Supporting branches of sprawling manzano

5 years ago

I'm growing a manzano (orange rocoto). It's doing great, but it's growing mostly horizontally, rather than vertically. Here are some photos (for scale, it's in a 14 inch pot):

What's the best way to support these branches? We get strong wind on a regular basis and I'm sure they will break if they continue to grow horizontally like this without good support. The container is on a concrete patio, so I can't drive anything into the ground, but I could construct a frame of some sort. Appearance is a concern since this is near our front door.

Also, is this growth pattern characteristic for this variety, or is it just this plant being weird? This is the first pepper plant I've grown that has been mostly horizontal so it surprised me.

Many thanks!

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Comments (4)

Donna R
5 years ago
This is a you tube video about it..the plants are growing straight upright...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ysyl3tAHIE

also...this place says it prefers partial shade...but the guy in the you tube video lives in the southwest..utah, I think..and his aren't getting any shade...

https://www.sandiaseed.com/products/manzano-orange-rocoto

also..it is supposed to have a hairy leaf...your pics don't show that, at least to me???
michael19 thanked Donna R
michael19
Original Author
5 years ago
You're right, that plant looks pretty upright to me! Like a shrub or something. Hm, I guess I'll just have to work with mine. If I'd caught it earlier I probably could have tried to train the branches upward a bit.

My photo didn't really show the leaves very closely, but they're fuzzy! Here's a close-up photo of one of the leaves:
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jesush91
5 years ago
I like to grow these in a 5 gal pot under a small fruit tree like a lime tree so it can wind up the tree enjoying the shade and trellis up the tree. these are not the easiest to grow and fruit, they dont tolerate full sun. i woul make a small wooden trellis of 1x1 wood stakes and carefully tie the branches to train them to go up the trellis if you have no small trees
Donna R
5 years ago
I think it'll adjust...it looks very healthy, and it's blooming, so far so good!