A
special note to our loyal readers… You have helped us achieve more than 8,000
views during past four years (FEB 2012 – FEB 2016). Thanks for allowing us to share our passion
for gardening with you every month! Keep on planting, “Goodness in the Garden”
Staff
HOT Peppers, Ornamental
peppers… a new adventure for your garden!
In February
2012, when our “Goodness in the Garden Blog” was created, I wrote a blog entry
about cayenne peppers. This blog
reminded readers that the capsaicin component of a pepper can
be beneficial to heart health; pepper plants are also a striking addition to the
garden, especially late in the season when each cayenne begins to turn from
green to a vivid shade of red. With
varied culinary uses, as well as potential health benefits, the cayenne pepper
is a WIN-WIN for home gardeners in Wisconsin and throughout the USA.
In February
2016, I was fortunate to spend an afternoon with a Specialist at New Mexico
State University on the Las Cruces campus.
The Chile Pepper Institute staff informed me “The Chile Pepper Institute is the only
international, non-profit organization devoted to education and research
related to Capsicum, or chile peppers.”
Their passion is “Educating the World” about peppers, as stated on
each seed packet. (www.chilepepperinstitute.org)
We discussed
the Chile Pepper Institute’s methods for seed propagation to ensure each variety
remains pure and “true to seed” each year.
Since the genus Capsicum is
open pollinated, it is challenging to keep each cultivar from cross pollinating
with others, so precise techniques are utilized by the staff. I purchased four varieties of Capsicum annuum that will
be new to my garden in Southeast Wisconsin.
Some will be ornamental, but also edible (… and all quite HOT!)
For those
who don’t wish to eat these hot little beauties, remember peppers can also add
a delightful dash of color to autumn floral arrangements. In Southeast Wisconsin, the peppers planted
in late spring should be turning vivid colors just in time for autumn décor.
Try some new varieties of peppers in YOUR
garden this season… let them take you on a new adventure!
M. Lynn
Schmid, Certified Master Gardener
A.A.S. Landscape/Horticulture/Arboriculture
A.A.S. Landscape/Horticulture/Arboriculture
