Hotting up the winter

14 years ago

I have a couple sets of shop-lights set up in the basement that I use mainly to start spring bedding plants, but I also use them year-round for other plants. I start pots of cat-grass (wheat) for my cat every couple weeks under lights in winter, plus have a succulent and some carnivorous plants under lights now. But the main thing I'm growing under lights right now is hot peppers. I tried starting a variety of hot peppers in September/October and after all is said and done I have 5 plants now -- 2 Thai Sun peppers, 2 Tobasco peppers, and one Thai Hot pepper. The Thai Sun are by far the best for indoor cultivation. They grow well in a 15 cm pot, the peppers are small -- less than an inch long -- but are colourful and quite hot and very productive. Something fun to heat up a cold winter's day. Here's one of the Thai Sun peppers starting to ripen, now I just need them to finish up by March when I want the space back for Spring bedding plants!

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Comments (10)

Ginny McLean_Petite_Garden
14 years ago
Cool! I mean HOT! I don't know what to call them but cute little peppers comes to mind. What do you do with them, Don?

My DH made me a growing set up with 3 four foot lights. I'm afraid I will have to unplug my stove and fridge just to turn them on with the way the price of power has jumped this month1 Oh how I dream of a greenhouse......:)

Ginny
savona
14 years ago
I can feel the heat to here even if we are at a daytime high of -26. I usually keep wave petunia cuttings but didn't this year. Soon there will be seeds to sow and the lights on in the light/plant stands.
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nutsaboutflowers
14 years ago
What a beautiful plant.

How on earth will you eat all those cute little things? Are they the type of thing that they ask you at the restaurant how many you want in your dinner, and brave people ask for 3 or 4 ??
don555
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks folks! Yes these little peppers do pack some nice heat -- eating one on its own puts me close to my hot/pain threshold, but they are not as wicked as something like a habanero. I think these guys come in at 50,000-100,000 Scoville units, vs habaneros at 300,000 and jalepenos at 5,000.

As for what I do with them... well, mostly grow and admire them right now, but soon I hope that eating/drying/seed-saving will take over!
marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
14 years ago
Food shouldn't hurt.... :>
northspruce
14 years ago
Great pepper plant Don! I was thinking of growing some this winter but didn't get around to it. I'm counting the days until I start the tomatoes and peppers for outdoor planting now...
Pudge 2b
14 years ago
LOL, how right you are, Marcia!

That plant looks great, Don. They are ornamental, that's for sure.
northspruce
14 years ago
I used to absolutely hate spicy food, but in recent years I've started appreciating it more. I like dried chili flakes in stir-frys and sweet chili type dishes. Which is why I'm going to grow a few this year to dry.
Slimy_Okra
14 years ago
Not all spicy food is the same. It also depends on personal taste. Some things taste great when spiced up, others not so much. For example, I really love any rice dish super-spicy. The same goes for beans, tofu or any other protein or carbohydrate. But I just realized that artichokes and hot peppers just don't go together. At all.
freezengirl
14 years ago
The oddest thing I ever saw combined with hot pepper was a lovely chocolate cake. It was a chocolate layer cake with hot pepper (small amount powdered) mixed into the chocolate filling between layers. It was at a restraunt (sp?) in MN and they claimed it was one of their most popular deserts. I tried it on a dare and it was really good! In my wildest dreams I wouldn't have thought to combine the two. After thinking it over though I remembered that one of my favorite Mexican meals is Chicken Mole-and that has chocolate, pnut butter and ground peppers in it.