That will make a great bonsai/bonchi plant come this fall. In the meantime I would trim all leaves touching the ground. They're already looking a bit diseased. Otherwise, I think it will be fine.

(sterilize any tools used afterwards)

I wouldn't worry at all. My Red Bhut plants looked exactly like that last year. Very low and bushy. They didn't get too much wider. By the end of the season, they were close to 5 feet tall. Don't forget to stake them up, or use tomato cages. By the time you realize they're not strong enough to support themselves, it might be too late!

I also agree with Mecdave. I'd trim off any leaves touching the soil. Looking good so far! Good luck.

Mike

Thanks guys, I'll trim the bottom leaves this weekend when I'm at my in-laws.

Mike - I'll look into staking this weekend as well and/or see if I can find a tomato cage (preferred option).

If you are planning on using tomato cages, I'd put them in sooner than later. It might be tough to pull them down over the top of the plants once they get too much bigger because the cages are usually more narrow at the bottom. You might not want to risk breaking any branches off later on, trying to squeeze a tall, bushy plant through that small narrow hole at the bottom of the cage.

Mike

It won't really hurt anything. Trimming the lower leaves so that none are touching the ground is a good idea though. Lots of peppers end up falling over like that and keep on growing just fine.

Like they said, think of it as a premade bonsai shape that you didn't have to wire!

Thanks all for the advice! Just in case it does get to 5 ft. tall, I decided to go with the tomato cage. I also cut all the leaves at the bottom.

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