Chilies can be easily grown in our backyards. There are many ways to increase the yield of native chillies like hot chilli pepper (popularly known as “kanthari” in Kerala). Chili production can be increased by just following a few small steps while planting and applying fertilizer.
Let’s see some of the ways to increase the production of chillies.
Tips to increase chilli crop
1. Use homemade organic manure during sowing and germination. For this purpose, the tea leaves which are normally discarded after making tea are mixed with the egg shell and onion peel. Dry these mixture and grind in a mixer. Add little coir fibers and chilli powder to this mixture before adding it in the soil where the chilli plants are cultivating.
2. If you are using dried chilli seeds for sowing, soak them in water for at least 10 minutes and if you are using ripe ones, the seeds can be sown directly. While the chilli plant starts growing, attach the plant to a stick which is pierced in the soil, for support.
3. Grow two chilli plants together in a grobag or on the ground
4. Use specially prepared fertilizer for chilli plants. To prepare this, add groundnut cake to sour rice water (previous day’s rice water for good effect), mix well and keep it aside for seven days. On the eighth day, dilute this thickened mixture with ten glasses of water per glass. Pour this mixture to chilli plant once a week.
5. Add neem cake in the soil below the chill plant once in two weeks
6. Diluted rice water can be sprayed frequently on the plants to get rid of whitefly-like pests.
7. Add a handful of ashes to a cup of rice water, dilute it with twenty cups of water and pour on the chilli plant. The plant will bloom faster.
8. Add a teaspoon of asafoetidapowder in a litre of water, mix well and sprinkle it on the buds and flowers of the chilli plant. This will help to increase the production of chillies without the flowers falling off.
9. Cut old newspaper or waste paper into small pieces, mix them with soil below the chilli plant and cover it with soil, once in two weeks. This will help in increasing the yield of chillies.
10. Add a little jaggery powder to the fish wastewater (water which is used to clean fish) and keep it aside for seven days. On the eighth day, dilute it and either sprinkle on the chilli plants or pour below the plant. Do this once in two weeks.
