I work in a community garden here in southern Oregon, that produces food for the local food pantries. Peppers are popular. We grow rows of several hot types and many sweet/cooler types. Agree with you on the California Wonder bell pepper - it grows slow, distorted shapes, easily gets big rotten parts. But, the Big Bertha bell pepper is amazing! Highly prolific, huge peppers with a nice thick wall. These are easily 8" long, and 3" wide. Just take them at green stage. Don't wait for the red color. Just like all of the bells, the red happens too late or never. It keeps well in the fridge too.
I bought a small California wonder pepper plant at the supermarket (H.E.B.) a few months ago and im on my second little harvest of peppers....i did have a problem with 'leaf miners' after the first harvest but after cutting all the affected leaves it rewarded me with 4 new flowers....so far so good , maybe they like my area (south Texas)
Hi I live in Newcastle Australia & have had success growing red rocoto peppers. I also have a very healthy Marlene Rocoto pepper. I have them growing in the ground against my house wall on the eastern side. Also my soil is constantly damp. Still growing now in June, our early winter
I’m in Minnesota and the Sugar Rush Peach has been one of my top producing peppers with the fewest issues. Excited to see what new peppers you’re trying this season. Thanks for the videos!
I agree with your statement. First year doing the sugar rush peach peppers and it did fantastic. Huge yild for one plant and no disease or pest problems really.
Pepper Geeks, Where are you guys located question? Mark. I live in Berlin New Hampshire and I want to start growing some peppers like jalapeno and Serranos! I also like cherry peppers. I just don't want them too hot because I can't do it anymore like that. I used to be able to eat habeneros on a frequent basis! Or at least cook with them! I love the guidance you give All of us however I want to learn more because I'd like to start. Really growing these things so that I can use them in my salsa.
So grateful you listed California Wonder. It's a dismal plant to grow. Starts out looking great but just after the first pepper sets, it's downhill and not worth it. Thank you!!!
I gave up on them. As a life long gardener I started growing them 50 years ago. But as the years passed they got more inclined to disease. For everyday use I now grow Shepherd peppers instead.
Funny about Carolina Reapers. I also grew them once, many years ago and found that the plants took way too long to get their arses in gear and by the time the peppers were set, our growing season (here in the Canadian Prairies) was all but over. My limited space was too valuable to waste with such a lackadaisical pepper. But now, after 15 seasons or so, I really just grow a few flavourful peppers without concerning myself about the Scoville heat level. Thanks for the interesting video.
When you said 1 CR pepper is way too much for a bottle of hot sauce, that would have been good to know earlier this year when I made my first hot sauce using 12 dried reapers, w/ (grilled pineapple and some cayenne).
I made one batch of sauce for a workmate who insisted he wanted hotter, so he got 1/3 Naga Viper, 1/3 Reaper, and 1/3 Dragons Breath (all smoked fresh off the plants) with some salt and just enough vinegar to make it pourable. I named it "Dumb Ass" in reference to my workmate.....who supposedly finished it off.
For Bell Peppers I have always had great luck with the King Arthur Bell Pepper. Have grown them for 20 years here in the Southwestern Part of Virginia. Great taste and very thick and meaty.
we had sugar rush peach last year worked perfectly with the pot in the greenhouse between the tomatoes, great harvest no issues we also had zhou pi la jiao which worked great, had a wonderful colour and made a good sauce
This year will be my biggest foray into peppers. Last count I have 22 varieties of peppers and at least one variety from each of the 5 species. Perhaps next year I will have a list of peppers I won't be growing. Keep the content coming...you guys are a big part of why I am so pepper crazed.
I’m not growing any peppers this year. My wife and I are expecting to be moving by July, so I don’t want to be starting to harvest them and then leave them behind. I have convinced my sister to grow some though, so I’m starting some for her.
Just founds yalls channel yesterday. This is my first year growing anything and I’m going all in and doing 10 different kinds of peppers as well as a few other things as well. Yalls videos have been some great education for me so thank you for making them!
Haha! I grow them pretty much because they're so pretty! I use a few peppers here and there in cooking but mostly the plants look so pretty when they're loaded down with all of those colorful peppers!
I like your logic. I grew a ghost pepper a few decades ago and sold each pepper for two dollars using maybe 4.. now habaneros I would love a flavor recommends for that level of hot.
I love the Red Rocoto! I grow in a pot, and bring in during hostile weather. This one will overwinter under lights at room temps and produce if you use an artist brush to pollinate.
I'm glad to hear the Pepper Geek also has trouble with California Wonder. I thought it was supposed to be the gold standard of bell peppers and there was something wrong with my gardening skills! I will be definitely trying different varieties of bell peppers this year. Thanks! 😂
@@luisadovalo You can always try and see how well they work in your area. I did not have mulch luck with them in zone 6, but I did get a few small, thin- skinned peppers out of them.
Too brag patch oriented is problem. Need good air movement. Time of day you water can be trouble; I avoid cooling down at sunset. Bugs are like traveling salesmen for illnesses. Too dry, too wet and infrequent watering. Got to be well-drained. Plant in ridges if need. Pots? Always second choice. Digging up garden plants to bring in? Well.... Do before a nip in air and dry. Plenty of sun needed. One of easiest plants. Troubled to hear of difficulties. Hot peppers: heat for survival. Mold, bugs etc. Perrenial grown as annual. Keep long time. Happy gardening.
If you can get your hands on them, red knight bell peppers were amazing for me last year. The peppers are a little smaller but they produced twice as many as my other bell pepper plants and its also a disease and pest resistant plant.
It was funny to hear Pepper Geek talking about the Carolina reaper, because this was literally me the first year. Had to grow it to get that “cred.” sugar rush stripey gave me so many issues last year. Thanks for all the helpful videos!
Greetings from the lower Hudson valley of New York. I gave up on bell peppers years ago and grow conical sweet peppers instead (Carmen has worked best for me). I love having guajillo peppers but they are a bit finicky & take forever to ripen so this year I am trialing Anaheims to potentially replace them. Lastly I decided to try Chinese 5 color peppers as ornamental additions to containers by our front door. The annual must-grows in my garden also include: poblano & Fresno & cayenne. I make a Louisiana style fermented sauce w the fresnos. Have just started my seeds for all!
I'm in zone 7a in Northern Virgina, but in a forest which acts like a more northerly zone so I understand you r concern about time to ripen, it colors all my growing decisions. I have gotten a lot of mileage from medium-sized peppers (usually medium to low to no heat) and they tend to be much tastier than Bell peppers; and in some case competitive pinr total poundage per square foot. I've done OK with Carmen and Marconi, but particularly like Jimmy Nardello, Corbaci, Sweet Pimento, and Gernika (as well as a bunch of medium heat Mediterranean varieties I'm still trying out). Anaheim is a mild New Mexico-ish pepper that is reluctant to turn red, but tastes good green, I've grown it for many years. Chinese 5 Color is an ornamental -- good heat and taste but too many seeds, really optimized for pod appearance. OK for indoor growing and small containers. There are much more beautiful ornamentals and some are better for eating.
Lower Hudson Valley here and the shishito and scotch bonnets are doing well. Probably won’t grow the bells again and stick to Marconis Anaheim and Thai chilis. Jalapeños and banana peppers grow pretty quickly for an early harvest
I grew my first Sugar Rush Peach last summer and is now my favorite. I only had six plants but had absolutely no issues. They were my best prolific pepper plant in the greenhouse (we live in North Idaho). I froze them, made Chile powder after dehydrating them, pickled and canned them. Best peppers ever. The flavor and aroma are fantastic. I don’t know why you had issues, I sure didn’t.
I wasn’t impressed by sugar rush peach. They were loaded with fruits, but they take forever to ripen in my Ohio garden. They’re not tasty unless they’re peach colored. They do make an interesting hot sauce that is reminiscent of horseradish. I grow horseradish so I have no need for that in a pepper.
I've always had issues with small peppers or blossom end rot when growing California Wonder. I have great yields of every other pepper but figured my issues with the plants were just me. Probably moving to better bell pepper varieties moving forward thanks to this video!
Interesting about the sugar rush. I had three sugar rush peach plants last year and they were probably my most productive plants and had no issues. I’m trying the stripey this year. I’m also doing the buena mulata so we’ll see how those go.
I love the taste of fully ripe sugar rush peppers, and they can indeed be very productive too. In the right climate they would rank a lot higher. But they are very slow to ripen and do not like a lot of wet weather. I didn't do as careful a taste test, but found buena mulata took a lot longer to ripen then more traditional cayennes and saw no real benefit other than the pretty purple color. Speaking of purple, another one I'm not growing this year is Pimenta de Neyde, which is both beautiful and tasty, but it is hard to tell when they are ripe. But they are productive, healthy, and lent genes to a lot of other groundbreaing beautiful and hot variants, and I expect I'll grow them again later. I am however continuing to grow (non-spicy) Pippin's Golden Honey from saved seeds, which are more reliable in my climate than the seeds I started from. They do take a while to ripen, but if you wait long enough they are very sweet and delicious, and beautiful along the way.
I've been at this house for 3 years and have been working hard to get good soil in my garden. So far, Jalapeno's have been the best producers. I've been trying hard to get Tobasco peppers going and they grow but are lackluster. When we moved here the garden plot was pretty much a sand lot so we're heading in the right direction.
I grew sugar rush cream pepper plants this year from seed, though these plants won't have enough time to fruit this year. They are very alive with a high germination rate, but I'll need to try again next year to actually get peppers out of them. I live in South Carolina.
Rocoto peppers are probably my favorite. I have accumulated a fairly decent variety of them. I am in RI. I have had decent luck with them. Trying the Sugar Rush Stripey for the first time this year. Saw it on your channel.
I grew sugar rush peach this year. I didn't have any of the issues you mentioned, I wasn't that impressed with the peppers, but it was CRAZY productive. I took over 300 peppers off that plant & it's still going.
Last year I had one mariachi pepper plant it grew well and produced well it had a very good flavor and had a little less heat than jalapeño I pickled them and canned them they were delicious pickled and mild enough to eat right out of the jar I will definitively plant them again
I am growing the first three you listed. Having Peruvian friends I had to get Roccotto this year- it is such a beautiful plant but I only have one pod on it so far. Glad I’m not the only one not getting fruit.
I'm growing reapers mostly as a personal challenge, just to see if I can actually get anything from them in zone 5b/6a. I can handle them, but they're not my favorite. I figure if I can grow a reaper I'll learn enough to be better at growing ghost peppers, which I absolutely love the flavor of.
I'm not into Bell peppers,too. They just don't grow that good in my garden. But Rocotos do pretty well, cause it's not to hot here most of the time and they can handle that kinda weather better than the Chinense. They definitely take forever to ripen but it's worth it ☺️
The best success I've had with Sugar Rush Peach peppers is growing them indoors as a fun winter project. I've never had problems with disease indoors. My biggest complaint is that the pods take forever to ripen! Beautiful pepper!
I've successfully grown Sugar Rush peach 3 years in a row in Michigan, but only about 25% of them ever make it to ripe before frost hits and I have to start them indoors in Feb.
The thing I won't grow next time is the Brazilian Starfish. I have a quite small balcony and that plant grows huge. Has many-many pods but they don't ripen, just staying green (last year this happened and this year it seems so too, not sure if it's the climate or what). Btw I'm totally with you regarding the reaper and other senselessly hot ones.
Totally agree on the reaper, but I LOVE my Buena Malata! I have been enjoying my indoor grown one for 2 years or so. Very plentiful and I love the straight black pepper taste with extra heat! And you can't beat that purple! The orange when going ripe is so inviting too!
I grew an Amazing Rocoto one year, lots of peppers, healthy plant and that was about 10 year's ago and i still try every year but with less than desirable results. This year I've germinated 3 from seeds that were harvested 2 years ago and im going to play with locations but i think i will put more effort into building good fertile soil instead of just buying miracle grow potting mix, which i did not do the time i was successful. I love these peppers so much I'm willing to keep trying until I get it right.
I have 2 x sugar rush stripey's, 2 x Aji lemon's and 3 x orange fish peppers which have all reached fruiting stage now. They are all growing very fast and they love the sub tropical climate we have here in Brisbane , Australia. I will be at the stage of what to keep and what to throw away once the season is over and I have made some chutneys and jams full of chilli's of course to really put them all to test.
One of my favorite things about your videos is that you so often refer to peppers or pepper plants as 'beautiful'. Your love for peppers really shows. Aww.
Ok, @2:50, I have a purple cayenne that will knock your socks off! The original plant took almost a year of careful nurturing. It literally was a seedling with 2 purple leaves and a purple stem for almost 6 months. Then it grew. And it's peppers, while being "cayenne" are as hot as an Habanero. The peppers start as a dark purple, then ripen to a bright cherry-red. Also, this is from the Denver metro area.
I love the reapers they are a big success with the family when I cook bengali curry dishes so I have 5 plants this year 😂 but yes I agree there are so many other varieties of super hots and I can’t wait to try and grow more of these next year.
I have bell peppers that survived the insane bug pressure, humidity and mold/diseases of Florida. They were planted last year, survived all through the winter and are already making bell peppers for me. One of them is already huge and turning yellow. I have red, yellow and orange pepper plants. My jalapenos are also producing fruit right now. They are from Bonnie and I got them at the local Lowes in town.
I grew 1 bell pepper plant last year because my wife insisted. I protested, and once again it disappointed. Good thing I had 6 Ajvarski plants to compensate. That one will always be a staple in my garden now!
I've grown California Wonder Bells for 3 years with very little success too. Disease was a real issue. Needless to say I won't be growing them again here in Southeast Texas. This year I'm growing Serrano, Altiplano Serrano, Impala Serrano, Jedi Jalapeno, Gigante Jalapeno, Red Dragon cayenne, Habanero, and per your suggestion Ceyennetta.
Birds eye chili. I had a great plant growing indoors in the UK. Loads of flowers but... no chilis. I'm guessing that it is not self fertile and I do not have room for two.
@@bobthebomb1596 If it is similar to thai birds eye, try misting the top air of the plant then use an electric shaver at the nodes or branches where the flowers are at. They like warm temperature 27-32deg C, my night temperature is usually at 27 deg C they will still set fruit even with warm nights. Humidity 60-80% seems fine, but outside that range the fruit doesn't set too well.
The only pepper plant of mine that did terribly was my jalapeno because it was being ravished by aphids terribly. Like top to bottom every single flower and most leaves became covered within days. I tried neem oil, and even tried sevin (last resort) still huge problems. This year i did serrano, sugar rush peach, nadapeno, lemon jalapeno, datil, and dragon cayenne peppers.
I'm a first timer that saw Carolina Reaper plants at a local nursery. I couldn't help myself... I love Chili and Indian food... it came in a pack of six, so I'm growing 6 Reapers, 1 Green Bell Pepper (just learned that they turn red when ripe...), and 1 Super Chili.
Oh man, we couldn't get the buena mulatas to slow down last year! It was by far our most prolific plant so it must have been our weather or something. We used them for several batches of our best hot sauce with roasted beets!
Hey Todd here from southern Oregon HOTZ , we are a u-pick farm and totally agree with your choices, I run around 60 verity’s, question of your location,this is our 4th year,thanks for the vid
I found the info about sugar rush really interesting as I have just planted the stripey for the first time and out of all my little plants, that is the only one with some sort of issue with the leaves. I'm still very excited about it and hope it will produce fruit but we'll see. Really good video as always by the way.
I stopped growing mexi-bells many years ago and probably won't again. It seemed like I always got them mixed up with sweet bells and then I couldn't give the sweets away. Going the other way, I grew lesya peppers last year for the first time and will grow them every year now. The plants were very prolific and fruit was extremely sweet. Among the thickest flesh of any pepper I ever grew, I left them on the plant until they turned a very deep, dark fire engine red. Never had any wrinkled or rotted. Best tasting red pepper I ever grew. I recommend for everyone to hurry and order lesya seeds ASAP for this growing season. I got mine from Baker Creek (can I write that?) Down side-not good for stuffed peppers because of its shape.
I’m in NY and I stick to Thai peppers and jalapeños. I’m not a generic green pepper fan but love them red, so I’m gonna start those all soon. I love roasted peppers so, I’m planning that out. Thanks for your recommendations.
NJ grower here. Sugar rush were by far my best producer, had 0 disease issues, and survived over wintering. The only down side is the length to ripen. Suprised to see disease and blemishing mentioned. The peach is the best pickled pepper there is. The red makes excellent sriracha, and is great for a pop of color elsewhere. I will say, Jalapenos still stand as the most resilliant peppers I have grown. Resilient to drought, temperautes both high and low, pests, disease and damage. Everyone should grow jalapenos because they are a TANK.
My sugar rush did ok, but I think it gets too much sun, but the plants aren't very big and have some peppers on it. It's an unimpressive plant compared to the aji Rico but I will try it again next year in a different location.
Spot on with the Rocoto and Sugar Rush being problematic (I'm in zone 6B, OH). Great point about Reapers, as there are so many other chinense varieties to grow. I am only continuing my Reapers because I let them cross pollinate and I want to see their evolution since I started back in 2019!
I am glad that they mentioned that they are having difficulty finding peppers suited to their area, as that is usually the biggest reason for disease issues. A stressed plant is far more susceptible to disease. And a plant that is not being grown in conditions that it is bred for, will always be stressed and more prone to disease. As for flavor issues with any given pepper variety, that could be an issue with growing in the wrong climate but could also be soil related or even a plant by plant basis. I always recommend that when trying a new variety, you grow at least 4 plants and make sure they are in soil with the best nutrient levels to give them the best chance at being what they are marketed as. If all four plants produce fruit (or other harvestable part) that are all the same and you do not like the results, then you can reconsider that variety. Otherwise you are just as likely to be writing off something that could be wondrous, simply because a single plant had one or more issues. And not all issues that can affect the flavor of a garden product present noticeable effects in the plant itself. Tomato plants for example can have sufficient potassium and phosphorus to grow well, but not sufficient levels to produce the most flavorful fruit. Many plants will change in flavor based on the level of nutrients in the soil. Sweet onions may be sweet no matter what soil you plant them in, but in soils with lower sulfur content they will be even sweeter. Other plants like celery, carrots, and parsnips will all take on a very salty flavor if grown in soils that are high in sodium, yet the plants will show no signs that the nutrient levels in the soil are off.
I can't get the Calif Wonder pepper to germinate. Everything else came up but after TWO plantings with no sprouts I give up. I bought the seeds from a reputable 'famous' online seed company so it's not that. All the other peppers I planted came up just fine with the first planting, so, I'm stumped. Not growing them again, for sure. Love your channel!
I'm in Canada (qc) and this year I'm trying out golden star hybrid and yolo wonder bell/sweet pepper varieties. The Yolo wonder is apparently pretty disease resistant while still being a heirloom variety so you may want to give it a shot
I'd be interested in your opinion; I'm in eastern ON near QC border. Been having huge problem with our hot but short summer and have never managed to grow sweet bell peppers. Only small hot chili type produce for me. What varities do you recommend?
@@vaevictis6990 I'm just across the river from Ottawa. Didn't have much luck before I started sowing them indoors around mid march. This will also be my first year really getting into sweet peppers so I don't have any specific varieties to recommend. That being said, you have 3 options I can think of, all completely acceptable. 1. If you have the ability to start indoors any variety will essentially do as long as you start them early, keep them healthy and don't transplant too early (until nights are around or above 10c) 2. If you cannot start indoors, try to get some early maturing varieties (i.e. anything with early in the name. Find a local/regional seed supplier, they should have a decent selection of varieties suited to your area. You can still start them several weeks before your last frost and take them out on warm sunny days, bringing them inside at night. You have to be vigilant though as they really do not like the cold. 3. I often get a few bell pepper starts from the local nurseries to round out the garden or replace any plants lost to pets. They only cost a couple of bucks so that's always an option if the above solutions are too much trouble.
@Ugo Smith perfect thank you. Yes, we are just getting our indoor seed starting set up this year. I've made the mistake I think of direct sowing in early June when temp is reliably warm. Thanks again!
I agree with you on California Wonder. Although it must do well in California. I've been growing Emerald Giant for an O-P, and hybrids are worth buying seeds for (for us).
Decided not to grow regular cayenne (long slim) this year, needed more heat in my hot sauce so try dragon cayenne ( cayenne crossed with a Thai chili) and decided to throw som Hanoi chilis in the garden
I grew Poblanos over the winter in my greenhouse and they were really pest-prone, slow growing and quite small. I may try growing them outside this spring/summer.
I’m in Tucson and my sugar rush peach is three years old. It produces the most peppers than any pepper plant I’ve owned. It makes the best fermented hot sauce.
Bell type peppers don''t shed rain off their tops and mine get fungus around the stem. I'll try again this year but if again I lose most of them, then that's it. No more. I think the hybrid bells do better than the heirloom based on what I see because my friends buy their plants and for sure those are F1 with resistance to disease. My favourite pepper is the Brazilian Starfish. They grow massive and are super productive just that they ripen late but that's okay so long as they ripen. This year I'm going to put some of the pepper plants in 7 gallon pots. I think they might grow better than in the ground. Scotch bonnets grown in pots on a south facing balcony are super productive. Not so in the ground.
I TOTALLY agree with what you said about the Carolina Reaper!! I had my fun growing them for the last 2 years and they gave me HUGE yields. So much so that I had way more than I could give away because MOST people don't want them. I make my own hot sauces and it is just too hot for most people.
Ghost peppers battling in my area. Big problem with peppers they cross pollinate. I have a Trinidad Scorpio Maruga Peach that does well. But his friends from other growers doesn't. I am gowing to try to grow them from Cuttings in future or keep different kinds apart, but dont always have enough space.
I prefer growing bell peppers - don't like the heat of most peppers. I do grow Cal Wonders and yes they are more challenging than other peppers. I do all container gardening so 1 pepper per 5 gallon pot. I spray(orgaics) for disease and pests and feed monthly and also shade when the temps get really high. I am in zone 10 which works well for peppers. This year I am growing in grow bags and hopefully that will make the harvest even better.
I grow Reapers for the novelty. I especially enjoy planting them in the raised beds out by the road for the people that like to help themselves. Mad Hatters were ok, but not worth the effort. They just took too long to ripen.
Also Zone 9A and I'm excited to find that my favorite pepper is called Sugar Rush (Red)!. Great fresh diced in salads and salsas and it makes the most amazing Sweet/Hot Chili powder. Yeah, it was a start that survived two winters under the grass that grew over it and the tag was long gone. I couldn't remember what it was called! Bush Red? Something like that 🙂 I saved seeds and so far every new plant was another Sugar Rush Red. This years plant is huge, healthy, insanely prolific and disease is not a factor in this climate.
I'm curious I kept hearing about disease prone pepper plants. Have you tried grafting the plants onto diseases resistant varieties stalks? You could potentially double the harvest with one plant and get the benefits of the disease resistance and good tasting peppers
I was considering growing some super hots for the novelty but I couldn’t bring myself to spend a lot of time and money growing a plant which ultimately would go to waste. So I’ve settled on habaneros which I love and the mattapeño. May do some poblanos and biquinho as well
I won't be doing the Sweet Pickle again this year, the plants stayed small without much yield last year. I'm in zone 6b and will be trying out 3 new bells, King of the North, Yellow Monster, and Zulu.
Im going all out on sampling different peppers this year, have 32 varieties to try so far plus whatever I see in the nurseries, hoping to get near 50. Limited space so will have to build a few more beds and bought more grow bags, so hopefully I can make them all fit.
I have the same experience with Roccoto, and that is so sad. I will give it another try this year but I really don't have high hopes for it. It thrives in cooler summers.
My favorite pepper is the super chili. It is compact, super- duper prolific. A nice manageable heat; not too hot. I grow like 3 plants in a 7 gallon pot because they like having friends. One time, for fun, I counted how many I harvested at a time...I stopped counting at 100.
You described my experience with the Carolina Reaper perfectly. I grew 6 Reapers and 6 Trinidad Scorpions and realized I couldn’t use them or give them away (except to people trying to win bets with their friends). My heat level will probably only go to about Habanero or maybe Ghost this year. Also grew a Cajun Bell which is supposed to be a hot Bell, but it was terrible…very small peppers with a soapy taste. I’ve started 15 seedlings each or the Sugar Rush Peach & Stripy this year but now I’m a little apprehensive about growing them after watching your video. Still gonna try though. Good luck and bountiful harvest to y’all!
My neighbor's kid would probably eat some of those peppers. He fancies himself a real, hot pepper eater. He tried some Bulgarian carrot Chiles I grew last year. Then again, the peppers you list are way hotter. I guess try at your own peril.
I have had good luck with Jimmy Nardello here in the N.E.A very fast growing,open branch type of frying pepper with thin walls and nice flavor.Ripens early here.
Rocoto... In the Andes at almost 10,000 feet I grow them like a weed. They love hot days and cool nights.
I work in a community garden here in southern Oregon, that produces food for the local food pantries. Peppers are popular. We grow rows of several hot types and many sweet/cooler types. Agree with you on the California Wonder bell pepper - it grows slow, distorted shapes, easily gets big rotten parts. But, the Big Bertha bell pepper is amazing! Highly prolific, huge peppers with a nice thick wall. These are easily 8" long, and 3" wide. Just take them at green stage. Don't wait for the red color. Just like all of the bells, the red happens too late or never. It keeps well in the fridge too.
I bought a small California wonder pepper plant at the supermarket (H.E.B.) a few months ago and im on my second little harvest of peppers....i did have a problem with 'leaf miners' after the first harvest but after cutting all the affected leaves it rewarded me with 4 new flowers....so far so good , maybe they like my area (south Texas)
Hi I live in Newcastle Australia & have had success growing red rocoto peppers. I also have a very healthy Marlene Rocoto pepper. I have them growing in the ground against my house wall on the eastern side. Also my soil is constantly damp. Still growing now in June, our early winter
I’m in Minnesota and the Sugar Rush Peach has been one of my top producing peppers with the fewest issues. Excited to see what new peppers you’re trying this season. Thanks for the videos!
Glad to see this comment. I'm in Ohio and trying sugar rush peach for the first time this year, have 3 going and hoping for a lot of productivity
I grew them for the first time in SW Idaho last year and they outperformed all the rest. Family and friends are growing them this year.
I agree with your statement. First year doing the sugar rush peach peppers and it did fantastic. Huge yild for one plant and no disease or pest problems really.
Pepper Geeks, Where are you guys located question? Mark. I live in Berlin New Hampshire and I want to start growing some peppers like jalapeno and Serranos! I also like cherry peppers. I just don't want them too hot because I can't do it anymore like that. I used to be able to eat habeneros on a frequent basis! Or at least cook with them! I love the guidance you give All of us however I want to learn more because I'd like to start. Really growing these things so that I can use them in my salsa.
We’re in CT so not too far
I'm really glad y'all found each other.... Truly an inspiration watching you both. Thx
I'm with you on the California Wonder peppers! I've replaced them with the Giant Marconi. Much more flavorful.
So grateful you listed California Wonder. It's a dismal plant to grow. Starts out looking great but just after the first pepper sets, it's downhill and not worth it. Thank you!!!
Yup, it is tough to keep them happy, so we’re moving on to something new
@@intheshell35ify god yes, every single one of mine ended up with sun scald
Yes. Thank you for that note.
I gave up on them. As a life long gardener I started growing them 50 years ago. But as the years passed they got more inclined to disease. For everyday use I now grow Shepherd peppers instead.
Funny about Carolina Reapers. I also grew them once, many years ago and found that the plants took way too long to get their arses in gear and by the time the peppers were set, our growing season (here in the Canadian Prairies) was all but over. My limited space was too valuable to waste with such a lackadaisical pepper. But now, after 15 seasons or so, I really just grow a few flavourful peppers without concerning myself about the Scoville heat level. Thanks for the interesting video.
When you said 1 CR pepper is way too much for a bottle of hot sauce, that would have been good to know earlier this year when I made my first hot sauce using 12 dried reapers, w/ (grilled pineapple and some cayenne).
Jesus man, did you have a death wish?
@@totallynotdelinquent5933 honestly, it was pretty decent, I'd only need a splash of it to spice up whatever I was eating.
I made one batch of sauce for a workmate who insisted he wanted hotter, so he got 1/3 Naga Viper, 1/3 Reaper, and 1/3 Dragons Breath (all smoked fresh off the plants) with some salt and just enough vinegar to make it pourable. I named it "Dumb Ass" in reference to my workmate.....who supposedly finished it off.
@@alanguinn4810 That sounds like it would be super good!!
@@vrmarco4833 It wasn't half bad....as long as you used it sparingly.
I planted a California Wonder plant last year, it grew one pepper and then a storm came along and blew the pepper into the yard.
For Bell Peppers I have always had great luck with the King Arthur Bell Pepper. Have grown them for 20 years here in the Southwestern Part of Virginia. Great taste and very thick and meaty.
we had sugar rush peach last year
worked perfectly with the pot in the greenhouse between the tomatoes, great harvest no issues
we also had zhou pi la jiao which worked great, had a wonderful colour and made a good sauce
This year will be my biggest foray into peppers. Last count I have 22 varieties of peppers and at least one variety from each of the 5 species. Perhaps next year I will have a list of peppers I won't be growing.
Keep the content coming...you guys are a big part of why I am so pepper crazed.
I’m not growing any peppers this year. My wife and I are expecting to be moving by July, so I don’t want to be starting to harvest them and then leave them behind. I have convinced my sister to grow some though, so I’m starting some for her.
Just founds yalls channel yesterday. This is my first year growing anything and I’m going all in and doing 10 different kinds of peppers as well as a few other things as well. Yalls videos have been some great education for me so thank you for making them!
Happy to hear that, thanks for watching! Good luck with your plants this year 👍
Haha! I grow them pretty much because they're so pretty! I use a few peppers here and there in cooking but mostly the plants look so pretty when they're loaded down with all of those colorful peppers!
I like your logic. I grew a ghost pepper a few decades ago and sold each pepper for two dollars using maybe 4.. now habaneros I would love a flavor recommends for that level of hot.
I love the Red Rocoto! I grow in a pot, and bring in during hostile weather. This one will overwinter under lights at room temps and produce if you use an artist brush to pollinate.
I’ll also grew a Trinidad scorpion a couple of years ago, it wasn’t for some reason not extremely hot, but a great flavor
I'm glad to hear the Pepper Geek also has trouble with California Wonder. I thought it was supposed to be the gold standard of bell peppers and there was something wrong with my gardening skills! I will be definitely trying different varieties of bell peppers this year. Thanks! 😂
Oh no! Its my first time growing peppers and I got California Wonder. 😬
@@luisadovalo You can always try and see how well they work in your area. I did not have mulch luck with them in zone 6, but I did get a few small, thin- skinned peppers out of them.
@@cookingsherry8784 im in zone 5a so peppers can any way be a challenge here without a green house.
Too brag patch oriented is problem. Need good air movement. Time of day you water can be trouble; I avoid cooling down at sunset. Bugs are like traveling salesmen for illnesses. Too dry, too wet and infrequent watering. Got to be well-drained. Plant in ridges if need. Pots? Always second choice. Digging up garden plants to bring in? Well.... Do before a nip in air and dry. Plenty of sun needed. One of easiest plants. Troubled to hear of difficulties. Hot peppers: heat for survival. Mold, bugs etc. Perrenial grown as annual. Keep long time. Happy gardening.
If you can get your hands on them, red knight bell peppers were amazing for me last year. The peppers are a little smaller but they produced twice as many as my other bell pepper plants and its also a disease and pest resistant plant.
It was funny to hear Pepper Geek talking about the Carolina reaper, because this was literally me the first year. Had to grow it to get that “cred.” sugar rush stripey gave me so many issues last year. Thanks for all the helpful videos!
Greetings from the lower Hudson valley of New York. I gave up on bell peppers years ago and grow conical sweet peppers instead (Carmen has worked best for me). I love having guajillo peppers but they are a bit finicky & take forever to ripen so this year I am trialing Anaheims to potentially replace them. Lastly I decided to try Chinese 5 color peppers as ornamental additions to containers by our front door. The annual must-grows in my garden also include: poblano & Fresno & cayenne. I make a Louisiana style fermented sauce w the fresnos. Have just started my seeds for all!
love Carmine!!!
Try some of the New Mexican pueblo strains
I find them really hardy to cold, and mine give fruit through winter, where an improved type would of died
I'm in zone 7a in Northern Virgina, but in a forest which acts like a more northerly zone so I understand you r concern about time to ripen, it colors all my growing decisions. I have gotten a lot of mileage from medium-sized peppers (usually medium to low to no heat) and they tend to be much tastier than Bell peppers; and in some case competitive pinr total poundage per square foot. I've done OK with Carmen and Marconi, but particularly like Jimmy Nardello, Corbaci, Sweet Pimento, and Gernika (as well as a bunch of medium heat Mediterranean varieties I'm still trying out).
Anaheim is a mild New Mexico-ish pepper that is reluctant to turn red, but tastes good green, I've grown it for many years. Chinese 5 Color is an ornamental -- good heat and taste but too many seeds, really optimized for pod appearance. OK for indoor growing and small containers. There are much more beautiful ornamentals and some are better for eating.
Lower Hudson Valley here and the shishito and scotch bonnets are doing well. Probably won’t grow the bells again and stick to Marconis Anaheim and Thai chilis. Jalapeños and banana peppers grow pretty quickly for an early harvest
I grew my first Sugar Rush Peach last summer and is now my favorite. I only had six plants but had absolutely no issues. They were my best prolific pepper plant in the greenhouse (we live in North Idaho). I froze them, made Chile powder after dehydrating them, pickled and canned them. Best peppers ever. The flavor and aroma are fantastic. I don’t know why you had issues, I sure didn’t.
Would you be interested in sending someone seeds I’ve been trying to find some real ones
I wasn’t impressed by sugar rush peach. They were loaded with fruits, but they take forever to ripen in my Ohio garden. They’re not tasty unless they’re peach colored. They do make an interesting hot sauce that is reminiscent of horseradish. I grow horseradish so I have no need for that in a pepper.
We're trying them out for the first year in zone 8b!
I've always had issues with small peppers or blossom end rot when growing California Wonder. I have great yields of every other pepper but figured my issues with the plants were just me. Probably moving to better bell pepper varieties moving forward thanks to this video!
Interesting about the sugar rush. I had three sugar rush peach plants last year and they were probably my most productive plants and had no issues. I’m trying the stripey this year. I’m also doing the buena mulata so we’ll see how those go.
I love the taste of fully ripe sugar rush peppers, and they can indeed be very productive too. In the right climate they would rank a lot higher. But they are very slow to ripen and do not like a lot of wet weather.
I didn't do as careful a taste test, but found buena mulata took a lot longer to ripen then more traditional cayennes and saw no real benefit other than the pretty purple color.
Speaking of purple, another one I'm not growing this year is Pimenta de Neyde, which is both beautiful and tasty, but it is hard to tell when they are ripe. But they are productive, healthy, and lent genes to a lot of other groundbreaing beautiful and hot variants, and I expect I'll grow them again later.
I am however continuing to grow (non-spicy) Pippin's Golden Honey from saved seeds, which are more reliable in my climate than the seeds I started from. They do take a while to ripen, but if you wait long enough they are very sweet and delicious, and beautiful along the way.
Where did you get the Buena mulata seeds
@@chompers11 Tradewinds Fruits
Thank you for the video. I hope you update about the bell pepper varieties that work.
Absolutely, that is the plan. Growing around 5 new varieties to find which grows best in our climate (Connecticut)
I've been at this house for 3 years and have been working hard to get good soil in my garden. So far, Jalapeno's have been the best producers. I've been trying hard to get Tobasco peppers going and they grow but are lackluster. When we moved here the garden plot was pretty much a sand lot so we're heading in the right direction.
I grew sugar rush cream pepper plants this year from seed, though these plants won't have enough time to fruit this year. They are very alive with a high germination rate, but I'll need to try again next year to actually get peppers out of them. I live in South Carolina.
Rocoto peppers are probably my favorite. I have accumulated a fairly decent variety of them. I am in RI. I have had decent luck with them. Trying the Sugar Rush Stripey for the first time this year. Saw it on your channel.
I loved the Sugar Rush Peach every year I have had one growing I had a lot of good tasting fruit with a decent amount of heat as well.
I grew sugar rush peach this year. I didn't have any of the issues you mentioned, I wasn't that impressed with the peppers, but it was CRAZY productive. I took over 300 peppers off that plant & it's still going.
I've cut way back on my super hots too. Only growing 2 varieties this year
Last year I had one mariachi pepper plant it grew well and produced well it had a very good flavor and had a little less heat than jalapeño I pickled them and canned them they were delicious pickled and mild enough to eat right out of the jar I will definitively plant them again
I am growing the first three you listed. Having Peruvian friends I had to get Roccotto this year- it is such a beautiful plant but I only have one pod on it so far. Glad I’m not the only one not getting fruit.
I'm growing reapers mostly as a personal challenge, just to see if I can actually get anything from them in zone 5b/6a. I can handle them, but they're not my favorite. I figure if I can grow a reaper I'll learn enough to be better at growing ghost peppers, which I absolutely love the flavor of.
I'm not into Bell peppers,too. They just don't grow that good in my garden. But Rocotos do pretty well, cause it's not to hot here most of the time and they can handle that kinda weather better than the Chinense. They definitely take forever to ripen but it's worth it ☺️
The best success I've had with Sugar Rush Peach peppers is growing them indoors as a fun winter project. I've never had problems with disease indoors. My biggest complaint is that the pods take forever to ripen! Beautiful pepper!
I've successfully grown Sugar Rush peach 3 years in a row in Michigan, but only about 25% of them ever make it to ripe before frost hits and I have to start them indoors in Feb.
The thing I won't grow next time is the Brazilian Starfish. I have a quite small balcony and that plant grows huge. Has many-many pods but they don't ripen, just staying green (last year this happened and this year it seems so too, not sure if it's the climate or what). Btw I'm totally with you regarding the reaper and other senselessly hot ones.
Totally agree on the reaper, but I LOVE my Buena Malata! I have been enjoying my indoor grown one for 2 years or so. Very plentiful and I love the straight black pepper taste with extra heat! And you can't beat that purple! The orange when going ripe is so inviting too!
I grew an Amazing Rocoto one year, lots of peppers, healthy plant and that was about 10 year's ago and i still try every year but with less than desirable results. This year I've germinated 3 from seeds that were harvested 2 years ago and im going to play with locations but i think i will put more effort into building good fertile soil instead of just buying miracle grow potting mix, which i did not do the time i was successful. I love these peppers so much I'm willing to keep trying until I get it right.
I have 2 x sugar rush stripey's, 2 x Aji lemon's and 3 x orange fish peppers which have all reached fruiting stage now. They are all growing very fast and they love the sub tropical climate we have here in Brisbane , Australia. I will be at the stage of what to keep and what to throw away once the season is over and I have made some chutneys and jams full of chilli's of course to really put them all to test.
One of my favorite things about your videos is that you so often refer to peppers or pepper plants as 'beautiful'. Your love for peppers really shows. Aww.
Ok, @2:50, I have a purple cayenne that will knock your socks off!
The original plant took almost a year of careful nurturing.
It literally was a seedling with 2 purple leaves and a purple stem for almost 6 months.
Then it grew. And it's peppers, while being "cayenne" are as hot as an Habanero.
The peppers start as a dark purple, then ripen to a bright cherry-red.
Also, this is from the Denver metro area.
I love the reapers they are a big success with the family when I cook bengali curry dishes so I have 5 plants this year 😂 but yes I agree there are so many other varieties of super hots and I can’t wait to try and grow more of these next year.
I have bell peppers that survived the insane bug pressure, humidity and mold/diseases of Florida. They were planted last year, survived all through the winter and are already making bell peppers for me. One of them is already huge and turning yellow. I have red, yellow and orange pepper plants. My jalapenos are also producing fruit right now. They are from Bonnie and I got them at the local Lowes in town.
I grew 1 bell pepper plant last year because my wife insisted. I protested, and once again it disappointed. Good thing I had 6 Ajvarski plants to compensate. That one will always be a staple in my garden now!
I've grown California Wonder Bells for 3 years with very little success too. Disease was a real issue. Needless to say I won't be growing them again here in Southeast Texas. This year I'm growing Serrano, Altiplano Serrano, Impala Serrano, Jedi Jalapeno, Gigante Jalapeno, Red Dragon cayenne, Habanero, and per your suggestion Ceyennetta.
Birds eye chili. I had a great plant growing indoors in the UK. Loads of flowers but... no chilis.
I'm guessing that it is not self fertile and I do not have room for two.
I self pollinate mine, when they are indoors
@@Herbalgreen25 That's interesting. I did try but with no luck. Might be I suffered a "grower malfunction!"
@@bobthebomb1596 If it is similar to thai birds eye, try misting the top air of the plant then use an electric shaver at the nodes or branches where the flowers are at. They like warm temperature 27-32deg C, my night temperature is usually at 27 deg C they will still set fruit even with warm nights. Humidity 60-80% seems fine, but outside that range the fruit doesn't set too well.
The only pepper plant of mine that did terribly was my jalapeno because it was being ravished by aphids terribly. Like top to bottom every single flower and most leaves became covered within days. I tried neem oil, and even tried sevin (last resort) still huge problems. This year i did serrano, sugar rush peach, nadapeno, lemon jalapeno, datil, and dragon cayenne peppers.
My California Wonder plant did very well here in North Alabama during the growing season last year.
I'm a first timer that saw Carolina Reaper plants at a local nursery. I couldn't help myself... I love Chili and Indian food... it came in a pack of six, so I'm growing 6 Reapers, 1 Green Bell Pepper (just learned that they turn red when ripe...), and 1 Super Chili.
Oh man, we couldn't get the buena mulatas to slow down last year! It was by far our most prolific plant so it must have been our weather or something. We used them for several batches of our best hot sauce with roasted beets!
The absolute best thing about our hot peppers is the way, that just holding them in my hands, arthritis says adios and I feel good for the world.
I've had great luck with mixed hot and mixed sweet peppers
Peppers. Hungarian wax is one of my favorites for production and disease resistance.
Hey Todd here from southern Oregon HOTZ , we are a u-pick farm and totally agree with your choices, I run around 60 verity’s, question of your location,this is our 4th year,thanks for the vid
5a grow here. California wonder grew awesome here in Iowa! 🌱🌿🪴🌶🌶
My daughter's Reaper plant is 3 years old (yes, years not generation). So, we will grow that one and whatever other seed she can get.
I had the exact same experience with the Sugar Rush Peach and the Rocoto here in Oklahoma. They are also on my not-to-grow again list.
I found the info about sugar rush really interesting as I have just planted the stripey for the first time and out of all my little plants, that is the only one with some sort of issue with the leaves. I'm still very excited about it and hope it will produce fruit but we'll see. Really good video as always by the way.
I stopped growing mexi-bells many years ago and probably won't again. It seemed like I always got them mixed up with sweet bells and then I couldn't give the sweets away.
Going the other way, I grew lesya peppers last year for the first time and will grow them every year now. The plants were very prolific and fruit was extremely sweet. Among the thickest flesh of any pepper I ever grew, I left them on the plant until they turned a very deep, dark fire engine red. Never had any wrinkled or rotted. Best tasting red pepper I ever grew. I recommend for everyone to hurry and order lesya seeds ASAP for this growing season. I got mine from Baker Creek (can I write that?) Down side-not good for stuffed peppers because of its shape.
I caught that primonition shirt! Love troys stuff!!
I grew a seven pot chocolate pepper this year and it’s hot and I made mole sauce with it because of its chocolate color. Tell me what you think
That ending is PERFECT! 😂🤣 I do the same thing. Kracken Scorpion and the 7 pot Slimer are great peppers to try.
I’m in NY and I stick to Thai peppers and jalapeños. I’m not a generic green pepper fan but love them red, so I’m gonna start those all soon. I love roasted peppers so, I’m planning that out. Thanks for your recommendations.
NJ grower here. Sugar rush were by far my best producer, had 0 disease issues, and survived over wintering. The only down side is the length to ripen. Suprised to see disease and blemishing mentioned. The peach is the best pickled pepper there is. The red makes excellent sriracha, and is great for a pop of color elsewhere. I will say, Jalapenos still stand as the most resilliant peppers I have grown. Resilient to drought, temperautes both high and low, pests, disease and damage. Everyone should grow jalapenos because they are a TANK.
My sugar rush did ok, but I think it gets too much sun, but the plants aren't very big and have some peppers on it.
It's an unimpressive plant compared to the aji Rico but I will try it again next year in a different location.
Mine is doing great this year, but it’s such tease! I have a ton of pods that are taking months ripen.
I didn't get much of a harvest with my rocoto the first year but the second year they produced a lot more.
Wow! As a newer gardener it’s validating to know it’s not just me feeling 🤷🏻♀️ about California Wonder peppers! 🫑😂
😵💫 seems like there are mixed feelings about it in the comments. Plenty of love, plenty of 🤷🏻♂️
Spot on with the Rocoto and Sugar Rush being problematic (I'm in zone 6B, OH). Great point about Reapers, as there are so many other chinense varieties to grow. I am only continuing my Reapers because I let them cross pollinate and I want to see their evolution since I started back in 2019!
I just want you guys to know this is my favorite channel on TH-cam
And I have been growing Golden Dragon Cheyenne, I got it from S.C does fantastic here and a seller for fire water up here. BLESSINGS
I have one Caroline reaper and a huge zip lock bag in freezer. I cannot handle the heat but the plant is still going strong!!
I am glad that they mentioned that they are having difficulty finding peppers suited to their area, as that is usually the biggest reason for disease issues. A stressed plant is far more susceptible to disease. And a plant that is not being grown in conditions that it is bred for, will always be stressed and more prone to disease.
As for flavor issues with any given pepper variety, that could be an issue with growing in the wrong climate but could also be soil related or even a plant by plant basis. I always recommend that when trying a new variety, you grow at least 4 plants and make sure they are in soil with the best nutrient levels to give them the best chance at being what they are marketed as. If all four plants produce fruit (or other harvestable part) that are all the same and you do not like the results, then you can reconsider that variety. Otherwise you are just as likely to be writing off something that could be wondrous, simply because a single plant had one or more issues. And not all issues that can affect the flavor of a garden product present noticeable effects in the plant itself. Tomato plants for example can have sufficient potassium and phosphorus to grow well, but not sufficient levels to produce the most flavorful fruit. Many plants will change in flavor based on the level of nutrients in the soil. Sweet onions may be sweet no matter what soil you plant them in, but in soils with lower sulfur content they will be even sweeter. Other plants like celery, carrots, and parsnips will all take on a very salty flavor if grown in soils that are high in sodium, yet the plants will show no signs that the nutrient levels in the soil are off.
Love the thoughtful insights on your channel.
I can't get the Calif Wonder pepper to germinate. Everything else came up but after TWO plantings with no sprouts I give up. I bought the seeds from a reputable 'famous' online seed company so it's not that. All the other peppers I planted came up just fine with the first planting, so, I'm stumped. Not growing them again, for sure. Love your channel!
I'm in Canada (qc) and this year I'm trying out golden star hybrid and yolo wonder bell/sweet pepper varieties. The Yolo wonder is apparently pretty disease resistant while still being a heirloom variety so you may want to give it a shot
I'd be interested in your opinion; I'm in eastern ON near QC border. Been having huge problem with our hot but short summer and have never managed to grow sweet bell peppers. Only small hot chili type produce for me. What varities do you recommend?
@@vaevictis6990 I'm just across the river from Ottawa. Didn't have much luck before I started sowing them indoors around mid march. This will also be my first year really getting into sweet peppers so I don't have any specific varieties to recommend.
That being said, you have 3 options I can think of, all completely acceptable.
1. If you have the ability to start indoors any variety will essentially do as long as you start them early, keep them healthy and don't transplant too early (until nights are around or above 10c)
2. If you cannot start indoors, try to get some early maturing varieties (i.e. anything with early in the name. Find a local/regional seed supplier, they should have a decent selection of varieties suited to your area. You can still start them several weeks before your last frost and take them out on warm sunny days, bringing them inside at night. You have to be vigilant though as they really do not like the cold.
3. I often get a few bell pepper starts from the local nurseries to round out the garden or replace any plants lost to pets. They only cost a couple of bucks so that's always an option if the above solutions are too much trouble.
@Ugo Smith perfect thank you. Yes, we are just getting our indoor seed starting set up this year. I've made the mistake I think of direct sowing in early June when temp is reliably warm. Thanks again!
@@vaevictis6990 getting an indoor setup and being able to start your seeds early should fix the short season problem
I agree with you on California Wonder. Although it must do well in California. I've been growing Emerald Giant for an O-P, and hybrids are worth buying seeds for (for us).
Decided not to grow regular cayenne (long slim) this year, needed more heat in my hot sauce so try dragon cayenne ( cayenne crossed with a Thai chili) and decided to throw som Hanoi chilis in the garden
I grew Poblanos over the winter in my greenhouse and they were really pest-prone, slow growing and quite small. I may try growing them outside this spring/summer.
I’m in Tucson and my sugar rush peach is three years old. It produces the most peppers than any pepper plant I’ve owned. It makes the best fermented hot sauce.
Sounds great!
Amazing!
Bell type peppers don''t shed rain off their tops and mine get fungus around the stem. I'll try again this year but if again I lose most of them, then that's it. No more. I think the hybrid bells do better than the heirloom based on what I see because my friends buy their plants and for sure those are F1 with resistance to disease.
My favourite pepper is the Brazilian Starfish. They grow massive and are super productive just that they ripen late but that's okay so long as they ripen.
This year I'm going to put some of the pepper plants in 7 gallon pots. I think they might grow better than in the ground. Scotch bonnets grown in pots on a south facing balcony are super productive. Not so in the ground.
I TOTALLY agree with what you said about the Carolina Reaper!! I had my fun growing them for the last 2 years and they gave me HUGE yields. So much so that I had way more than I could give away because MOST people don't want them. I make my own hot sauces and it is just too hot for most people.
Nice to hear. Im so glad I won't have to share my reapers with a bunch of people lol.
Ghost peppers battling in my area.
Big problem with peppers they cross pollinate. I have a Trinidad Scorpio Maruga Peach that does well. But his friends from other growers doesn't. I am gowing to try to grow them from Cuttings in future or keep different kinds apart, but dont always have enough space.
I prefer growing bell peppers - don't like the heat of most peppers. I do grow Cal Wonders and yes they are more challenging than other peppers. I do all container gardening so 1 pepper per 5 gallon pot. I spray(orgaics) for disease and pests and feed monthly and also shade when the temps get really high. I am in zone 10 which works well for peppers. This year I am growing in grow bags and hopefully that will make the harvest even better.
Totally agree on the sugar rush! I’m in Florida but I still had the same issues it sounds like you had.
I grow Reapers for the novelty. I especially enjoy planting them in the raised beds out by the road for the people that like to help themselves. Mad Hatters were ok, but not worth the effort. They just took too long to ripen.
Your first two on the list actually do well in my zone (9a). And i didn't have pests with my sugar rush'ies.
Also Zone 9A and I'm excited to find that my favorite pepper is called Sugar Rush (Red)!. Great fresh diced in salads and salsas and it makes the most amazing Sweet/Hot Chili powder.
Yeah, it was a start that survived two winters under the grass that grew over it and the tag was long gone. I couldn't remember what it was called! Bush Red? Something like that 🙂
I saved seeds and so far every new plant was another Sugar Rush Red. This years plant is huge, healthy, insanely prolific and disease is not a factor in this climate.
I'm curious I kept hearing about disease prone pepper plants. Have you tried grafting the plants onto diseases resistant varieties stalks? You could potentially double the harvest with one plant and get the benefits of the disease resistance and good tasting peppers
I was considering growing some super hots for the novelty but I couldn’t bring myself to spend a lot of time and money growing a plant which ultimately would go to waste. So I’ve settled on habaneros which I love and the mattapeño. May do some poblanos and biquinho as well
I won't be doing the Sweet Pickle again this year, the plants stayed small without much yield last year. I'm in zone 6b and will be trying out 3 new bells, King of the North, Yellow Monster, and Zulu.
I'm growing 7 pot bubble gum this year... (3 plants) can't wait to try them!
I couldn't agree more on the sugar rush peach and Carolina reaper for exactly the same reasons.
All the best from the south of France 👍
Funny enough, I started late this season, and started growing buena mulata, puma peppers, and black hungarians, but I learned a lot from this
I've never had luck with Cali Wonder. Charleston and Jupiter Bell Peppers do well for us here in TN.
Im going all out on sampling different peppers this year, have 32 varieties to try so far plus whatever I see in the nurseries, hoping to get near 50. Limited space so will have to build a few more beds and bought more grow bags, so hopefully I can make them all fit.
I have the same experience with Roccoto, and that is so sad. I will give it another try this year but I really don't have high hopes for it. It thrives in cooler summers.
My favorite pepper is the super chili.
It is compact, super- duper prolific. A nice manageable heat; not too hot.
I grow like 3 plants in a 7 gallon pot because they like having friends. One time, for fun, I counted how many I harvested at a time...I stopped counting at 100.
Agree on the rocoto pepper - flowered way too late for fruit where I am
You described my experience with the Carolina Reaper perfectly. I grew 6 Reapers and 6 Trinidad Scorpions and realized I couldn’t use them or give them away (except to people trying to win bets with their friends). My heat level will probably only go to about Habanero or maybe Ghost this year. Also grew a Cajun Bell which is supposed to be a hot Bell, but it was terrible…very small peppers with a soapy taste. I’ve started 15 seedlings each or the Sugar Rush Peach & Stripy this year but now I’m a little apprehensive about growing them after watching your video. Still gonna try though. Good luck and bountiful harvest to y’all!
My neighbor's kid would probably eat some of those peppers. He fancies himself a real, hot pepper eater. He tried some Bulgarian carrot Chiles I grew last year. Then again, the peppers you list are way hotter. I guess try at your own peril.
I have had good luck with Jimmy Nardello here in the N.E.A very fast growing,open branch type of frying pepper with thin walls and nice flavor.Ripens early here.