Disclaimer: I'm a first-time grower, so don't really know what I'm doing. I'll attempt an answer anyway :)

1. It's a so-called "5-1-1": 5 parts pine bark, 1 part perlite and 1 part peat with some nutrients added. It's supposed help with aeration in the mix. I have not tried it. Regular potting mixes also work, but as the plants grow bigger they might require more frequent watering and/or more easily become waterlogged (which the plants really do not lke).

2. I'm guessing a "soft" light is a light with a low color temperature, usually 2400K. This is the yellow-ish light we typically us indoors. CFLs also come in bluer variants, such as "daylight" 6400K. The blue light is generally recommended. I actually read in a book on peppers that there is no scientific indication that the color temperature means much - it all comes down to the light intensity. As far as I know, you can use whatever you have during the growth stage, but if you want flowers/fruits under artificial lighting it becomes a lot harder.

3. I've been using pots that are either see-through or have holes on the bottom. When roots start crowding on the bottom, move them to bigger pots.

thanks!!!

I figured I would add my two cents too.. I'm just at it my second year with hot peppers.. only tried growing the basic jalapeno & cayenne last year.

The pine bark/mulch is very appealing.. if I could find the stuff!! I used Miracle Grow last year and also have less than ideal growing conditions (balcony with morning sun only.. ). My containers would get very heavy and retain a lot of water due to a lot of rain, minimal sun and the MG potting mix. Still, I was able to harvest some peppers but not nearly as much as I hoped to. The Pine bark mix is supposed to be much lighter mix, with better drainage.

The lighting issues are my next hurdle so I haven't really done much in that regard yet. My seedlings were sitting in a window for the most part.

This year I'm growing (hopefully) a few different varieties.. so far they are doing ok. I have Alma Paprika, Czech Black, Sweet Banana, Numex Twilight & I overwintered my Jalapeno & Cayenne from last year. I was hoping to put them in a better mix this year but having a hard time finding the Pine Bark in the correct size and without other unwanted stuff mixed in.

Good luck with your peppers this season!!

Third year grower here:
First, NW Ohio??? Anywhere near Bryan. My Mom is from there...still have some relatives there too. Now, about the peppers:
1. The 5-1-1 is as cjohansen says. The only thing I would add is that the 1 part of Peat can be most any normal growing medium from peat to garden soil to top soil. But peat is a very common choice. The 5 is pine or fir bark and it must be relatively free of other debris such as wood or other contaminates. It should also be in chunks between 1/8" and 1/2" in size. there are also some other ingriedents recommended such as a slow release fertilizer such as Osmocote and then some pelletized lime as well. There are some variations out there to that recipe, but that is pretty much the standard.
2: The CFL's or tube florescent lights used for growing peppers are normally best in the upper spectrum from 5000K to 6500K and are usually marketed as "Daylight". That is considered to be the spectrum best suited for growing peppers.
3: It is tough to answer this with a definitive answer as we don't know the size of your plants or the size of the pots they are currently in. Some photos would be a great help. But in general, if they are becoming rootbound with roots sticking out of the drainage holes they are ready for a bigger pot. Some people use a rule that if the pot they are in can be placed over the top part of the plant, they are still OK in that size pot.

Good luck and watch out, we are sending some really crappy weather your way to the East.
Bruce

The 5-1-1 is a concept of very high aeration and virtually no perched water table (a swamp at the bottom of the container). It's definitely something that requires an adjustment to what most are used to. It really doesn't take into consideration the convenience to the grower, it's about what's good for the plant.

2 - I don't know enough about that to really answer.

3 - I'd say pot them up when they have their first set of true leaves. Those peat pods are good for germinating, but, not so much for growing.

I wouldn't use clear cups. I don't really know why, but, my gut tells me that is bad. Maybe the indoor lighting isn't strong enough to make a difference, but, it just feels wrong.

tsheets: I don't think roots appreciate a lot of light, but I have clear cups sitting inside opaque ones. So it's dark, but I have the option to peek inside.

Having said that, a few of my plants are in clear/clear because I ran out of opaque ones, and in my current setup (crammed together inside) this hasn't been a problem.

hey everyone, so I went and got CFL lights immediately after learning about them. It probably hasnt changed as much as I think it has but honestly they are all loking much better. A better looking "green" and growing pretty fast now. My setup is three CFL's in desk lamps on all my plants and they seem to love it. I think this year im gonna stick with regualr soil but obviously the best I can get, ill try 5-1-1 next year. Also, im at BGSU lol