Studies on transplanting age and pepper (Capsicum annum L) performance in a south-western Nigeria location

Trials were carried out in 2007 and 2008 to investigate the age at which sweet pepper (Capsicum annum L) could be transplanted to achieve optimum plant performance in Ado Ekiti a south-western Nigeria location. Pepper seedlings were either transplanted at 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 weeks after sowing (WAS) to consider the following performance variables; number of green leaves, number of branches, plant height, stem girth, days to flower, number of fruits per plant and fruit yield (in grammes). In most cases, pepper transplanted at 4WAS or 5WAS recorded the highest mean values of growth and yield while the 6WAS transplants consistently performed least. The 3WAS transplants also performed better than the 6WAS transplants. It is concluded that pepper should transplanted between four and five weeks after sowing to ensure optimum performance in the study area.