Pepper-tree hybrid "New Year's Octopus F1": reviews, cultivation and use of the crop

Pepper tree is a plant that combines healthy fruits with an unusual appearance. The culture is the result of domestic selection and is not only a fertile hybrid, but also a decorative decoration for a plot, balcony or greenhouse.

You will learn more about the unique hybrid Octopus New Year's F1, its distinctive features, cultivation and care features in this article.

What kind of pepper is this

Pepper-tree Octopus New Year's F1 is so named because during the process of growth it is capable of entwining itself with any support, like a sea mollusk.

Characteristics and description of the hybrid

The hybrid is medium-late, can grow to the size of a tree: within six months, with proper care, it reaches a height of 3 to 5 m. Pepper ripens within 120-130 days from the moment the first shoots appear.

The height of the plant requires that it have something to rest on: this can be a decorative trellis or other support. She will not allow the giant to break under the weight of its own fruits and branches.

Distinctive features

Pepper tree is the result of the work of Russian breeders. Crossing different varieties peppers made it possible to create a crop with an unusual appearance, while maintaining high productivity. However, you will not be able to collect seeds to grow the plant yourself, since it is a hybrid. Seed material will have to be purchased each time.

Reference! The hybrid is grown at home, if there is enough space, or in the garden.In greenhouse conditions, pepper will give maximum growth and yield, and in open ground it will grow fully only in warm climates.

Fruit characteristics and yield

The hybrid produces fruits of an unusual shape: they look like bells. Their number is large: from one plant, with proper care, you can remove from 300 to 500 peppers. The fruits are small - about 25 g with a length of 3-4 cm.

The fruits change from green to bright red within a week. Unripe peppers sweet, and in the process of ripening they acquire, along with blush, a sharpness and aroma.

Reference! The more light the tree pepper has, the hotter the fruits will be.

The flesh of the peppers is dense, with medium pungency. The seeds inside the fruit are more pungent.

The fruits are widely used in cooking:

• fresh - soups, meat dishes, salads, sauces;
• pickling entirely together with the stalks;
• use as a component of blanks;
• freezing.

Preparation for cultivation

Before you start planting seedlings, you need to purchase seeds, prepare soil and containers.

Purchased seeds that do not need dressing are germinated. To do this, they are wrapped in a damp cloth, which is soaked in an aqueous solution of wood ash: for 1 liter of hot water, 2 tbsp. l. ash (the liquid is infused for a couple of days). Then the seeds are placed in a warm place.

Attention! The soaking procedure is optional, but recommended - this will help the seeds germinate faster.

Next, prepare the soil. There are two ways - buy a ready-made product or make the soil yourself.

To prepare it yourself, take 1 bucket of garden soil and mix it with humus (1 bucket), sand (1/3 bucket) and ash (0.5 l).

The prepared soil is disinfected:

• keep in the oven for up to 40 minutes, setting the temperature to 80-90 °C;
• pour boiling water over;
• pour over a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate;
• keep in a steam bath for about 40 minutes.

Important! After disinfection, the soil is given 2 weeks to become populated with beneficial microorganisms.

Then the soil is placed in containers (pots, plastic glasses) and moistened before planting the seeds.

How to grow seedlings

Proper planting of seeds and proper care for them is the key to the formation of a strong, hardy plant.

Reference! Pepper does not tolerate transplantation well, so it is advisable to do without picking so as not to injure the delicate root system of the plant.

Planting pepper

The hybrid is planted from late February to early March.. The seeds are placed in the holes to a depth of no more than 1 cm, covering them with earth. The container with planted seeds is covered with film or glass. In this form, future peppers are kept at a temperature of 25 to 30 ° C until shoots appear. Seedlings require periodic watering and fertilizing.

If the peppers were planted in the same container, make a pick - but only after the seedlings have formed a pair of true leaves.

2 weeks before planting in the soil, seedlings begin to harden. First, a window is opened in the room, and then the seedlings are taken out into the air for 40 minutes to 6-8 hours towards the end of the period.

Important! During “hardening”, seedlings must be protected from direct exposure to the sun.

Before planting the peppers, they are left outside overnight. If they are going to grow in a greenhouse, then they are transplanted in May. If in open ground, then the procedure is carried out in late May - early June.

When planting, holes are made in the ground at a distance of 40 cm from each other. Then fertilizers are added to them: 1 tbsp. l. wood ash, the same amount of superphosphate and humus.Hybrids are planted in such a “nutrient mixture” after watering them.

Further care

After the pepper is planted in the ground, it requires suitable care: heat, fertilizing, light. For a good harvest, the plant needs watering, as well as loosening and shaping the crown.

The hybrid requires regular watering with warm water: once every three days, right to the root. Chicken manure (2 times per season) and spraying wood ash (up to 4 times) are used as fertilizers for the future giant.

Important! The pepper tree should not be overfed with fertilizers containing nitrogen - the plant may stop bearing fruit.

After watering, the soil between the rows is loosened, doing this carefully so as not to damage the roots. To carry out the procedure less frequently and retain moisture, the soil is mulched: covered with humus, peat, straw.

A necessary component of care is tying the pepper tree to any support so that it does not fall under its own weight. Additionally, you need to form a crown, cutting off the stepsons and extra leaves before the first fork. If grown indoors, after the end of the period of growth and development, the plant is cut back by about a third.

Features of cultivation and possible difficulties

The hybrid has a number of features that should be taken into account:

1. Photophilousness. If there is not enough light in the apartment, build artificial lighting. Otherwise, the green mass of the plant will noticeably decrease.
2. Temperature requirements. The octopus prefers temperatures in the range from 20 to 25 °C.
3. Mandatory fertilizing until fruit set. These include mineral and organic fertilizers, ash.
4. Regular watering especially if the air in the room where the pepper is grown is dry. In hot weather, water with warm, settled water every day; in winter, this is done less often.After watering, lightly loosen the soil.
5. Spray the plant periodically. This is done from a distance of 15 cm.
6. After living in a room for 2 years, pepper-tree It is advisable to transplant into the ground.

Typical diseases and pests

Octopus New Year F1 is resistant to diseases. However, if you make mistakes in care, pests can destroy the crop.

Aphids are among the most dangerous pests. The insect lives on the bottom of the leaves, sucking the juices from the pepper and significantly slowing down its growth and development.

To cope with aphids, seedlings are sprayed with a mixture of soap solution, a decoction of tobacco smoke and ground black pepper. The last component is brewed at the rate of 1 tbsp. l. per 1 liter of water, boiled for 10 minutes. If the traditional method does not help, use chemicals - for example, the Strela insecticide.

Another pest of the pepper tree is the spider mite, which likes to settle on the underside of the leaves. This arachnid sucks the life force out of the plant, leading to its death. “Nitrophen” helps in the fight against ticks, as well as acaricides:

• “Karbofos” is time-tested and acts almost instantly;
• "Aktellik" is effective and easy to use, but dangerous for bees;
• “Fufanon” is modern and non-toxic if used in the proportion specified in the instructions.

Advantages and disadvantages

Octopus New Year's F1 has a number of advantages that make it especially attractive to gardeners:

• attractive appearance - bright, numerous fruits;
• variability of landing sites - indoors, open and closed ground;
• resistance to most diseases and pests.

There are also disadvantages:

• the inability to grow seeds yourself, since it is a hybrid;
• the need to tie up plants;
• an acute reaction to insufficient lighting in the room - a decrease in yield and decorativeness.

Reviews

We bring to your attention reviews from those who have already planted this hybrid at home or on the site.

Victor, Belgorod region: “I grew peppers in January in the window, and then transplanted them into the ground in mid-May. As a result, by the second year the tree grew to 3 meters in height! The peppers on it are a little spicy and like to be watered. A very beautiful plant!”

Alena, Yaroslavl: “I grew this hybrid from gift seeds on the balcony. As a result, many bright, beautiful peppers ripened! I was sure that it was impossible to eat such beauty. After I found out that it was edible, I decided to plant such bushes in the garden.”

Vera Anatolyevna, Cherepovets: “In the greenhouse, this pepper showed excellent results: a large, tall bush produced a lot of fruit. I dug it up along with the still green peppers in September and took it home in a bucket. Until December it delighted me with its beauty! The only negative is that it requires a lot of space.”

Conclusion

Benefit and beauty are the main advantages of this amazing hybrid. A lot of light, regular care and mandatory garter are the main requirements that this plant makes. And a lot of bright, fragrant fruits will be a worthy reward for your efforts and will diversify your table.