In my previous post, I shared with you the process of transplanting two of my plants and how it was a process that made me think I would lose one of them—my chili pepper plant, which had already given me its first fruits a few months earlier. In case you didn’t read my previous post, the reason I had to transplant it was because it was in a bad spot where it was bound to die at any moment—it was my cats’ favorite place to lie down and scratch their backs.
My biggest fear had to do with the weather. I’ve learned that one of the best times to transplant a plant is at night, since it has a better chance of surviving because the sun isn’t there to wreak havoc—but I did it in the morning because that was the time I had available. Since the sun has been so intense lately due to the El Niño phenomenon, the truth is that the morning wasn’t the ideal time either, because it’s already sunny very early on.
As soon as I transplanted it, its leaves were a little droopy and a bit darker in color, so I thought it wouldn’t survive. I knew I had to keep the sun from hitting it directly, so I did everything I could to cover it. However, even when I was protecting it, the heat around it was so intense that it was causing it to wilt. In fact, in my previous post, even though I mentioned that my plant was already looking strong because it no longer looked the way it used to, the truth is that its leaves still looked a little droopy.
The thing is, these high temperatures are really taking a toll on plants in general. Plus, because of the drought and the intense heat, there isn’t as much water as there is at other times of the year, so watering them properly has become a bit of a challenge. Even so, I tried to support this whole process with natural fertilizer. Fruit scraps, coffee grounds, and things like that were some of the materials I used not only to fertilize the plant but also to help keep it hydrated in some way.
I tried to shield it not only from the sun but also from the glare by placing a chair around it and a piece of cardboard on top so that the light wouldn’t hit it directly from any angle. I knew that as the days went by, I’d be able to tell whether or not it was going to survive. However, two and then three days passed, and the leaves were still quite droopy, and the plant was struggling to stand on its own, so I was a little sad and was beginning to resign myself to the fact that I was going to lose it.
Even so, I kept trying everything I could to keep it standing. After a full week, I realized that my chili pepper plant was fighting with all its might, because even though its leaves were drooping and weak, the truth is that none of them had fallen off or withered, and the stem remained firm. Therefore, there was still hope that it would survive.
It’s been two weeks since I transplanted it. To be honest, it’s been terribly hot these past few days, and the sun has been quite intense, so I can say that my chili plant is a fighter and has given it everything it has to stay with us. A few days ago, I was surprised to find that not only are new little leaves peeking out, but there are also some tiny flower buds.
To me, the appearance of these buds is a clear sign that my chili pepper plant is now firmly rooted in the soil and that all my attempts and efforts to help it survive have literally borne fruit. Despite all the setbacks, I’ll be able to keep it in my backyard. I’ll continue to keep you updated on its progress, and I hope to show you the chili peppers from my lovely, resilient plant very soon.
-Content entirely of my authorship and inspiration. -Original text in Spanish, translated at DeepL. -Personal photographs, taken with my Huawei p30 Lite Phone. -Banners designed in Canva Pro.
