Getting to Know Your Sweet and Hot Peppers You are here: HomeGardening 101Getting to Know Your Sweet… Sweet and hot peppers are heat-loving plants that come in a dazzling array of shapes, sizes and colors. Peppers need moist soil to flower and set fruit, so keep soil moist around the plants, covering with mulch if necessary and watering the plants regularly in the height of summer. Sweet peppers you may recognize from your local grocer are bell peppers which are available from green, to yellow to sweet red, but why buy when you can grow your own? Harvest sweet peppers at any stage of growth; they can be eaten big or small. Picking often allows the plant to be more productive, in other words we fool the plant into thinking they did not produce. Cut branches instead of twisting or pulling them to avoid cracking or damaging the plant. Allow hot peppers to reach full growth and flavor before harvesting. How Hot Do You Like Your Salsa? Let’s Check our Heat Scale Mild – use the Anaheim chile which is long, narrow and green Hot – use the jalapeno chile, which is short, stubby and dark green Very Hot – use the Serrano chile, which is tiny, thin and curvy. They can be red or green Fire Off the Charts Hot – use the habanero chile, which is lantern shaped, and dark green to orange. When fully ripe, this chile becomes a red color that screams, “warning”! Fifty times hotter than a jalapeno, this is not recommended for the faint heart. Special care should be taken when preparing recipes with this pepper. How to Tame a Hot Pepper Slice the pepper in half lengthwise, scrape out the seeds, and cut away the membranes – that’s where all the tear-causing heat is. To play it safe, wear rubber gloves. And whatever you do, don’t scratch yours eyes or touch any other sensitive spot on your body until everything is well scrubbed. More Posts Getting to Know Your Garlic, Onions and Leeks March 17, 2016 Getting to Know Your Root Vegetables March 17, 2016 Getting to Know Your Lettuce March 17, 2016 Getting to Know Your Beans March 17, 2016 Getting to Know Your Squash & Cucumbers March 16, 2016 Getting to Know Your Peas March 16, 2016 Search Catalog Our catalog features almost 600 different plants. Click to find the information you need to select those adapted to your environment. Recommendations Recent Facebook Posts Give the Gift of Gardening! Is there someone special in your life who loves to watch things grow? Give them a gift that grows: a Civano Nursery Gift Card. Enter any amount (min $20): Contact info Address: 5301 S. Houghton Road Tucson, AZ 85747 Phone numbers: 520-546-9200 Business hours: Monday - Sunday 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Find us on: Facebook page opens in new window YouTube page opens in new window Pinterest page opens in new window Instagram page opens in new window Give us a “Like” on Facebook! Subscribe to our newsletter NO SPAM ZONE: You can unsubscribe at any time. We won't spam you. We are a local company: your privacy and comfort matter to us. Copyright © 2021 Civano Nursery Web design by Vanguard Web Design Tucson Home Services Products Gardening Blog About Civano