I think patience is the key. I had the same thoughts and it was killing me to wait (see picture in the post "Don't plant mixed seed" that I just put up). I started seeds in March, planted outside in mid May, and pods started showing up around 4th of July. A few weeks ago I picked two yellow pods just to taste. I gave one to a friend and it was too hot for him. Instead of throwing it away, he left it on his desk for some reason, and after a few days, what was left turned orange. Since then I've had 2 more (still on the plants) skip the orange and go right to red. It should happen if you just let it, but that waiting is sure hard.

Joel

Once your HHW peppers start turning orange, they will go to red relatively quickly. They start out more of a green yellow but soon turn to yellow as they grow to mature size. They then will sit in the yellow stage for some time even after reaching mature size. Then you will go out one day and notice a subtle coloring change on a pod or two. And within a day or so, you will notice a definite orange tinge appearing. It will go to a bright orange and then a week or so later will begin its change to a beautiful Red with a slight orange hue. It will stay that way for a good two weeks before you would have to pick it.

The actual length in each stage is hard to nail down due to differences in soils, temps, sunlight, nutrients, etc... but they sit in the yellow stage for a long, long time. If you want max heat, you will just have to wait, but they are still quite stout in the yellow stage.

Here is a photo of some of my HHW peppers from last year in early August. It shows all the color stages pretty well.

Oh, and one other thing I have noticed about HHW peppers is that it seems like the smaller peppers ripen quicker than the larger ones.

They are usually quite good at the yellow stage, so I pick them as I use them. If leftovers turn red, great, but yellow is just as good and allows you to basically do a continual harvest, including the picking spurring on additional fruit production.

Ok everyone thanks alot I really appreciate it, I suppose I can keep waiting, but sooner or later they have to come off and when that moment omes Ill throw em in a bag with a tomato I suppose. I do have one more question, I had absent mindedly lost the package to these seeds I bought. They honestly look a cross between Cayenee and a long string bean. They are NOT THICK at all by any means like the ones im seeing online. What could they be? Any Ideas?

Ok everyone thanks alot I really appreciate it, I suppose I can keep waiting, but sooner or later they have to come off and when that moment omes Ill throw em in a bag with a tomato I suppose. I do have one more question, I had absent mindedly lost the package to these seeds I bought. They honestly look a cross between Cayenee and a long string bean. They are NOT THICK at all by any means like the ones im seeing online. What could they be? Any Ideas?

{{!gwi}}

Bruce is right about the timeline...
Just wait, or pick them once they've begun to turn and they'll finish ripening off the plant.
It is also true that the sooner/more often you pick, the sooner new pods will set.

For pickling/canning, yellow is best (to retain the integrity of the pod for slicing).
For sweetness and heat, let 'em go all the way red.

Josh

the long peppers are cayenne long slim. There are two kinds of cayenne, the thick and the thin. You have thin.

There are lots of kinds of Cayenne...well, there are lots of peppers with Cayenne in their name, anyway. It could be one. But, the slim Cayenne's I've seen aren't this long. Doesn't mean yours didn't just grow extra long, and that's what this is. Just saying they're unusually long if that's what they are.

in another thread we discussed if they could be Kil Peppers and theyre so similar as well. I was thinking they could be a type of cayenne because i did buy them from Home Depot. But theyre 9' long!