How to Grow Peppers in Florida
Peppers love Florida's warmth and, in frost-free areas, can crop for a year or more. Plant in the cooler shoulders of the year and they will reward you.
Peppers are a warm-season crop, but like tomatoes they struggle in peak summer heat and rain. Plant them for fall and again in late winter to spring. In South Florida a healthy pepper plant can survive the mild winter and keep producing well into a second year.
When to plant in Florida
| Region | Transplant out |
|---|---|
| North Florida | Feb–Mar (spring), Aug (fall) |
| Central Florida | Jan–Mar (spring), Aug–Sep (fall) |
| South Florida | Aug–Mar (cool dry season) |
Peppers are slow from seed, so start 8 weeks ahead or buy transplants. Check your region's window on the bell pepper and chili pepper pages.
Varieties for Florida
- Sweet/bell: 'California Wonder', 'Better Belle', 'Big Bertha', and thin-walled 'Cubanelle' which handles heat well.
- Hot: 'Jalapeño', 'Cayenne', and heat-loving 'Habanero'. The 'Datil' pepper is a St. Augustine, Florida specialty and grows beautifully here.
How to grow them
- Sun and soil: full sun and warm soil (above 65°F). Enrich sandy beds with compost.
- Water: even moisture; mulch to keep roots cool and steady. Uneven water causes blossom-end rot, same as tomatoes.
- Feed: light, regular feeding. Excess nitrogen delays fruit.
- Support: stake heavy-bearing plants so branches do not snap.
Pests and problems
Watch for pepper weevil (the main Florida pepper pest, which bores into buds and pods), plus aphids, whitefly and hornworms. Bacterial leaf spot and root-knot nematodes are the common soil and foliage problems. Remove and bin weevil-infested fruit, rotate beds, and choose resistant stock.
Harvest
Bells are ready green at 70–80 days and sweeten as they turn red, yellow or orange with another week or two on the plant. Hot peppers develop full heat as they ripen to full color. Pick regularly to keep plants producing.
Common questions
Will peppers survive the winter in Florida?
In South and warm Central Florida, yes. Protect from the occasional frost and they often crop into a second year. In North Florida treat them as an annual.
Source: UF/IFAS Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide (SP 103), Peppers; UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions.
When to plant in your region
Pick your region to see exactly when to plant peppers where you garden.
See also: Peppers in the plant library →
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