Featured Plant of the Week
Chill Out™ Chili Peppers
These famously spicy treats hardly need any introduction. Grown and eaten all over the world, chilies are the go-to choices when you want to add some kick to a meal. BloomRite® Gardens is not typically in the business of produce, but our Chill OutTM Chili plants are among the handful of notable exceptions.
Chili pepper plants are all members of a genus of plants call Capsicum, which includes about 30 different species. The two species most commonly grown for the purposes of cooking are Capsicum annuumfrutescens and Capsicum . C. annuum is most commonly known for bell peppers, one of the mildest types of chilies. C. frutescens is the same species as Tabasco pepper, Thai pepper, and the Malagueta pepper.
Contrary to popular perception chili peppers (like tomatoes) are not actually vegetables. The genus Capsicum is a member of the Solanaceae or Nightshade Family. Thus it is a flowering plant, and the peppers are its fruit! The presence of seeds in the peppers is enough to demonstrate that. The flowers of Capsicum are small and white, with six tear-drop shaped petals. Normally Capsicum only bears fruit during the summer or fall, but can be forced to produce year round.
The secret to chili's hot spicy taste is in its chemistry. Most species of Capsium contain a chemical call capsaicin, which is named after the genus of plants in which it can be found. Capsaicin causes its familiar burning sensation by binding to sensory neurons called pain receptors. This causes the brain to respond with the perception of heat, giving the chilies their renowned zing. The perception of this spicy heat can actually be measured, using something called the Scoville scale. The Scoville scale describes the heat based on how many times the capsaicin extract of the pepper has to be diluted to produce not appreciable spiciness. However, this form of measurement is dependent on subjective perception of people, meaning it isn't very precise.
Caring for chili peppers is not too difficult. The most challenging part of taking care of them is just making sure the potting medium stays moist. Allowing the soil to dry out too many times could overstress the plant. On the other hand, keeping the soil soggy will also do it no good. Besides that, the only other concern is to make sure it gets some bright indirect light. They can tolerate shade, but will perform best in a well lit place. Optimal indoor temperature is between 65-75°F. When the peppers turn bright yellow, orange and red, you can pull them off and enjoy them in your favorite recipe!
You can find 5" Chill Out™ Chili Peppers at BloomRite® Gardens right now, for only $4.99 per plant.
