Hey, all (from zone 7b, near Stone Mountain)

[R.A.N.G.E.R]

I was looking for thoughts on germinating seeds from a manzano pepper I’d bought at the farmer’s market.
The pepper was yellow, and the seeds are black. They were quite hot with a slow rise but the heat doesn’t ’spike’, rather it lasts for a long time. It really surprised me the first time
I dried a pile of the seeds and have tried to get them growing but so far to no avail.
Think the peppers were irradiated and therefore infertile?

 

[The Hot Pepper]

 

[skullbiker]

WELCOME TO THP

 

[Tinkerbelle]

 

[sicman]

 

[Nulle]

from Denmark

 

[SubtleEvolution]

I was looking for thoughts on germinating seeds from a manzano pepper I’d bought at the farmer’s market.
The pepper was yellow, and the seeds are black. They were quite hot with a slow rise but the heat doesn’t ’spike’, rather it lasts for a long time. It really surprised me the first time
I dried a pile of the seeds and have tried to get them growing but so far to no avail.
Think the peppers were irradiated and therefore infertile?

From a farmers market, almost guaranteed the seeds are not irradiated. Thats usually only the case with vegetables crossing international borders in my experience. Quite possible they just weren't fully mature though. And Welcome!

 

[The_NorthEast_ChileMan]

 

[xasz47]

I was looking for thoughts on germinating seeds from a manzano pepper I’d bought at the farmer’s market.
The pepper was yellow, and the seeds are black. They were quite hot with a slow rise but the heat doesn’t ’spike’, rather it lasts for a long time. It really surprised me the first time
I dried a pile of the seeds and have tried to get them growing but so far to no avail.
Think the peppers were irradiated and therefore infertile?

Hello! I have a farmers market in my town that sells manzano chiles regularly, and they are almost surely irradiated (I later learned that the seller imports the chiles from Mexico). I tried starting probably 50+ seeds from these peppers before realizing the issue.

However, if you are dealing with seeds which haven't been irradiated and are mature, I have had luck improving germination rates by scarifying the seeds: soak for 24 hours in a dilute hydrogen peroxide solution (~1 part H2O2, 3 parts water), then sowing seeds as usual. Good luck!