GARDENER'S READING ROOM
Edibles

Passionate about Peppers

Trying to pick a pepper to please your palate? Peppers - sweet, mild, medium, or hot - in a plethora of colors are prepared by many different cultures around the globe. A recent investigation revealed that the ancient hot pepper was first cooked up 6,100 years ago in a village in Ecuador. From that village in Ecuador peppers’ popularity spread like wild fire. The pepper is incredibly versatile! You can grill, stuff, and bake, sauté, twirl and whirl the fabulous pepper. So, let’s get these peppers growing!

From the ground up it is possible to grow healthy peppers. Peppers like well-drained soil and a soil temperature of at least 60-65° F. If your soil is compacted, rocky-glacial till, or clay, amend your soil with soil-building compost. This will improve drainage to keep plant roots from suffocating and add essential plant nutrients vital to the growth of vigorous peppers. Also, typically in the Northwest we have acid soils. Pepper plants prefer to grow in a neutral pH soil. Adding lime to your soil will create a better pH.

Peppers thrive in full sun. Plant your peppers in an area of your garden that will receive at least six hours of sunlight each day. At planting time, feed your plants with a starter fertilizer. Then, during the growing season, feed the plants two or three times with a low-nitrogen fertilizer to encourage blossom production.

On top of the soil, spread a half-inch layer of compost or fertile mulch to prevent the germination of weed seeds and create an evaporation barrier which will cut down on the pesky water bill during the dry months of the year. Peppers like their roots to be evenly moist. Large fluctuations in watering can cause blossom-end rot which is detrimental to pepper fruit production.

What kind of peppers would you like to serve up this summer? At Sky Nursery we will be offering thirty different pepper varieties! Holy smokes! We’re on fire! Spice up your cuisine with Mariachi, a creamy white pepper which ripens to a rosy red. Or try Hungarian Yellow Hot, a 5-8” long, bright yellow fruit ripening to red which is tasty raw or cooked. Thai Dragon is a fiery little fruit, great for drying and stir fries. To satisfy a sweet pepper craving, bite into a crunchy Sweet Banana. The Gypsy pepper matures at around 58 days, ripening to a vibrant yellow. For a little bit of warmth on the tongue, pop a Sparky into your mouth. This is a mildly hot but sweet strawberry-shaped pepper. There are oh-so-many more peppers to make your mouth water. So, to add some passion to your edible garden this year, plant some peppers for the picking!

By Kristel Dillon
Skylights Spring/Summer 2007 Vol 22, No. 2

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