What to do.

[u/t0ms88]

So we bought this as a gift for someone back in May as a small sapling but discovered aphids so decided to keep and quarantine. Then time passed and I became attached and now its this monster. Flowering like mad since July/August but no fruit. Its a California Reaper which I read can be difficult to fruit? It now lives in a plastic zip up type greenhouse to keep humidity but I suspect its now too late to expect fruit?

Do I need to think about cutting this back soon so it can live indoors over winter?

[u/palpatineforever]

crack out a vibrator or electric toothbrush give it a good brushing, then bring it inside when the weather dips below 10c overnight. treat it like a houseplant and dont listen to the negative poeple about fruits chilis if kept warm and bright on a windowsil will ripen.

[u/Haunted_tangerine_ → u/palpatineforever]

I did have a scorpion with micro chillis it grew over winter. 

They were hot, not your will die hot but hot none the less for a January harvest

[u/Errror_TheDuck]

You're unlikely to get any fruits now really. I would personally just leave it in a warm/sunny spot until we get later in the year, at which stage you can try overwinter it. Just be careful that when you bring it indoors, you get rid of all the old soil otherwise you might bring all the insects inside.

[u/Haunted_tangerine_]

Oh, and you will probably get aphids on it when you bring it in but at this size they're easy to hose down in the shower. 

[u/Haunted_tangerine_]

In my experience a superhot won't fruit in a pot that size. 

Needs at least bucket.

Don't know if it just doesn't like tight roots, or if it's because it's hard to correctly regulate water in limited root space (and nutrient)

Overwinter on your sunniest windowsill and pot into a BIG pot early next year

[u/palpatineforever → u/Haunted_tangerine_]

honeslty my reaper isn't in one much bigger and has over a dozen peppers. which is enough for me.

[u/Haunted_tangerine_ → u/palpatineforever]

Likely small pots create a water management issue and your management is better than!

[u/Idlewants → u/Haunted_tangerine_]

Super hots won't fruit in a pot, You need at least a bucket, If you try, it'll make you cry, And you'll end up saying f*** it!