From seeds....

[chadspad]

I have planted chillis, peppers and tomatoes from seed. The plant are still only very small and in pots rather than in the ground yet. I am harvesting chillis and tomatoes from other plants that I bought from shops and wondering whether the ones from seed are actually gonna have time to get to be big to fruit. Are everyone elses chillis etc still very small? When do they have up to to fruit?

[the.fee.fairy]

mine are small too, but i#ve never grown them before, so i don't really know how long it takes

[chadspad]

Im sure I went by when the packet said to sow them but having seen that these others are producing fruit its made me doubt whether the little ones will have time to do their thing or not. Dont want to go and buy some more big ones if these will still be OK.

[Cheezy]

Mine are definitely a bit behind this year. Due to the cold and lack of sun on the NE. I've brought a couple of my Scotch Bonnets to work to see if that helps (my green house is unheated.).

But don't worry if they're late, just bring them in before the first frost and sit them on a south facing window sill. Last years Cayenne had friut in January, I'm just taking the last off now from the second flush this year, and it's just started to flower again God bless it!.

[red]

my chili and toms are grown from seed and big

I did have trouble with one lot of calabrese.. they got stuck or whatever the technical name is.. they are still alive just never got bigger.. i sowed some more and they are now huge and out in the veg patch... do you think your seedlings got 'stuck'?

[the.fee.fairy]

Mine seemed stuck for a while - they were stuck on the first leaf stage for ages. Then the slugs got a few.

The ones that are left are about 3" tall with some true leaves, so i think they're just taking their time.

[Thurston Garden]

Invariably, toms etc that are sold commercially are brought on very early in heated greenhouses. I considered selling my surplus tom plants, but they were only half the size of the garden centre ones, so I thought it a waste of time. A neighbour with 2 big glasshouses that are heated, sows his toms in early December!! and is picking them in early May!!

I still have 30 toms to plant out - tomorrow actually. The ones planted out two weeks ago are just setting fruit on the 1st truss and the second truss is beginning to form. The remaining 30 seemed to be a bit behind and are only now flowering on truss 1.

Last year I lost nearly all my toms in January in a frost (the only bloody one, on the only night I was not at home ). I planted more in Mid feb - the second plantings overtook the surviving Jan ones but all fruited well.

Nature has fickle ways. Odds on your wee toms (and chillies too for that matter) will catch up as soon as the sun shines. Just remember to give them some tlc!

[red]

Invariably, toms etc that are sold commercially are brought on very early in heated greenhouses. I considered selling my surplus tom plants, but they were only half the size of the garden centre ones, so I thought it a waste of time. !

yeh this annoys me - you go the garden centre and think.. oh damn, my plants are no good, theirs are alot bigger... but really they cheated.. and in cases of outdoor plants, they are too big to go out before the danger of frost has past. annoying!!

my toms are eh... 5ft tall? first trust set.. in the gh, the outdoor ones aare about 3ft, just flowering
my chilis are about 18" tall and thinking about flowering.. and have been attacked by aphids something terrible, and as i wont spray em - just squishing and knocking them off.. its a battle....

[Shirley]

last year's chilis were really slow - then they started to flower and fruit and haven't really stopped.....

This year some have grown really quickly and flowered.. not set fruit yet though..... the Peter peppers have grown particularly slowly - have any of yours grown Fee?