Sweet pepper Asti red originates from Italy. It is a large, deliciously sweet-tasting and beautiful-looking sweet pepper variety. It ripens from dark green to bright dark red. The square, blocky peppers can be peeled, chopped, sliced and stuffed with e.g. minced meat or rice or a mixture of these. When you put them hereafther in the oven with a little cheese on top, you get a quick and vegetarian meal. Serve with a salad with sweet peppers and lettuce and with some cooked rice. For a delicious meal without meat.
Sweet pepper is a very healthy and versatile vegetable that can be used for: cooking, baking, filling, in stews, in oven dishes, filling with minced meat or rice, grilling, roasting, steaming, stir-frying and using it raw in salads, as raw food or healthy snack. Sweet bell pepper is very healthy and contains the following vitamins and minerals: A, B, B1, B2, B6, B11, B12, C and E. And the minerals: calcium, phosphorus, iron, iodine, potassium, copper, magnesium, selenium and zinc. Also, like all vegetables, it contains few calories, but a lot of dietary fiber and other healthy nutrients. Sweet bell pepper also contains a lot of water, making them a delicious and refreshing snack especially on sunny summer days. Bell pepper is delicious in combination with: ham, bacon, chorizo, minced meat, minced lamb, chicken, beef, pork, sardines, tuna, mussels, salmon, prawns, shellfish, feta, cheese, mozzarella, tofu, ricotta, apple, nuts, pine nuts, pistachio, sesame seeds, basil, chives. parsley, tarragon, green pepper, marjoram, lemon thyme, ginger, rosemary, oregano and various kinds of pepper. Sweet bell pepper is also delicious in combination with other vegetables such as: artichoke, advocado, eggplant, carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, peas, asparagus, garlic, cucumber, lettuce, snow peas, leek, spring onion, green beans, onion, carrots and samphire and sea lavender. Non hardy perennial. Height: 75 - 150 cm.
Pre-Soaking: 12 hours
Indoor sowing: February - April
Outdoor sowing: from May
Germination: 7 - 14 days
Germination temp. : 22 - 25 °C
Sowing depth: shallow - ½ cm
Replanting: 2 - 3 weeks after sowing
Transplanting: in May, after the Ice Saints
Plant distance: 40 - 50 cm
Plant position: greenhouse or glashouse
Days till harvest: 95 - 110
Sow indoors from February on in trays filled with well-moistened potting soil. Sow shallowly and sparingly. Cover the seeds with a very thin layer of sowing soil, as sweet peppers are light germinators. Put a lid on the trays and put them in a propagator to ensure as constant and high a temperature as possible. Don't let the temperature drop especially at night. Keep the seeds well moist. For faster germination, soak the seeds in water for about 12 hours before sowing. Remove the lid as soon as the seedlings emerge. Keep well moist, warm and light. Transplant the seedlings into larger, separate pots 2 - 3 weeks after germination. Now you can put them away slightly cooler at 18 - 20 °C.
Harden off the seedlings, about 10 - 14 days by putting them outside in the sun during the day or put your seedlings in a coldframer. After this, you can put the seedlings outside from mid-May, as soon as there is no chance of night frost. Put your plants in an unheated greenhouse, conservatory or heated greenhouse. A very sunny and sheltered spot outside is also possible. Sweet peppers are heat-loving plants that need a lot of warmth, sunlight and shelter to give a good harvest.
Sowing outdoors can be done from May onwards. Provide a very sunny, warm, sheltered spot with well-drained soil. Wait to sow until there is no more chance of night frost. Sow the seeds shallowly and sparingly and press them gently into the soil. Cover with a very thin layer of soil. Keep well moist and weed-free. Once the young seedlings are large enough to handle, thin them out to 40 - 50 cm. Water regularly and once the peppers develop give some liquid fertiliser like e.g. Chilifocus every week. Give your plants a good and firm support. Harvest the peppers by carefully cutting them off the plant or by gently twisting the fruits off the plant.
