Article on Density Effect
A few months ago I read an article entitled:
“Spanish” Pepper Trellis System and High Plant Density can Increase Fruit Yield, Fruit Quality, and Reduce Labor in a Hydroponic, Passive-
Ventilated Greenhouse
The paper described a research trial conducted by scholars at the University of Florida in which they varied the plant density and pruning method of red bell peppers grown in perlite. In general, they found a linear increase in yield and quality (defined as "marketable peppers" and incidence of blossom end rot) for non-pruned peppers at high density (defined as 3.8 plants/square meter, which is approximately 2.75 square feet/plant).
In other words, you can save yourself a lot of time and energy if you don't prune your plants; in addition, you can save space by spacing your plants relatively close to one another - as they occur in nature.
Naturally, there are limits to how close you want to put your plants. As GpsFrontier stated, crowding can cause poor air circulation and fungal development. In terms of pruning, I don't manipulate the development of pepper plants too much; indeterminate tomatoes, however, can become unwieldy quickly and deserve a few bouts with the clippers in my humble opinion.
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