2017 Pepper Season: We Have Peppers!

It’s been three weeks since the last outdoor pepper update. In that time, plenty has happened with both the plants and a new hydroponic project I started in that time. Just about all of the outdoor plants have blossoms with the exception of three or four plants — I’m looking at you, chocolate habaneros.

The weather has been extremely hot, but a healthy watering schedule has kept the plants prospering and finally producing some fruits that I will hopefully be able to harvest in early August, maybe even sooner with a few of them. On to the pictures!

Mystery Pepper

This is the pepper that was given to me by a neighbor at the start of the season and, man, is it ugly. That said, it’s still producing more blossoms and at least one pod more than some of the more attractive plants that have yet to do anything — ahem, chocolate habaneros. I still have no idea what the heck kind of pepper this may be as the leaves look and feel like nothing I’ve grown in recent seasons. Any guesses?

Lemondrop (Aji Limon)

I’m so excited to finally see this little pod going strong on one of the better looking and best growing plants I’ve got on the back deck. This pepper plant has been thriving in the heat the past couple of weeks and has almost doubled in size again.
You can’t really tell in this photo, but it is covered in blossoms.

Hot Portugal

Now, admittedly, this Hot Portugal that I purchased several weeks ago, already had a couple of small peppers on them, but look at them now. That massive green one is already six inches long and just over an inch in diameter at the stem. It’s that little red one, however, that I am most excited about. It should be the first ripe pepper of the season!

Trinidad Scorpion

This is another plant that I purchased a few weeks back and one that I had a ton of trouble with last season. I’m hoping that this little pepper (the first, of many, I hope) is more in line with what the plant should be producing and not a benign imposter. Fingers crossed.

Carolina Reaper

This is the first plant sowed from seeds that I had harvested last season that is actually producing fruit. This immature pepper is about the size of a quarter (there’s a second, smaller on just out of frame) and it already has some spiky thorns coming in, but not tell-tale stinger associated with a traditional reaper. I’m quite enthused to see this one doing so well after a harsh start to the season.

Chocolate Bhutlah

Yes, I’m excited to see a couple of pods on this Chocolate Bhutlah, but I’m also a bit frightened of what these little buggers are going to eventually develop into. This is the one plant that continues to give me chills. The plant itself isn’t much to see really, but it’s been growing with more purpose as of late.

I’ve got a couple of other plants — Super Chili and Red Savina Habanero — that have a good number of peppers already on them. Those actually were purchased a couple of weeks ago with pods already forming and I’ve shared enough photos of them on Twitter that they don’t really need to be added here. All in all, I’m pleased with how many of the plants have rebounded from that freak Spring freeze.