Digging up a chilli

[ninnyscrops]

Is it possible to dig up a chilli from the greenhouse, repot, cut back and overwinter in the house for next year?

Only asking as I've only had the one chilli plant produce fruit (all of 4) this year out of several I planted.

It was saved seed from the top one of this lot, that I hasten to add I bought from our local market not my own crops (in my dreams  ;D)

http://i158.photobucket.com/albums/t87/ninnyscrops/DSCF0355.jpg

Ninnyscrops

[ninnyscrops]

[Georgie]

Hi Nins

It's perfectly possible to do what you suggest but I wonder why you'd want to go the trouble with such a poor performing plant when so many Chilli varieties crop well in their first year from seed?

If you say what sort of Chillies you'd like to grow - size, colour, heat etc - I'm sure some of us Chilli nuts here will be able to send you some reliable seeds.   :)

G x

[ninnyscrops]

I did try growing some from bought seed but they seemed to take an age to get going and still haven't any fruit on them.  My thought here was to "steal a bit of a march" for next year and perhaps the plant would be stronger?

Ninnyscrops

[Barnowl]

I do see your point - my over wintered ones (all outside since May) have all produced red fruit unlike 90% of the others, even those in the GH.  But try starting indoors in Feb next year. You'll need heat to germinate them.

Afraid I don't know whether a chilli puts up with that sort of root disturbance. I imagine it's best done when the plant is as dormant as possible. If no other advice is forthcoming my best guess would be to transplant, trim the roots and immediately cut back to a stem of 6" to 12", at least clear of the woody part of the stem.

It looks like a cherry bomb: I've over wintered Ciliega Piccante/Satan's Kiss which is an Italian 'cherry'.  I cut it back round about September and it looked great at Christmas - little red balls, very seasonal.

As Georgie said, chilli nuts tend to be manic seed collectors. You can only grow so many plants and I have spare seeds of the Ciliega and other varieties I'd be happy to send to you rather than let them go to waste. PM me if you're interested. 

[weedgrower]

i did what your on about last year with a demon red and it worked wonders especially as the overwintered one produced far earlier than those grown from seed

[Sparkly]

I have done this really successfully with an apache plant. This year we had a frost in the greenhouse and the chilli plants were affected. I decided to save this plant:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SXMv2XhorB4/SJ_413ZlHVI/AAAAAAAAAKI/eYfvUcWWQJc/s1600-h/DSCF1478.jpg

I trimmed the plant down and left it on the windowsill for overwintering, but it is growing again already! It is praire fire and was very prolific this year. The fruits ripened to red and I probably got 200+ chillies on a small bush plant. They are hot too!

[caroline7758]

I dug an apache out of a grow-bag and put it in a pot. It is now in the kitchen and still fruiting like mad! As you say,Sparkly, they are hot! Don't think I'll bother sowing any new chillis next year, I've got plenty in the freezer.