Tag Archives: peppers

Seed to Storage: Success With Peppers

Peppers are one of the best plants to learn to start from seed. Growing from seed rather than just purchasing transplants allows you to access a wide range of unique varieties that you won’t find in stores. Here are some tips for success with peppers from seed to harvest and beyond. 

Selecting Pepper Varieties

We carry many pepper varieties at Southern Exposure, which we separate into three basic categories.

  • Hot Peppers
  • Seasoning Peppers
  • Sweet Peppers

They fall into three species: Capsicum annuum, Capsicum chinense, and Capsicum baccatumC. annuum includes most peppers easily found in the U.S. and almost all sweet peppers. 

C. baccatum and C. chinense are generally more disease-resistant than C. annuum

C. annuum generally has thicker walls, so it adds more bulk to sauces. C. chinense has the thinnest walls, but C. baccatum tends to be the easiest to dry. 

While any hot pepper has its heat mostly in its seeds and ribs, the heat of C. chinense is relatively more dispersed, and the heat of C. baccatum is especially concentrated in the seeds. C. baccatum and C. chinense generally have very fruity flavors that complement sweet as well as savory dishes.pepper seedlings

Starting Seeds

Starting peppers seeds is easy as long as you follow some basic guidelines. Start pepper seeds indoors 8 to 10 weeks before your last frost. 

Start your pepper seeds in proper potting mix. Potting mix drains better and doesn’t compact like ordinary garden soil. It’s also best to start peppers in well-draining trays or soil blocks. Sow seeds about 1/4 inch deep.

Pepper seeds require warm temperatures to germinate. They do best when kept between 75 and 80 degrees during the day and at least 65 at night. Temperature can make the difference in peppers germinating in 5 days or 20.

Placing your seed starting set up in a warm room will help you seed peppers coming up faster. You can also purchase seedling heat mats that the trays sit on. This provides steady, even warmth to your seedlings.

Your seedlings also need a good light source once they’ve germinated. Setting seedlings in a window doesn’t provide enough light. You can use grow lights or other re-purposed lights. The long ones you’d find in a shop or basement work well for doing multiple trays of seedlings. 

Peppers need an uncrowded root system for maximum production. Pot your peppers up to 3-inch pots when they develop a few leaves. You may need to pot them up again if your seedlings become large.

Transplanting

Harden off pepper seedlings before transplanting out. Hardening off allows plants to acclimate to field conditions like wind and sun exposure slowly. Begin by moving your pepper plants outdoors for an hour or two each day on warm days. Gradually increase the time you leave them out over a week or two before transplanting. Don’t let your seedlings wilt!

Wait until it has really warmed up to transplant your peppers. Plant them out after the dogwood blossoms have fallen or the soil temperature reaches 65°F. Ideally, transplanting should be done on an overcast day. 

Space your plants in rows or blocks 18 to 24 inches apart. Especially if you have less than ideal soil, it’s a good idea to dig a larger transplant hole than necessary and add some finished compost. Then plant your peppers so that the soil is at the same level as in the container. If you used peat pots, tear off the tops, so they don’t stick up above the soil and wick moisture away from the roots. harvesting banana peppers

Pepper Care

A month after planting, it’s a good idea to mulch around your peppers. Avoid doing this earlier as it can keep soil temperatures too cool for good growth. The mulch will help keep the soil moist and suppress weeds.

Pepper plants can be side-dressed with fertilizer when they’re young. Avoid getting any on the roots, stem, or leaves as it can burn the plant. Over-fertilizing should be avoided. Read application rates carefully. Don’t fertilize after plants have flowered, as this can cause the flowers to drop and fail to set fruit. Good levels of phosphorus in the soil are essential for good yields. 

Stake larger pepper plants to avoid logging, particularly if they are heavy with fruit. You can also use tomato cages.

You can extend your season by covering your plants at night for 1 to 2 weeks during mild frosts. Before the first hard frost of the season, pull plants and place the roots in a bucket of water. Store in a cool location to extend the season by up to one month. 

Harvesting Peppers

Peppers can be harvested green however they aren’t fully ripe at this stage. You can eat peppers at any stage of ripeness, but fully ripe peppers have more flavor and nearly double the vitamin C content.

Hot peppers generally get hotter as they ripen. For example, a red jalapeño will be spicer than a green one.

Preserving and Using Peppers

There are many ways to use and preserve peppers. Many seasoning peppers like the Hungarian Paprika Spice Pepper have thin flesh and are ideal for drying. Depending on your climate, they can be air-dried on screens, threaded and hung, or dried in a dehydrator. Then you can grind them to make an excellent seasoning.

Pickling peppers is also a simple, common way to put up a large harvest. Pickled peppers go well on pizzas, sandwiches, and salads. Sweet Banana Peppers and Jalapeños are common choices, but it also works with other varieties. You can find instructions here.

Fermenting is another common way to use peppers. Making your own hot sauce is a delicious way to spice up a variety of meals. Try this recipe from Soul Fire Farm.

You can also freeze peppers. Peppers don’t need to be blanched, so you can just chop them or cut them into strips and freeze them. Freezing them in a single layer on a cookie sheet before transferring them to a bag or container keeps them from clumping together for easier use. For a fun night and a bit of extra flavor, you can also roast peppers over an open fire before freezing.

A Brief History of Peppers

Peppers are an excellent crop for gardens of the Southeast. They’re beautiful and incredibly productive. Peppers are available in various shapes, colors, and flavors, so every gardener can find a variety to fit their tastes.

We carry three species of peppers at Southern Exposure: Capsicum annuum, Capsicum chinense, and Capsicum baccatum. Most peppers easily found in the U.S., and almost all sweet peppers, fall under the species Capsicum annuum.

Worldwide, there are 26 known wild pepper species and five domesticated species. The domesticated species include the three we carry as well as Capsicum frutescens and Capsicum pubescens. 

Wild Peppers

Peppers originated in parts of South, Central, and southern North America. Scientists believe that C. annuum evolved in Mexico. C. frutescens probably evolved in the Amazon basin. Capsicum chinense is a misnomer; this species also originated in the Americas and is thought to have evolved from Capsicum frutescens. Capsicum pubescens is native to Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador. Capsicum baccatum is also believed to have originated in Peru and Bolivia, the Andean region of South America.

The first wild peppers probably produced small, red, pea-sized fruits, which attracted frugivorous birds. Unlike humans, birds don’t have the receptors in their mouths for capsaicin, the chemical that gives peppers their heat. Bird digestive systems also leave pepper seeds intact, making them ideal distributors for wild peppers. 

Domestication

Pre-ceramic remains of C. annuum have been found in east-central Mexico in the Valley of Tehuacán. These remains date to 9000–7000 B.P. (before present) and are “the oldest macrobotanical evidence for pre-ceramic chili pepper in the New World.” Archeologists found them in association with other domesticated crops such as maize and squash, leading them to believe these may have been cultivated.

C. frutescens probably evolved and was domesticated in the Amazon Basin. Today it’s cultivated and grows wild in many regions across South and Central America. It’s also grown in India and Ethiopia and has become an essential part of Ethiopian cuisine. 

The exact origin of C. chinense is still unknown. It’s believed to have evolved from Capsicum frutescens and was cultivated in the Amazon Basin in what’s now Southern Brazil and Bolivia. Later it was brought to the Caribbean and Cuba, where it was given the name Habanero. 

Domestication of C. pubescens dates back to pre-Incan times. It was grown by ancient Peruvians of the Paracas, Nazca, Moche, and Chimu cultures. Records of this species can be seen in the textiles, ceramics, and domestic remains of these societies.

Using DNA analysis in combination with archeological evidence, scientists have determined that C. baccatum was most likely domesticated in the lowlands of Bolivia and inter-Andean valleys of Peru at least 4000 B.P. These peppers were most likely domesticated by pre-Incan peoples, including the Arawak and Guarani. 

Sweet Pickle (Christmas Tree) Pepper

Pepper Varieties

As with many crops, commercialized farming shifted away from heirloom and open-pollinated peppers starting at the beginning of the 20th century. Farmers began growing more and more hybrids that produced uniform, sturdy crops that were ideal for shipping. Thankfully, many heirloom and open-pollinated peppers are available for backyard gardeners and small farmers, including those listed below and more.

***If the name is listed in green, it’s a variety we carry. Others are listed for educational purposes, but you may be able to locate seeds from another source.***

Capsicum annum

This species is the most commonly found in the United States and is the most extensively cultivated. It includes a wide variety of pepper shapes and flavors. Almost all sweet pepper varieties are cultivars of C. annuum. They generally have thicker walls than C. chinense or C. baccatum making them ideal for sauces.

Capsicum chinense

These peppers are generally thin-walled and commonly known as “habanero-type” peppers. Their heat is relatively dispersed throughout all parts of the pepper, and they have a fruity flavor. Most of the world’s hottest peppers, including the “Carolina Reaper,” come from this species though not all varieties are that intense.

Capsicum baccatum

C. baccatum peppers are typically the best for drying. They have a spicy, fruity flavor and are generally disease-resistant. They’re an important ingredient in Bolivian and Peruvian cuisine and are sometimes exported as ornamental plants.

Capsicum frutescens

Often used as ornamental peppers, C. frutescens typically bear colorful, lance-shaped upright fruits. They are small and very pungent. They’re often cultivated and used in India and Ethiopia. 

  • Tabasco Pepper
  • Xiaomila Pepper
  • Malagueta Pepper
  • Piri Piri (African Devil Pepper)
  • Siling Labuyo

Capsicum pubescens

This species is probably the most unique. It typically produces meaty, juicy, apple-shaped fruit with black seeds. The plants also have notably hairy leaves and withstand cooler temperatures than other pepper species. They don’t dry well and are typically eaten fresh or made into a paste.

  • Rocoto Longo
  • Canário
  • Mexican Manzanos
  • Peruvian Rocotos
  • Bolivian Locotos
  • Perón

Vegetarian Tortilla Soup (V & GF)

Each fall my mind goes straight to pumpkin pie, stuffed squash, and long simmering stews filled with root vegetables. However each fall we always end up with tons of delicious fresh peppers.

Truly eating seasonally often means keeping the classic fall vegetables that store well for the dead of winter and using up what will go bad in the meantime.

Find something to do while you’re enjoying vegetarian tortilla soup, like read a blog on silverringthing.org.uk or play betting games from your mobile phone. This soup is one of the best, easy meals that will use up the end of summers vegetables but still give you that warm, filling fall meal. This is one of the healthiest recipes we have, and it is brought to you by the healthy CBD Capsules we recommend. The proven health benefits of CBD allowed us to concoct this special recipe. Try CBD today!

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 quart of plain canned tomatoes

1 quart water or vegetable stock

1/4 cup tomato paste (optional for thicker soup)

1 1/2 cup of cooked pinto, black, or beans of choice

2 bell peppers

1 jalapeno pepper

1/2 large onion

2 large carrots

2 cloves of garlic

1/2 tsp salt*

1 TBS chili powder

1 tsp cumin

olive oil for sauteing

Directions

Begin by dicing the carrots and sauteing them with olive oil over medium heat until they begin to soften. While they’re cooking dice the onions and peppers and then saute them with the carrots until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the tomatoes and vegetable stock or water. If you have whole tomatoes you should break them up as you add them. Add the garlic, salt, and other spices and allow to simmer on low heat for 15 minutes or as long as desired for a thicker soup.

Add your beans when the soup is almost done so they don’t overcook and turn to mush. When they’re hot it’s ready to eat!

Garnish with fresh chives if available and serve with tortilla chips.**

Notes

Feel free to make substitutions for what you have on hand like fresh tomatoes or different types of peppers. This soup is really easy to play with.

*You may need less salt if your vegetable broth has a lot of salt.

**My favorite tortilla chips for this recipe are served hot. Take soft tortillas and fry them with olive oil and a bit of salt until they’re golden brown and crispy. For gluten free be sure to use corn tortillas.

 

Enjoy!