Vegetable / Warm season

California Wonder Pepper

Reliable patio and raised-bed sweet pepper for fresh eating.

Blocky green-to-red fruit with mild sweetness.

Seed spacing and maturity

Days to maturity: 72
Germination temperature: 75-90F
Seed depth: 0.25 inches
Spacing: 18 inches
Row spacing: 30 inches
Start method: Start indoors

Frost-date timing

Indoor start: 8 weeks before last frost
Transplant: 21 days after last frost

Action plan

Can I plant this now?: Use your local last-frost, first-frost, and soil-temperature checks before treating this crop as plantable today.
Start indoors or direct sow?: Start indoors, harden off, then transplant into the final bed when local timing is safe.
How much space?: 18 inches in-row spacing, 30 inches between rows, and 0.25 inch seed depth.
Best companions?: Use crop-family rotation first, then pair with compatible timing, spacing, and canopy size rather than relying on a simple companion chart.
Common failure modes?: Avoid rushing outside before nights are reliably warm. Consistent moisture; mulch after soil warms. Warm, fertile, well-drained soil; avoid excess nitrogen.

Growing profile

Sun: Full sun
Water: Consistent moisture; mulch after soil warms.
Soil: Warm, fertile, well-drained soil; avoid excess nitrogen.
Watch: Avoid rushing outside before nights are reliably warm.

sweet
container
heat-loving

Browse context

Vegetable Catalog Category collection
Nightshade Family Rotation and family context
Warm Season Seeds Season collection
Start Indoors Seeds Start-method collection
Container-Friendly Seeds Practical trait collection

Related varieties

Common Lemon Balm Mint family · Warm season · 70 days
Red Stem Malabar Spinach Basella family · Warm season · 70 days
Sorghum-Sudangrass Cover Crop Grass family · Warm season · 70 days
Toma Verde Tomatillo Nightshade family · Warm season · 70 days
Broadleaf Sage Mint family · Warm season · 75 days
California Giant Zinnia Aster family · Warm season · 75 days

Source: UMN starting seeds indoors