Sustainable Practices for Vegetable Production in the South
Dr. Mary Peet, NCSU
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Pepper

HARVEST AND POST-HARVEST

Usually the first fruits are ready to harvest 80 to 90 days from transplanting. Peppers are harvested by hand every 7 to 10 days for 3 to 4 weeks. Most of the crop is harvested and sold as mature green peppers (full size, but no color 'breaks' of red), but recently a premium market has developed for red and yellow peppers. Colored peppers are more difficult to produce because fruit allowed to color on the plant are very susceptible to damage from insects and diseases, and to fruit cracking. Allowing peppers to color also reduces development of younger fruit.

Bell peppers should be harvested at cool temperatures and additional cooling provided before shipping. Mature green peppers can be stored for 2 to 3 weeks at 45 to 55 degrees F and 90 to 95 percent relative humidity.

Pimiento fruit are not harvested until they are dark red. Since fruits will sometimes crack in wet weather, they can be harvested at a light red stage and set in a dry place to redden. Chili peppers for processing are harvested red and added to salsas and other spicy condiments or dried. In some cases, the green form is also processed, as in peppers used for nachos. For the fresh market, they are usually harvested green because of better quality maintenance during shipping. In the past, this segment of the market was small, but most supermarkets now sell several types of hot peppers.