of temperature, humidity, watering and carrying out pollination measures, you can achieve abundant ovary and smooth ripening of fruits.