Chilli Plants Nutrients
Feeding nutrient solutions to your Chilli Plants that are being grown in soil in pots or the ground is really easy to do
Chilli Focus is designed by Growth Technology and is singularly the best nutrient feed for soil growing of chilli plants
Packed with all the right chemicals manufactured in the right way so the plant can use the mineral salt perfectly
Use this product as and when required
SO when do you add Nutrients? This is based on soil growing
If you have germinated from seed or bought a seedling then the soil you use is very important
It is best to get fresh compost from your local nursery as this is full of nutrients that the plant will need to grow - plus more often than not they have moisture release systems built into the compost
All this will assist with growing your plant
Before you re-pot there shouldn’t be any need to add nutrients - just water as described previously
If you do wish to add nutrients in the water mix then a low mix type is ideal
You find in many hydroponic shops more than nurseries a great selection of nutrients that have a low N-P-K
What is N-P-K?
N-P-K Stands for
N - Nitrogen: promotes the growth of leaves and vegetation
P - Phosphorous: promotes root growth
K - Potassium: promotes flower and fruit growth
Chilli Focus has an N-P-K rating of
N = 2.98
P = 0.4
K = 3.6
If you look at most tomato nutrient bottles their NPK rating is around 4-4-12 which is vastly different
All of these are in my opinion too strong for the plant to withstand in its early days of life
I prefer to provide them a more balanced 2-1-2 solution - often weaker to start with and building up with each feeding
For example, if instructions say 10ml per litre than I use 2-3ml per litre in the first feed building up to 10ml per litre after a few weeks worth of watering’s
As this solution has a larger concentration of Phosphorous there is improved root matter compared to just using the soil without overloading the plant with nutrients which will damage the growing foliage
In any hydroponic shop you will find a wealth of experience on using nutrients and what they do
Once you start Re-Potting
Once your plant has grown and requires re-potting which you do then I advise you start adding some nutrients at this stage - especially chilli focus
Along with the NPK ratios there is a whole list of other nutrients that are used and the way these individual nutrients are created are important to the growth of the plant and ultimately the harvest you get
Chilli Focus is superb at providing all the nutrients the plants need in one bottle
Once you start to understand what does what and how it all works then you start to use different nutrients to achieve the results
However to begin with following the water and nutrient guide will allow provide a great environment for your plant to grow in
Washing away Nutrient Salts
Once the flowering period starts and they are starting to open then it is my advice to pick a really sunny warm day and only using prepared water - wash the top of the soil with it
This will help to wash any build up of nutrient salts
These are the salts that build up in the soil and pot and can start to cause nutrient lock out and root rot
By putting water at the top it will trickle through the soil and disturb all those salts which will allow the plant to reuse them and remove any chance of any nutrient damage to the roots
By doing this on a warm day the water at the top of the soil will dry off and will not cause any insect to infest
I would advise you do this on a regular basis - approx once a month
Then revert back to your normal feeding pattern from the bottom with your normal solution
How often do I feed?
This is dictated to you by the amount of sun and growth that is occurring and judging what is happening will allow to apply the right amount feed at the right time so you don’t get an excessive build up of nutrients in the soil
If you have noticed a long bright sunny period, blue skies and warm days then the plant will have plenty of energy stored up and as such will use more nutrients than it would do in during days of cloudy and cooler temperatures
If you follow my advice of often and less is better reduce the normal amount of watering and maybe not feed the plant at all during these cloudy days, but as the weather turns add more nutrients feedings
At least once a week you should just add water though as this will again assist in making sure the plant doesn’t have a build up of salts in the soil
Flushing
When you are about ready to take the pods off the plant and complete your harvest it is advised you provide a few watering’s of only water
This will allow the plant to use up all the nutrients it has in its veins and replace with just water
By doing this you maximise the flavour the pods have to offer you without any slight chemical plant taste that you can get
Over Watering and Feeding Can Cause a Nutrient Salt Build Up
If you over watering your plant whether you are watering from the top or the bottom, it can cause a Nutrient Salt Build Up
Nutrient feed is supplied mostly in Liquid Form, however the chemicals it contains are manufactured from a Salt Form dissolved in liquid
So when it dries out the Chemical is left behind in its salt form
As you can see in the picture this brings about a white crusty top to the soil
As you can also see the top soil in quite wet at the top
When the nutrient feed is left in salt form it will do damage to the plant as the roots react to the salt molecules and will cause nutrient lock out which means the plant cannot take up new nutrients and therefore limit growth
It can also poison the plants roots and cause it to die
To fix this problem, remove the plant from the pot, with luke warm water wash the soil away, then re-wash the roots to ensure they are clean and place in a new pot of fresh compost
To stop this happening in the future, water from the bottom and hold back on the number of feed watering's, so the plant can absorb all it needs before the next feed, which will not allow a nutrient build up again
It is always better to be on the side of caution as you can always add but never take away