Zone 7b. It’s low- to upper-80s lately, but it does get a bit of afternoon shade. I see a new cluster of flowers taking shape, so I’ll keep an eye on them and maybe do some pollinating of my own.

The idea of scheduled blooms to complement edible foods is an interesting one for sure. I guess I assumed that there is more wildlife wanting the flowery bits than I have flowery bits to offer, so that none would necessarily eclipse the other, if that’s what you were meaning. My pepper plant is in a pot in the thick of lavender, rudbeckia, alyssum, basil that has gone to flower, and a couple other things. Everything seems pretty well occupied at the moment since it’s all in full bloom, with different types of insects specializing in feasting on different plants.

I don’t necessarily want to think too hard about it. My tomatoes are in the backyard, and they’re doing fine. I added the pepper plant to a container with petunias, coleus, and lantana just to offer some height and to help shade the coleus (the sprawling petunias are doing just as well of a job at that). But it’s fun to think about how to time things just right, if not also somewhat difficult. Similar to cooking.

In any case, my perennials are there and getting fully established so the best I could do would be to maybe change location of my peppers next year. But the season is still young. I have hope.

Best of luck to you. For what it’s worth, I have a single pepper plant that looks beautiful, puts out a great succession of flowers, and is surrounded by pollinator plants. But it just hasn’t put out a single fruit yet. Oh well. It won’t deter me from planting again next year.

Do you fertilize or sidedress with compost? Tomatoes and peppers tend to be heavy feeders. They need a lot of nutrients (but follow package directions if using fertilizer). And I can’t tell from the picture if the soil is mulched. Mulching goes a long way to help prevent soil moisture from evaporating, cooling the roots, and generally helping to limit the impact of extremes in heat and water availability on plants.

I don’t remember this. When were these glamour shots of my husband and me even taken?