Q I’ve been reading up about Chili Peppers as I enjoy Mexican food. I’m now anxious to plant a few but there are so many varieties. Which varieties do the best in this area?
A. The popularity of Chili Peppers is increasing as more folks enjoy hot and spicy foods. Location, location, location is a key with Chili Peppers as they like warm days and nights to produce. They must have nighttime temperatures over fifty-five degrees. May is an ideal month to set out transplants or seedlings started in mid-March. In most years, the rainy season has concluded and we are warming up. Seeds started today will be ready to the open ground in eight weeks or so. If you set your transplants out to early they will not bloom. Without blossoms, you get no production. Chilis take a little time to mature. If all is well, the flower petals will drop off as the green middle part of the flower starts to swell slightly. This is the chili pepper beginning to grow. The soil preparation for peppers is the same as with any other type of summer vegetable. With our clay soil, you need to be generous with the soil amendments for adequate drainage. Peppers don’t like soggy feet. In addition, the organic type vegetable fertilizers, such as Dr. Earth are perfect for peppers. They have shallow roots so be gentle when you cultivate and to conserve moisture and suppress weeds, mulching is recommended. Also, stake your pepper plants, as they can become top heavy as the crop matures. They’re harvested by clipping them off with a pair of scissors, don’t pull; otherwise, you’ll damage the plants.
There are so many varieties because of the demand for hot, and even hotter varieties. Hence, the right variety for you is directly related to how much heat your month is ready to except. The chemical, which gives chilli pepper its heat, is called capsaicin. They also accumulate heat as they mature so they’ll be milder when they’re green and hotter as they ripen to a deep red. The hottest part of the chilli is the white flesh that attaches to the seeds to the inside of the pepper. This can be removed if you want to limit the heat.
William Scoville is credited with inventing Scoville Heat Unit Scale (SHU), which measure the pungency of Chili Peppers. Bell or sweet peppers have a zero rating. Here are a few of the hot peppers and their ratings: Jalapeno 10,000 SHU, Cayenne, 30.000 SHU, and Habanero, 100,000 SHU. For the first time, plants for one of the hottest pepper in the world, is available. The Ghost Pepper, Bhut Jolokia, is four hundred times hotter than Tabasco Sauce, 1,000,000+ SHU and this year Trinidad Scorpion will be available. This hot pepper is in at taste bud melting range of 2,000,000 SHU.
Note: Capsaicin is an irritant and key ingredient of Mace or pepper spray. It’s important to either use gloves when handling chilies or thoroughly wash hand afterwards. Anyone who has inadvertently rubbed their eyes after handling a pepper knows why.
Buzz Bertolero is Executive Vice President of Navlet’s Garden Centers and a California Certified Nursery Professional. His web address is www.dirtgardener.com and you can send questions by email at dirtgarden@aol.com or to 360 Civic Drive Ste. ‘D’, Pleasant Hill, Calif. 94523 and on Facebook at Facebook.com/Buzz.Bertolero
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