unfortunately, w/o isolation procedures such as netting blossoms, u would have to put them a bare mininum of 500 yards or so from the nearest capsicum plant to prevent any hybridization, but that is only a problem if u save the seeds and try to grow them out if u live in south texas u can plant it in the ground now and just keep growing all year it will live for years, ground plants do much better in severe heat then container plants, and dont need to be watered as much about one third as often actually

I was hoping to harvest seeds for friends, family and to possibly create a row (or cluster) of pequins. guess the nursery will be getting more business from me.

reading the forum here... I thought i had seen a couple of regular posters, with numerous varieties of peppers, talk of saving seeds... when obviously they would have cross pollination issues.

If it had blooms and small fruit when you got it, it may have already been cross-pollinated. I would get the little bags that are for covering blooms and remove all fruit and open blooms from a branch, then cover it to keep out insects. If you do remove the bag after a while, you'll have to remove any new blooms on that one branch till you get your mature peppers, just to save confusion. Clear as mud?

Most of us grow our peppers in the same area, and then just take the chance when seed-harvesting.
When we trade seeds, we always mention that they're "open pollinated," so there's no guarantee.
If I were *charging* money for seeds, I'd definitely feel the obligation to provide some isolation.

That said, this is my fourth season growing hot peppers, and I've only had one known cross.
Also, the seeds that I've traded with others have all produced the proper peppers.

Josh

Peppers have 'perfect' flowers, meaning they can / will / do self pollinate. So, if you don't take measures to isolate at least a couple of blooms before they open, there is a chance of cross pollination, but, there's also a good chance it will pollinate itself.

Personally, I wouldn't trade seeds unless I isolated the bloom. Just my opinion. As long as the person you trade with is up front about it as Josh said and specifies that they are open pollinated, no harm - no foul.

@chile freak - I'll take your advice and put it in the ground this weekend. but based on your comment in the other chili pequin thread, I'm now considering locatiosn with full sun.

Here she is, in all her glory. I'm sure she's root bound and hopefully puts on some massive growth once planted.

looks great, but let me tell u, cross pollenation is not necessarily a bad thing, ive seen very cool crosses occur, infact next year i will grow a few true to type isolated seeds, but I will grow mostly seeds saved from my own plants, I have around 50 varities growing out in the back yard right now, and Im positively hoping some of them will cross pollenate and I might end up w/ something cool in the new season!
paul