Light colored mulch in the paths may help overcome this by reflecting out some heat. Take stock of temperatures for best results. On transplanting day, we hope for clouds, cool temperatures, and no wind. We give the plants a good watering with a fertilizer solution just before we set them out. The weather can't be too cool, however.
Peppers are recalcitrant when it comes to cold temperatures, both in the air and in the soil.
When you transplant, you want the plants to keep growing vigorously. Pepper plants sulk in nighttime temperatures below 55 F and soil temperatures below 65 F. Stem blight bites. Don't plant peppers deeply in heavy soil that retains water if you want to fend off this white, bubbly fungus that attacks stems. Using a trowel, we set the young plants through the holes in the landscape fabric. Peppers, unlike their tomato cousins, won't grow more roots from their stems if buried deeply.