Earliest Red Peppers

14 years ago

I was looking back on Bonnie's "Peppers '12" thread and noted that her first ripe pepper was 7/21. Well shucks . . . only a little over 5 weeks later:

Super Chili

They do it for me every year! Oh, I've had jalapeno for a couple of weeks and both the bells & Italian Sweets have been harvested and enjoyed. Yummy, too! It was the little sweet Fushimi that were the very first to be harvested. But, the Super Chili are the first peppers that have matured to red.

Looking back on that thread I can see where I intended to use restraint in setting the plants out this spring. They were sad-looking things from inadequate light indoors for so long. I didn't need much restraint since we had so many weeks with frost in the forecast.

Once into the open garden they still had a real tuff time of it - more so that usual. The coolness and wind are no friends to peppers.

Today, the Thai Hots are just covered in blooms. Maybe the thought finally occurred to them that they could go ahead and fruit . . . remarkably, they are some of the better looking plants but, they are little things no matter what.

All the heat we've had here came kind of late for the peppers. Still, they have made as much use of it as they could.

Steve

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Comments (5)

david52 Zone 6
14 years ago
I haven't paid attention this year, but I've been picking the peppers that turn red and freezing them so that later, I'll have enough to make a fermented sauce. I'm on gallon zip lock # 3, filling them to capacity with jalapeno and their assorted, crossed off-spring, Chili Negro, and some Italian hot pepper whose name escapes me.

They're really coming on now. I've been pickling jalapeno slices for a month now, and may have enough - 50-odd pints - to get me through the winter.
highalttransplant
14 years ago
Nice picture, Steve!!!

The funny thing about that first "red" pepper, is that it was supposed to be a yellow! My NOT Costeno Amarillo plants have been early and productive. Not tremendous amount of flavor, but would be good in a chile powder.

I've still got a whole lot of green pods, mostly habanero types, but the harvests are getting a little bigger each week. I'll post an update on the pepper thread with more details soon.

Wow, David, how many jalapeno plants did you set out this year?
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digit
Original Author
14 years ago
Trying habanero was a gardening failure for me.

The pods didn't even fill out. And, the plants were in the most sheltered location to be found, full sun. Since they are a separate species from the ones I usually raise, I blame that.

Really, there should be more jalapenos in my garden since they do well and can easily reach maturity given a full season. So, seed could be saved. I like jalapenos.

Steve
david52 Zone 6
14 years ago
Bonnie, I just counted, and there are 53 Jalapeno-ish plants. I am considering trying to over-winter a couple of the more spectacular crossed off-spring, and make cuttings in the spring. As well as saving seed.
digit
Original Author
14 years ago
Well, they didn't all turn red:

Probably, many will but the frost Tuesday left some of the pepper plants damaged and the forecast was for Wednesday morning to be even colder! It wasn't but the peppers had been carried out of the garden by that time.

Most varieties, had no real chance to mature this year. The plants enjoyed our nice hot summer - while it lasted. Our much-too-cool spring was real hard on them.

Any suggestions for an open-pollinated pepper similar to Super Chili hybrid? This little guy is just very reliable. I've got Jalapeno M, Garden Salsa, Thai Hot and a Japanese variety that I think has seen its last season in my garden (just too hot!). Oh, and there some open pollinated Thai peppers out there (or, were) that were kind of interesting - and probably all mixed up genetically now.

Steve