Peppers – hot and sweet – are the 7th most popular vegetable in the world and are beloved in cuisines from Africa to Asia to Europe to the Americas to Australia. They are eaten at all times of the day and can be enjoyed raw, roasted, stir fried, stuffed, pickled, and dried. This class focuses on everything you need to know to grow and harvest delicious peppers of your own this summer. You will learn about the history of peppers and the many varieties; how to select peppers that suit your needs; when to start seeds inside (optional); how to plant and nurture your peppers; and how to identify pests and diseases common to peppers. This class is intended for new and experienced gardeners.
Speakers: Extension Master Gardener Dona Lee; subject matter expertise provided by Extension Master Gardener Judy Salveson.
Zoom session, April 17, 2020
Video of Presentation
Chapter Breaks
- 0:00 Intro
- 0:07:06 Bottom Line Up Front
- 0:11:42 Overview
- 0:12:47 Origin
- 0:19:48 Taxonomy
- 0:30:19 Heat
- 0:36:34 Questions
- 0:39:40 Pepper Growing Considerations
- 0:49:21 Buying Transplants
- 0:58:39 Growing Your Own Transplants
- 1:12:40 Questions
- 1:14:57 Planting Transplants
- 1:22:19 Care
- 1:31:37 Harvest During the Season
- 1:34:06 Common Pepper Pests and Diseases
- 1:45:46 Best Practices and MGNV Resources
- 1:50:04 References, Interesting Reading, and Recipes
Additional Resources
Pepper-licious – Presentation Slides
Soil Tests
- Find out how VCE can help you test your soil.
- See Ready, Set, Adapt! Climate Change – What’s a Gardener to Do? for an excellent discussion of soil testing.
References
- Beckerman, Janna and Tom Creswell. 2022.Symptoms and Signs for Plant Problem Diagnosis – An Illustrated Glossary. Purdue University Extension. https://www.edustore.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number= BP-164-W
- Conrad, Kirsten. 2021. June – Pests of Tomatoes, and Peppers. MGNV.
- Pepper, Bell. Pennsylvania State University.
https://plantvillage.psu.edu/topics/pepper-bell/infos - Plant Problem Image Gallery. Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension.
https://apps.cals.vt.edu/ppig/ - Pollination of Vegetable Crops. 2014. University of Georgia Extension
- Resources for Garden, Insects, Pests. Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension. https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/tags.resource.html/pubs_ext_vt_edu:garden-insects-pests
- Resources for Garden, Plant, Diseases. Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension. https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/tags.resource.html/pubs_ext_vt_edu:garden-plant-diseases
Interesting Reading
- Chili Peppers. Silk Routes Project: University of Iowa International Writers Program. https://iwp.uiowa.edu/silkroutes/chile-peppers
- Hein, Treena. A Closer Look at Sweet Pepper Breeding and Its Challenges. 2017. European Seed. https://european-seed.com/2017/11/closer-look-sweet-pepper-breeding-challenges/
- Kraft, Kraig H. et al.. Multiple lines of evidence for the origin of domesticated chili pepper, Capsicum annuum, in Mexico. 2014. The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1308933111 - Leonard, Andrew. Why Revolutionaries Love Spicy Food: How the chili pepper got to China. 2016. Nautilus. https://nautil.us/why-revolutionaries-love-spicy-food-rp-7483/
- Neergaard, Lauran. Ch.ili Peppers Have Ancient History. Feb. 15, 2007 https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna17171454#.VAtAXfldW8A
- The Story of the Sugar Rush Stripey. 2021. https://fatalii.net/stripey.pdf
Favorite Ways to Use Peppers
- Quick-Pickled Jalapenos, Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/quick-pickled-jalapenos/18017/ - Homemade Sriracha Hot Sauce (We use cheesecloth to ensure no seeds after processing) https://whiteonricecouple.com/sriracha-recipe/
- Candied Jalapenos aka Cowboy Candy https://www.foodiewithfamily.com/candied- jalapenos/
- Chicken Philly Cheesesteak- Stuffed Bell Peppers
https://healthyishfoods.com/chicken-philly-cheesesteak-stuffed-peppers/ - My Riff on Mom’s Sausage & Peppers
https://mgnv.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Moms-Sausage-n-Peppers.pdf - Dona-sagna (Poblano Peppers)
https://mgnv.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Dona-sagna.pdf