Chile peppers are hot, and we love them for it! From mild bell peppers to the insanely hot Bhut Jolokia, peppers can have an incredible heat range. But have you ever wondered why our favorite chile peppers are so hot? Join an American ecologist, his weary team of graduate assistants and scientists, and a curious journalist as they trek through the jungles and deserts of Bolivia in search of the answer.

Read the article from the Smithsonian Magazine by clicking here!

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It’s that time of year here in New Mexico—the air will soon be ripe with the fragrant scent of roasting Hatch green chiles; mouths will water, and tongues will burn. The 2010 Hatch chile season was off to a rough start this year as the New Mexico harvest was delayed due to weather, but this week, chileheads across the country can start salivating as stores put up “Coming Soon” signs for the popular crop.

A message blares on the homepage of Hatch-Chile Express, “Praise God, the 2010 chile season has begun!” The company, along with other producers in the Hatch valley area, is gearing up to begin shipping Hatch chiles this week. The harvest is a quick affair, lasting several weeks from late July to early September. Known for their distinctive taste and quality, the chiles are grown in the Hatch valley in southern New Mexico. Widely held to be the crème-de-la-crème of the chile harvest, Hatch chiles are perfect for roasting and freezing for later. New Mexicans are known for buying 25-100 lb. bags to satisfy their taste buds throughout the year.

If you’re located outside of New Mexico, you might have to wait a week or two for shipments to start appearing in local markets, but as many foodies know, the wait is worth it. Keep your eyes—and noses—peeled for this spicy favorite; they’re guaranteed to go fast!

Can’t get enough Hatch? Check out the Hatch Chile Festival this September!

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I attempt to use organic techniques in the garden whenever possible, although I'm not a True Believer in the classic sense of the term.  One thing I do dislike are chemical herbicides like RoundUp, but I occasionally have used it when the weed situation has gotten out of control and I'm really busy with other things.  No more.  I read that enhanced vinegar--really just 10 percent acetic acid, made from grain alcohol, not glacial acetic acid, desiccates the weeds, drying them out until they die.  And guess what?  It works really, really well on every weed I sprayed it on.  It's made by Soil Mender Products in Tulia, Texas, and you can buy it here.

 

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Cutworms should be called Paul Bunyan worms because when they arrive in your garden, the tender bedding plants resemble newly fallen trees. These are not worms, of course, but caterpillars of small gray moth. They're in the group called solitary surface cutworms because they cut off young plants at the soil line or slightly above or below it, sometimes dropping the severed plants into their burrows. Because most of the plant is not eaten, these cutworms do an amazing amount of damage, attacking and felling new plants nightly, like they did to two of my chile plants this week.

Master gardeners usually describe about a dozen ways to attack or prevent cutworms, but for a small garden the best method is called a cutworm collar. Buy plastic drink cups, or save yogurt containers, and simply cut out the bottom. Position the collars over the plants and push them about a inch below the surface of the soil. These physical barriers need to stay around the plants until (like peppers and tomatoes), the stems become somewhat thick and woody.

Update: Today, while replacing those chopped down plants, I found the cutworm, tossed it onto the gravel, and it was promptly eaten by a robin!

 

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Bonnie Plants, with 62 greenhouse production facilities, 450 sales reps, and 13,000 retail accounts offering vegetable, herb, and flower plants, seems to be the largest bedding plant supplier in the country.  You see their plants in big box stores like Lowe's and Wal-Mart, but also in some local nurseries and supermarkets.  Today I spoke with Chuck at Agra Greenhouses in the South Valley of Albuquerque and asked him why his chile pepper bedding plants were one-fourth the cost of the Bonnie Plants at nearby Wal-Mart.  "It's their business model," he replied.  They grow bazillions of bedding plants and their commissioned sales rep/drivers deliver them on consignment to all the locations, and Bonnie only gets paid when the plants are scanned at the retailer.  The leftover, unsold plants are thrown in the trash.  Maybe they trash 80 percent of what they grow, Chuck explained, and this, of course is why their prices are so high.  But they are convenient and the plants have grown well in my garden and produced well. After many years of doing this, I've figured out the best ways to acquire bedding plants.  The following list describes the methods from cheapest to most expensive.
--buy seeds and grow your own.
--buy bedding plants from local nurseries supplied by local greenhouses.
--buy bedding plants from big box stores.
Of course, if you're looking exotic chile plants, price is no object and you should definitely consider Cross Country Nurseries and their wonderful 500-variety bedding plant mail-order program, here.

 

 

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If you have pepper plants growing in your garden, I assume that you're interested in maximizing the number of pods on each plant. Well, there are a number of factors involved in this process, including: fertilizing, weed control, flowering and pollination, fruiting, and avoiding reaching the fruit load.  Fortunately, we have a complete article on this subject, here.

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On Sunday, May 9, Marco and I worked the chile plant sale and food fair at the Azienda Agraria Sperimentale Stuard (Stuard Agricultural Experiment Station) in Parma with his new products, Spirit of Habanero Grappa and the Habanero Nectar olive oil.  Mario Dadomo, the station director and the “Paul Bosland of Italy” had 442 different varieties of chiles to choose from, which was like having ChilePlants.com in one convenient greenhouse.  Mario asked me if he could be my "bishop"--har, har.  The public was there in good numbers to buy the plants and sample products both spicy and non-spicy.  A group of about 30 Italian chileheads showed up and I had my picture taken with them.  On one side of us was a honey producer and on the other side our friend Mauritzio was selling his jolokia products including the “Big Bang Powder,” so Marco joked that the public could choose from Paradiso (Heaven), Purgatorio (Purgatory), or Inferno (Hell).  This was an allusion to Dante’s Divine Comedy but I’m not sure that the Italians got the literary joke.  As a show producer, it was interesting for me to watch the flow of the crowd: in the morning there was a strong crowd then in dropped off to nothing during lunch and “siesta time,” and then was strong again after about 3pm.  Marco’s sales were good, which bodes well for the new products.  We closed down about 6pm, then drove to a winery with nearly vertical vineyards atop Monte Roma (Mount Rome), 350 meters above sea level.  Then, in typical Italian fashion, another 30-mile drive to dinner at an AgriTurismo (agricultural tourism) restaurant atop another “mountain.”  I loved the grilled sirloin steak served on top of a solid block of salt.  We got back to Marco’s house at midnight—16 hours of  hustle--but fun!

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I spoke over the weekend with Janie Lamson, owner of Cross Country Nurseries and chileplants.com, the largest seller of chile bedding plants with 500 varieties.  She told me about her best-selling varieties from last year, and of them are in the species Capsicum chinense, which has the hottest varieties in the world.  She also told me that her tomato bedding plant sales grew 37%, which doesn't surprise me since chilehead gardeners also also love tomatoes, since they are so compatible in cooking.  Here are Janie's top 5 best sellers.  Order these varieties for April delivery at the link above.

1. 'Bhut Jolokia'

2. 'Red Savina'

3. 'Trinidad Scorpion'

4. 'Fatalii'

5. 'Chocolate Habanero'

 

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Hydroponic Grower Jim Duffy reports from San Diego: "Well I have to say, Dave, that my 'Trinidad Scorpion' crop was not the amount I wanted to produce. But sometimes you have to look at the silver lining. The 'Trinidad Scorpion' is a rare chile all by itself. Very few supply seeds and only this year did more than just a few people grow it here in the good old U.S.A. So when one of my potted plants produced a yellow pod, I was excited. This plant is an isolated plant and yellow Scorpions would be nice to have in my seed bank. But it was the only yellow pod the plant produced. Then I started seeing more pods turning yellowish. And then it happened. Every pod on that plant except the first yellow one were turning bright orange! Now I have heard that there is an orange Scorpion but never found a pic on the Web. Now my entire plant was going from green to orange. Not one red pod to be found. Sad to say the plant is dying but most pods will turn before I pull it up. So here is a treat for your readers. A pic of red, yellow and orange 'Trinindad Scorpions' all together! No Scorpion bumper crop this year, but I will take one rare plant over 50 common ones any day!"

I never saw this variety during my two trips to Trinidad, where the 'Congo Pepper' is so dominant, for good reason: its extreme heat and extreme size.  Look at this one in Mary Jane's hand.  When I cut it open to get the seeds, the fumes drove us out of our room at the Kapok Hotel in Port of  Spain!

 

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Lately the Internet has come alive with images of pepper pods that transcend the bounds of common decency.  Some unscrupulous people are actually posting them in their blogs to drive more traffic!  Imagine!  John Perea of Hot Rod Pickles (yes, a real company name) sent me the image to the left of a tumescent pod that I call "Horny Jalapeño."  Then there are the images of the pods that women love the most, the infamous 'Peter Peppers', and they are flushed red with excitement.  Notice that they are in the hands of a person of the male persuasion.  I'm not sure if that's gay or not.  And finally, my very own co-author and close friend, Dr. Paul Boland, a highly decorated Regent's Professor at New Mexico State University, insisted, over my vehement protests, that we publish a photo of an immature--but precocious--'Peter Pepper' in our new tome, The Complete Chile Pepper Book. The world is going to hell in a garden basket!

 

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