Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Bell pepper bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called sweet pepper, capsicum, paprika pepper (Capsicum annuum).

About Bell pepper

Capsicum annuum · also called sweet pepper, capsicum · edible

Bell pepper is a sweet non-pungent capsicum grown for blocky thick-walled fruit that ripens green, yellow, orange, or red. Heat-loving and slow to mature — start indoors early. Foliage and stems toxic to pets in quantity.

A sweet, capsaicin-free cultivar of Capsicum annuum; the species was domesticated in Mexico (central-east Mesoamerica) roughly 6,000 years ago and is the parent of bell, jalapeno, cayenne, and tabasco types.

Plant type: edible

Watch for — Flowers drop: Temperature too low (<18°C) or too high (>32°C).

Sources: ask.ifas.ufl.edu, hgic.clemson.edu, en.wikipedia.org

The reasons bell pepper isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming bell pepper traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
Heat or cold stress at flowering, or poor pollination, so flowers form but drop without setting.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding bell pepper a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get bell pepper to flower

Maximise sun. Give bell pepper the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Help it set. Keep moisture steady, avoid temperature extremes at flowering, and encourage pollinators (or hand-pollinate) so flowers turn into fruit.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for bell pepper and get the feeding right with the bell pepper fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Bell pepper flowers through its warm growing season and, with good pollination, follows each flush of flowers with the crop — expect a steady run rather than one burst.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Keep feeding and watering steadily so flowering and fruiting continue; remove tired or diseased growth to keep energy going into new flowers.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full bell pepper care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Bell pepper blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my bell pepper flower?

Bell pepper flowers (and then fruits) on the current season's growth — it needs full sun, warmth, steady moisture and a switch to a lower-nitrogen, higher-potassium feed once it starts to flower. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make bell pepper bloom?

Give bell pepper the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does bell pepper normally bloom?