I would wait a bit longer. You'll be surprised how quickly some of them will ripen as the weather cools. The cluster types can be picked either way - 1 by 1 or all at the same time if the different colors appeal.

Why not post over on the Hot Peppers forum here and see what others in your area are doing with their peppers. That is where are the growers hang out. ;)

Dave

Forgot to post the link.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pepper forum

I agree with Dave -- you should be able to keep them in the garden for at least another month. A lot of them may color in that time. Just watch for rot in cool, damp weather.

If you do have to pull them early: I discovered something quite by accident last week. I had way too many sweet peppers on the plants & picked a basketful. They were starting to turn but still pretty green.

Anyway I put the basket on the seat of my truck. Had too much stuff to take everything in the house at once & meant to go back & get them. Got distracted once I got inside, and, then the next morning I woke up sick & didn't leave the house for 2 days.

Mind you, the temps were in the mid 90's so you can imagine the temp inside that closed up truck cab!

Anyway on Day 3 I got into the truck...and found the PRETTIEST basket of RED peppers I have ever seen! (They are now very pretty jars of red pepper jelly.)

So maybe this technique is a possibility for those whose peppers have not turned...leave off the "getting sick" part, though!

I'd leave them on the plant a bit longer. You still should have at least 3-4 weeks left in the season. You may want to remove new flowers/buds so the plant can concentrate on ripening the existing fruit. Frost is your killer. When the night temps start dipping below 40, you may want to harvest. Another technique to allow late peppers to ripen is to pull the entire plant and hang upside-down in a barn/garage to finish ripening. Don't let the fruits freeze though.

Good Luck.

Rick

We get peppers all winter here in AZ. When it starts getting cooler it takes longer to ripen I bring them inside when they "bus", just like a tomato. It seems to help if I have one starting to turn. I store them all in an open bowl on the counter. In no time they ripen.
I harvest one by one as they ripen. They ripen year round here, not all at once. When we have a hard frost predicted, I cover with a Blakey or large cardboard moving boxes. It helps that mine are up against the east side of the house.
In the winter, my habaneros lose all their heat but keep their amazing flowery flavor. It's a very unique taste to experience!