Nice stuff, Esox (or should I call you pike man?) I'm in zone 5 (central CT) and we don't get soil and air temps warm enough to set out peppers until about Memorial day. Some folks set them out "after danger of frost", but I can tell you that peppers and tomatoes do not like cold (or wet) feet, and will have problems if nighttime temps drop below 50 for more than 1-2 nights in a row. My point is that you've got at least 8 weeks before you should set them out, so you'd better pot them up. I start my seeds on April 1 (March 15 for the slow germinating varieties like Bhut Jolokia), and pot them up into 4 inch rounds. By Memorial Day, they are just beginning to show roots at the bottom of the pot. Your plants look like mine do about 2-3 weeks before planting in the ground. You might end up needing a 5 or 6 inch pot by the time you're ready to set out IMO.

I use a window and 16 hrs. of supplemental light . These plants are 6 weeks from planting the seed. Ive used a greenhouse in lots of past years but this works better. Temp. between 75 and 80 and no aphids . Sun through a window on its own is not enough bot with supplemental light it works like a charm. Heating a greenhouse can be your biggest expense. Had one 36 by 96 and it cost $130 a week and the aphids were a constant battle. I have more seed then I know what to do with check my list and send me an email. A window sill with supplemental light is the way to go unless your doing hundreds of plants. I also use a Bloom fertilizer half strength once a week to promote roots opposed to leaves. I think it makes for a stronger plant

Thanks for the comment romy6. I hope it is fine. I am just so looking forward to growing some of these this year. I still have about 12 weeks before they can go outside on a permanent basis so it is going to be a long spring. I am thinking I will have to repot them before they go outside. I started two plants on January 11th. One of those is in the picture. I also have a couple more that I started a couple weeks later along with two or three specimens of other Hot Pepper varieties. I am up here in S. Central Wisconsin and don't have the luxury of a long growing season so I wanted to get them started early.

Locate flowers on one parent pepper plant that are nearly ready to bloom. They are easily distinguished by their unfurled sepals, or green outer petals, which reveal the flowerâÂÂs inner petals. Use small scissors and latex gloves to cut away any bloomed flowers surrounding the unbloomed flowers, as they could pollinate them. Cut the bloomed flowers at least 1/4 inch down the stem leaving only the unbloomed flowers. Wash the scissors with rubbing alcohol and put on a new pair of latex gloves before proceeding. 2 Peel away the flowerâÂÂs unbloomed inner petals with tweezers to reveal the interior of the blossom. You will see several stamens, the male organs of the flower. Use the small scissors to clip away the stamens, leaving only the pistil in the center of the flower. Wrap a twist tie around the stem of the emasculated flower to mark it and repeat with as many others as you would like. Wash the scissors and tweezers with rubbing alcohol and change into a new pair of latex gloves before proceeding. 3 Repeat the process of emasculation on the second pepper plant with at least one flower. Do not discard the removed stamens. Slice up the side of one stamen with a dissecting needle and use its tip to scoop out the pollen from inside. Apply the pollen to the top of the exposed pistil, known as a stigma, on one of the other parent pepper plantâÂÂs flowers. Repeat with the remaining harvested stamens and exposed pistils. 4 Watch the pollinated flowers. Within three to four days, the ovary, located below the pistil, will begin to swell. This is a sign of successful pollination. The resulting fruit and subsequent seeds are the crossbred pepper species. If the ovaries do not swell, the pollination was not successful. The most common cause of unsuccessful pollination is damage to the pistil during emasculation.