{"id":864,"date":"2026-06-15T06:08:44","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T06:08:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/?p=864"},"modified":"2026-06-15T06:08:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T06:08:44","slug":"mastering-greenhouse-capsicum-farming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/2026\/06\/15\/mastering-greenhouse-capsicum-farming\/","title":{"rendered":"Mastering Greenhouse Capsicum Farming"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At St. Paul\u2019s University (SPU), we are committed to exploring high-yield agricultural practices that align with sustainable development goal (SDG 2) of <strong>Zero hunger <\/strong>and foster community togetherness when we sell our produce to nearby markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make this a reality, the agricultural department and the students have adopted greenhouse farming to grow capsicums, also known as <strong>bell peppers. <\/strong>The capsicum family has been known to perform very well in a greenhouse setting, and as such, an experiment was conducted at SPU\u2019s farm, which ticks off most if not all of the required conditions for capsicum to thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whether you are a prospective student looking to master the art of farming or an enthusiastic farmer interested in sustainable food production, below is a curated guide on how to master greenhouse capsicum farming, owing to the practical sessions at the farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Setting the Foundation<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Choose a proper site for your greenhouse structure in an area that (preferably) has no recent history of growing tomatoes or other nightshade family crops to minimize existing soil risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All farming successes begin with understanding the ideal soil and location. Capsicum thrives best in <strong>well-drained loamy soils<\/strong> that are found in high altitudes of <strong>1500 &#8211; 2000 meters above sea level<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Before planting, the soil should be thoroughly ploughed, enriched with organic manure, and formed into raised beds of 1 metre to ensure proper drainage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Growing Conditions<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To ensure the green capsicums thrive, the following conditions ought to be met:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Steady temperature <\/strong>range of between <strong>18\u201330\u00b0C<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Drip irrigation is <\/strong>highly recommended as it keeps foliage dry and provides a continuous, balanced supply of moisture.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Water resource management<\/strong> to avoid over-irrigation which can lead to &#8220;damping off&#8221; in young plants.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Planting and Harvest<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you are ready transplant seedlings from the nursery, use a <strong>spacing of 30 cm<\/strong>. This gives each plant enough room to expand and receive adequate light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the greatest advantages of utilizing greenhouses is its protection; the enclosed environment is naturally less conducive to common pests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This means that your plants can continue to produce fruit for up to <strong>eight months<\/strong>, allowing for a consistent and lengthy harvest period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Conclusion<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Greenhouse farming not only controls the environment, but also achieves high returns on relatively small pieces of land, even with less water for irrigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While many rightfully associate poorly done farming with climate change, the greenhouses at SPU is a tool for <strong>Climate-Smart Agriculture<\/strong> through using less water and fewer chemicals to produce high-quality capsicum that is sold to the nearby markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Interested in being part of this agricultural revolution, give us a call or send an email through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our <strong>Toll-free line<\/strong> is: +254 800 723 000<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;<strong>Email \u2013 <\/strong><a href=\"mailto:contactcenter@spu.ac.ke\">contactcenter@spu.ac.ke<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><em>Saint Paul\u2019s University <\/em>|<em> The University of Choice!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At St. Paul\u2019s University (SPU), we are committed to exploring high-yield agricultural practices that align with sustainable development goal (SDG 2) of Zero hunger and foster community togetherness when we sell our produce to nearby markets. To make this a reality, the agricultural department and the students have adopted greenhouse farming to grow capsicums, also [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agribusiness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=864"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":866,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864\/revisions\/866"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spu.ac.ke\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}