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Florida Wild = Calusa Indian Mound = Grove Pepper

This is my first year experimenting with wild peppers and Florida Wild is one of the varieties I'm growing. It was very hard to germinate, but I was determined and ended up with a beautiful plant. To my surprise the under sides of the leaves appear to be pubescent. Has anyone else who's grown this had similar looking leaves? While this is "Florida Wild" and I understand it to be Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum I'm also curious if anyone has grown the C. frutescens native to Florida? Here's a link to some more info. on this too: http://regionalconse...XCODE=Capsfrut.

It also looks like the Florida Wild (Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum) is the same as the Calusa Indian Mound and the Grove Pepper. Does this seem correct?
Some pics: http://thehotpepper.com/topic/20653-calusa-indian-mound-pepper/#entry478893


Here's my "Florida Wild"
FloridaWild.jpg
 
Has anyone else noticed the furry leaves like in my pic? If not, I'm thinking this might be hybridized with something else like a C. pubescens or C. galapagoense?
 
You know, I live in florida... I love being outdoors... I hunt, fish, camp... I spend several weeks in the keys nearly every year...

I've never ever seen a wild pepper plant.

I'm starting some florida wild though. If it takes off like crazy, maybe I'll plant some pods in the woods where I camp etc - and in the keys...

Could be fun :D
 
You know, I live in florida... I love being outdoors... I hunt, fish, camp... I spend several weeks in the keys nearly every year...

I've never ever seen a wild pepper plant.

I'm starting some florida wild though. If it takes off like crazy, maybe I'll plant some pods in the woods where I camp etc - and in the keys...

Could be fun :D

you had me at hunt fish camp! but i guess its best to find out if they really are native to the area you release them in before you do it.
 
You know, I live in florida... I love being outdoors... I hunt, fish, camp... I spend several weeks in the keys nearly every year...

I've never ever seen a wild pepper plant.

I'm starting some florida wild though. If it takes off like crazy, maybe I'll plant some pods in the woods where I camp etc - and in the keys...

Could be fun :D

I've never seen them when I visit my grandmother in south Florida either. According to the link in the OP they are endangered. Maybe that's why we haven't seen them. I'd love to find a wild one in the wild!

Has anyone else noticed the furry leaves like in my pic? If not, I'm thinking this might be hybridized with something else like a C. pubescens or C. galapagoense?

Sure has a lot of fuzz on it! Maybe it got crossed. That's a very C. pubescens characteristic. It's possible for C. annuum to cross with it but probably not a C. galapagoense.
 
Seems rather fast to have named something like that...

i guess its best to find out if they really are native to the area you release them in before you do it.

From what I've read, south Florida is where they are from.

But as I said, despite having lived in Florida about 25 years, I've never seen one.
 
maybe the birds that eat the pods are also endangered and thats why the pepper is. its still common enough that it shouldnt go extinct :) maybe they are more common closer to the everglades :)
 
Maybe they are common in places in the everglades where people don't go...

Like I said, I've spent a fair amount of time outdoors, in the habitats mentioned, and have never seen any wild pepper plant.
 
Last year someone apparently crossed a C. galapagoense with a Bhut Jolokia...

With viable seeds?


Edit:

Found "Impact."

Impact-BhutJolokiaxCGalapagoense-VladanSmiciklas-rainbowchiliseedsP1050146.jpg


A bit skeptical but perhaps it's possible. I thought C. galapagoense couldn't cross with c. chinese. I wonder if the F1 seeds were viable.
 
I too have never noticed them and I've been here since 83, its a common pepper, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capsicum_annuum_var._glabriusculum
 
coincidently, I've been here since 83 as well...

That was the year I was born.

Dulac - I wonder if anyone has any seeds available. I'm curious now :)

It might also be self incompatible, but fertile, when polinized by another chinense, or galopagoense (sp).
 
Ive seen grove peppers growing wild here in florida. They used to spread like wildfire in the citrus groves around here. Most of the citrus growers spray them now. All it takes is dropping a pod on the ground, and its tough to get rid of them.
 
some dude was telling me about grove peppers the other day. he said they were hot,ive only been in florida for a year so ive never seen any.
 
Here is my Florida Wild this year. Took this last week, it has grown another 3 inches or so since. RedTailForester provided me with the seeds last year. More than willing to share any seeds I get! Let me know if you are interested.

floridawild1.jpg
 
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