I went to the Republic of Suriname a couple weeks ago, and here are a few of the peppers that I found.
Suriname is not far from where C. chinense was originally domesticated. It's the smallest country in South America, but over 22 separate languages are spoken there. With its proximity to the origins of pepper domestication, plus its ethnic diversity, it should come as no surprise that there is an enormous variety of peppers, most of which don't seem to be cataloged anywhere.
I only spent a couple days collecting peppers, but from conversations I had with Saramaccan, Creole, and Hindustani farmers, I only began to scratch the surface of what is locally available. I didn't get any from Saramaccan people, but I did get confirmation that they have many, many distinct varieties they grow in their jungle gardens, and I can only guess that it's the same with the Ndyuka and Kwinti people. The Surinamese-Javanese people take pepper eating all to another level, so I'm sure they have some surprises, and I can only imagine what the Carib, Warao, and Arawak folks have in store.
Because of customs restrictions, the seeds needed to be shipped separately, and so I'm waiting for them to arrive in the mail (Since then, I've applied for and was granted a permit from the USDA to import small quantity of seeds, so this should make future trips a lot easier.) As a consequence, I can't offer seeds for these until later -- sorry. I'll keep people posted.
"Suriname Red" (C. chinense). This is one is already known outside Suriname, at least among chiliheads. Hot.
"Tiger eye" (C. chinense) Unfortunately, the label in the shot incorrectly shows these to be Madame Jeannette, which they clearly are not, and I feel really terrible about. This is the largest chinense variety I've ever seen (notice the quarter included for scale.) When I first saw them in the market, I thought they were some sort of strange, bumpy, sweet C. annuum pepper, but they are not. Medium-hot.
Here's another shot of them, this time with better labelling, but unfortunately, poorer focus:
"Madame Jeannette" (C. chinense)
Easily, the most famous Surinamese pepper, and surprisingly hard to come by elsewhere. These have as an intense, distinctly fruity aroma. One of my all-time favorites from anywhere. Hot.
"Suriname chili" (C. frutescens)
(More to come!)
Mi lobi Switi Sranang!
Suriname is not far from where C. chinense was originally domesticated. It's the smallest country in South America, but over 22 separate languages are spoken there. With its proximity to the origins of pepper domestication, plus its ethnic diversity, it should come as no surprise that there is an enormous variety of peppers, most of which don't seem to be cataloged anywhere.
I only spent a couple days collecting peppers, but from conversations I had with Saramaccan, Creole, and Hindustani farmers, I only began to scratch the surface of what is locally available. I didn't get any from Saramaccan people, but I did get confirmation that they have many, many distinct varieties they grow in their jungle gardens, and I can only guess that it's the same with the Ndyuka and Kwinti people. The Surinamese-Javanese people take pepper eating all to another level, so I'm sure they have some surprises, and I can only imagine what the Carib, Warao, and Arawak folks have in store.
Because of customs restrictions, the seeds needed to be shipped separately, and so I'm waiting for them to arrive in the mail (Since then, I've applied for and was granted a permit from the USDA to import small quantity of seeds, so this should make future trips a lot easier.) As a consequence, I can't offer seeds for these until later -- sorry. I'll keep people posted.
"Suriname Red" (C. chinense). This is one is already known outside Suriname, at least among chiliheads. Hot.
"Tiger eye" (C. chinense) Unfortunately, the label in the shot incorrectly shows these to be Madame Jeannette, which they clearly are not, and I feel really terrible about. This is the largest chinense variety I've ever seen (notice the quarter included for scale.) When I first saw them in the market, I thought they were some sort of strange, bumpy, sweet C. annuum pepper, but they are not. Medium-hot.
Here's another shot of them, this time with better labelling, but unfortunately, poorer focus:
"Madame Jeannette" (C. chinense)
Easily, the most famous Surinamese pepper, and surprisingly hard to come by elsewhere. These have as an intense, distinctly fruity aroma. One of my all-time favorites from anywhere. Hot.
"Suriname chili" (C. frutescens)
(More to come!)
Mi lobi Switi Sranang!
to THP. I see this is your first post. I noticed that Joe's last activity on THP was back in January, 2015. I don't pretend to speak for him, but I doubt he is looking for your question. I suggest contacting him off-list. I hope you stick around and enjoy the fun pepper people on this site. Again, welcome.