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Chilli plants - too many flowers for such late season?

Big Blue SkyBig Blue Sky Posts: 716
in Plants
I have three large chilli plants with the very first chillis only now starting to get red. And plenty of green ones that are very slow to ripen. But there are so many new flowers at the moment. 
Should I pinch out the flowers to make he plants concentrate on the existing green fruits? 
I’m worried that this late in the season the flowers wouldn’t develop to fruits anyway. I don’t have a greenhouse, only unheated conservatory and it’s not sunny. But I had to move them there already as the night temperatures outside started to drop below 10C. 
Surrey
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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    My experience with chillies is that they’re best being left to get on with it. The fruit will ripen even if removed from the plant so I don’t think the ripening process requires much input from the plant. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • Big Blue SkyBig Blue Sky Posts: 716
    Sounds like a good advice, thank you @Dovefromabove
    They are prettier with some flowers too, besides it looks like some of the flowers are falling off anyway, so perhaps the plants know better than I do what is the right thing for them ☺️ Now I just need to learn to let go and not try and control everything that is happening in the garden 😂
    Surrey
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    This happened to me quite often in my ast garden - central rural Belgium so wpring could be late arriving and autumn early thus leaving insufficient time for chillies to bear enough fruit.

    I found they did very well as pot plants on a south facing windowsill and kept producing till well after Christmas.  Much more attractive than a poinsettia too!
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • strelitzia32strelitzia32 Posts: 758
    @Obelixx I tried some indoor chillies this year. Not many more fruits than my greenhouse chillies, but absolutely ruined by aphids constantly. I had to keep putting them outside and hoping something would clear them... 
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Mine were OK but I do have a tender hibiscus which gets aphids when it comes in from its summer hols on the terrace and I just put it in the shower and blast them off with lukewarm water.    Sometimes needs 2 or 3 goes over a few days.

    I'm sure that would work for chillies too.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • SandygardenSandygarden Posts: 119
    I’d Like to try and over winter my chilli plants and get them going again next spring. Does this work and what’s the best way to do it?
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    If you haven't got a heated greenhouse, bring them indoors and treat as a houseplant.  They'll need regular watering ad some feeding if they're fruiting and maybe an occasional misting in a dry, centrally heated atmosphere.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • SandygardenSandygarden Posts: 119
    Thank you, I have a south facing windowsill, so will try it this year.
  • Big Blue SkyBig Blue Sky Posts: 716
    Obelixx said:
    If you haven't got a heated greenhouse, bring them indoors and treat as a houseplant.  They'll need regular watering ad some feeding if they're fruiting and maybe an occasional misting in a dry, centrally heated atmosphere.
    I was hoping to overwinter mines in our unheated conservatory - looks like this is not a good idea 🙁
    Surrey
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    Big Blue Sky said:
    Obelixx said:
    If you haven't got a heated greenhouse, bring them indoors and treat as a houseplant.  They'll need regular watering ad some feeding if they're fruiting and maybe an occasional misting in a dry, centrally heated atmosphere.
    I was hoping to overwinter mines in our unheated conservatory - looks like this is not a good idea 🙁
    It depends on the winter - the plants may lose all of their leaves but if it hasn't been too cold in your conservatory they can sprout new shoots from the main stems in spring.  Basically, as long as the main stem is still green, there's an excellent chance.  I managed to overwinter half a dozen pepper plants that way last winter.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
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