I buy the peppers at the nursery that are common varieties but the ones I want to grow most aren't in nurseries.
Trinidad Scorpions,7 pot,Naga Morrich and a lot of the ones I grow have to be purchased in seed form.

Some places do grow some of the exotics but they are rather few and far between.
Buying plants through the mail can be expensive compared to buying seeds.Plus you never know what the plant will be like when you get it.

Also by growing from seed you can start several plants and pick the best to grow out.
Giving away the extras can bring you in favor with the gardening gods too.

Nothing like pampering a seed into a nice plant for the bugs to munch on. :)
And then getting that lone pod that you spent a gazillion dollors on(seed,super duper soil mix,bennificial bugs,fertilizer,bug soap etc.) so the birds could get it the day before you were going to pick it. :)

As SM says, the main advantage of starting from seeds is variety but Cross Country, for instance, has a pretty good selection. The disadvantage is the space and time required to get them to transplant size. I really get off on the process of germinating seeds but if you don't ( or don't have the space or time) it can just be another chore and buying seedlings seems a good alternative.

john

I'm still trying to get hold of seeds from the insanity hot pepper that was featured in the Simpsons chile cookoff episode where Homer eats one.
It's so hot that it makes you go crazy and see things for a while.
It's raised in the Andes by insane monks or something like that.
Can't buy it at Cross Country. LOL

If it wasn't for forums like this and seed exchanges/trades there would be a lot of pepper varieties nobody would have access to or even know about.
In my case I'm growing over 200 varieties this year (and counting).
I am growing them in containers or I'd never have enough room to grow them otherwise.
I can somewhat control plant size by container size and being able to move them around if the sun cooks them or they need more sun,it allows for some mistakes without loosing plants.It also allows me to somewhat grow plants so when the early stuff is done I have the late season stuff ready to take their place.
I get a decent amount of peppers per plant but not as many as they would put out if they were in bigger containers or in the ground.
I use an area about 8ft. by 30 ft. give or take with a dozen or so pots scattered wherever they fit.
I use 3-20 gal. containers.
Mostly 3 and 5gal. ones.A couple 15 gal. ones have several plants in them.
People like Fieldermeister and Pepper Rancher among others who I've traded seeds with or sent S.A.S.E.'s to are largely responsible for feeding my growing addiction to hot peppers by their generous seed giveaways and exotic pepper seed trades.
It feeds my other addiction for smoking stuff with rubs made from Smoked Hot Chile Powder mixes that I make from what I grow.
Once you start seeing all the different kinds of pepper seeds there are that grow plants you can't find in most nurseries you'll get addicted to starting from seed.

I do use Cross Country, as well as several local nurseries. The local nurseries seem to have more available every year as the popularity of peppers keeps going up. I do enjoy germinating and raising seedlings, I do this with the hybrids I make, but only have the room for a dozen or so. What I do alot of though, is make clones from my plants to give to others that cannot find the peppers I buy through the mail. My tea bubbler doubles as a simple bubble cloner that has pepper and tomato clones rooted in a week or less. Thanks, I enjoy these forums. TiMo

Can you tell us more about the bubble cloner? Pictures?

john

I don't have a digital camera, but it's very easy to make. I use a 10" x 8" tupperware container that is 6" deep and painted the outside of the bottom black. Cut 12 1/2" holes in the top in 4 rows of 3. Use my double pump aquarium pump with two flexible hoses, not air stones, but flexible type stones. Cut clones and place in the holes. I use bottled spring water filled to 1" of the top of container. Cut a piece of water willow if their green, peel the bark and dice the bark and root and add to the water. Plug it in and place 12" under a compact floro bulb. 6 to 12 days, have enough roots to transplant. Very simple. Some folks keep the cut ends just above the surface of the water where the bubbles "burst" and keep the stems moist, but I find it really doesn't make a difference. Good Luck! TiMo
BTW water willow is the plant that you will find around most any pond or lake that is well astablished. It is a willow, and if you cut/break/rip off a piece of the plant and bury the end in a wet soil, it will root within days and flourish. The choped up bark, wood seems to work better than a rooting hormone - believe me, Ive spent a ton on those dogs!

Thanks rootdoctor.

john

Thanks rootdoctor. Sounds like something I'd enjoy trying and it doesn't take any hard to get equipment.

Sound familiar John? :) That's exactly what I meant. My only question Rootdoctor is how do you keep the cuttings suspended above water? Also, once they grow roots, don't you have issues trying to lift the rooted cuttings back up through these holes w/o tearing precious new roots.

Thanks for the hint about the water willow. I don't know what they look like, but I'll seek them out in the Summer.

Chris

Oops I forgot you don't suspend the cutting stems above water. It sounds like you submerse them. That makes sense as you can let the top leaves of the cuttings hold them on the lid. 1/2" holes are large enough to easily be able to pull the roots back through.

I was always concerned about root rot leaving them in water over a week. It sounds like it's not the case.

Lastly, what wattage CFL do you use? I used a simple two bulb 4 ft fluorescent fixture above them.

Chris

I do use Cross Country - especially when they do their half off sale!

I like growing varieties I can't get at Home Depot and I do like to garden year round. And that means starting seeds in January.

It can be a pain in the arse and sometimes the wife complains about all of my stuff.

But let's face it, growing peppers from seed is a cheap hobby compared to some others.

It also helps me be a better gardener than I otherwise would be....

Got milk (I mean seeds)?

You can also cut 1" holes and take some old garden hose and cut a 1" length, then cut it so you can roll it into a tube. This can support your pepper, but I let the leaves support the cutting myself. It really doesn't seem to matter if the stem is in the water 1/2" or so, with all the air bubbles popping, either above the water, or just a bit submerged is ok. TiMo

Yes, Chris it does. Maybe one of you could explain. I see the advantage of bubbles if the stems are above the water but what purpose do they serve if the stems are submerged?

john