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? about saving pure pepper seed

14 years ago

Ok, I have never tried saving pepper seeds before, but I have a few packs of seed here that are getting kind of old and I really ought to grow them out and save some fresh seeds.

Read plenty of warnings that peppers will cross so you have to cover them to keep pollinators out. If they're covered, they'll self-pollinate and stay pure. Have I got this right so far?

I'm thinking of using a floating row cover, the kind that's usually used to keep insect pests out. That seems easier than bagging individual blossoms. Would that work?

If that would work, here's weirder question: would it be ok for me to put more than one variety of pepper under there? Like I said, I've got a few varieties I'd like to save, and it occured to me that if all I have to do is keep out insects and they'll self-pollinate, then why not put them all together under one cover? Or would they somehow be able to cross-pollinate each other under there? If so, I can separate them out, but throwing one cover over the whole thing seems like it would be easier.

Thanks for any advice.

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Comment (1)

spiced_ham
14 years ago
Floating row covers might work, but how "air tight" are they? If one bee gets in your plants are screwed. Buying tulle netting by the yard (about $1) and cutting large sections off make good sized bags for individual plants, which is much easier than trying to bag single blossoms or small branches. The whole plant does not have to be bagged for very long (just until some fruits set) and then you can move the bag to a different variety.
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