Jalapenos - No Heat.

Jabberwocky

Jabberwocky

Hello all.

I've grown two jalapeno plants using seeds from a very reputable seller and I'm dismayed to find that the pods are carrying no heat whatsoever.

The seeds are supposedly for a medium-hot chilli (I believe there are some strains that are mild?) so I was wondering whether it's anything I may have done wrong, or if I've just been incredibly unlucky?

Any advice is welcomed.
 
Did you pick them green, maybe too green? If so, let them ripen further preferably to red for optimal flavor and more heat
 
I'll be honest, I may have tried them too soon. I was having a look at the plant and was a bit heavy handed with a pod and it came off. I tried a few more out of curiosity than anything.

So if I leave them be, preferably until they turn red, I should notice heat developing then?

Thanks for the reply by the way.
 
Jabberwocky said:
Hello all.

I've grown two jalapeno plants using seeds from a very reputable seller and I'm dismayed to find that the pods are carrying no heat whatsoever.

The seeds are supposedly for a medium-hot chilli (I believe there are some strains that are mild?) so I was wondering whether it's anything I may have done wrong, or if I've just been incredibly unlucky?

Any advice is welcomed.
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A friend in America was complaining about the same thing from store bought Jalapenos. I suggested she grow her own. This got me to checking various seed suppliers and I was mildly surprised to find a huge range in heat. From 800 SHU to 30,000 SHU for South Devon's "Early Jalapeño" variety. There are many varieties of Jalapenos, so some careful checking is in order.
Heat is a very subjective thing and when purchasing seeds look for a Scovile heat unit rating for the variety you want. There are a number of seed suppliers who do rate their seeds/varieties. Cheers.
 
Jabberwocky said:
I'll be honest, I may have tried them too soon. I was having a look at the plant and was a bit heavy handed with a pod and it came off. I tried a few more out of curiosity than anything.

So if I leave them be, preferably until they turn red, I should notice heat developing then?

Thanks for the reply by the way.
Click to expand...
The heat should peak just before full ripeness but I prefer them fully red and ripe for more sweetness and flavor and still near peak heat levels
 
Jabberwocky said:
Hello all.

I've grown two jalapeno plants using seeds from a very reputable seller and I'm dismayed to find that the pods are carrying no heat whatsoever.

The seeds are supposedly for a medium-hot chilli (I believe there are some strains that are mild?) so I was wondering whether it's anything I may have done wrong, or if I've just been incredibly unlucky?

Any advice is welcomed.
Click to expand...


A study made by the Chile Institute at NMSU concluded that pepper plants that were not watered as often produced hotter chiles. i have tested this and found it to be true with my Chichimeca jalapenos. Try watering them less often. or just less at a given time.
 
My mid summer and greenhouse pods are always hotter than spring and fall pods. Heat is definitely a factor for heat :) but genetics is usually the main factor.
Stressing a plant with too much heat or lack of water will indeed make pods hotter but will often also do harm to the plant and any new growth so be cautious when attempting this and don't go overboard
 
I've grown a couple of different jalapenos which also produced zero heat. So this year I'm growing the Biker Billy after many on the forum recommended it. We'll see what happens with these. If there is no heat then I give up on jalapenos.
 
agree with all that has been said...

I am only growing the BBs this year. The plants are smallish but producing lots of pods...first ones picked were HOT!!! (for a Jap)
 
Jalapenos especially tend to be variable in heat,including even different pods from the same plant. Biker Billys are usually the most consistently hot ones I grow, but I've had just plain old hardware store seed occasionally be very hot as well. Corking is supposed to be an indicator of heat so leave them on the plant until you see some.
 
I no longer think corking has much to do with heat, more genetics and environment. I've had corking on heatless jalapeno varieties in the past and I've even heard of jalapenos bred specifically for resistance to corking likely for for the pickier North American market which sees corking as a blemish or flaw
 
You probably have Fooled You Jalapenos or Jalapeno Milds. I have Fooled You plants and they are enjoyable for flavor but as hot as a bell, nothing. My Biker Billy's havent podded up yet so I cant compare them.

The nice thing about the Fooled You Japs is they get to a nice size and are good producers, grab some pepperjack cheese and make some poppers! :D
 
Definitely true on the Heat causing peppers to be hotter. I grew some Anaheim's a few years back that the summer pods literally cause the skin in our mouths to peel. It was like a full mouth Exfoliant of sorts. The later pods from it that didn't mature in the summer heat were normal Hot Anaheim's.

You probably just picked them early. I did that my first year with Jalapenos and was really disappointed. Let them go red and you'll be happy with them. Red Jalapenos are some of the best tasting things on the planet to me.
 
I have picked some small GREEN jalapeños that were hot as hell, used them in some chili I was cooking, so size or color don't make heat its the plant or type of plant. and I prefer my chile's green.
 
charlesNYC said:
which variety did you sow, Jabber?
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Sorry, only just checked back in. This is the description from the website;
'JalapenoRef: S/CAP069
Cap Annuum. Medium hot. Traditional early strain. One of the world's most well known varieties of chilli. Popular pepper for Tex-Mex cooking. Prolific. Green/red. Compact plants.'

They are one of the better known sellers of seeds and plants over this side of the pond. Great reputation too.
I'll be gutted if they continue to show no signs of heat. My orange habanero is being very stingy with its pods and a cayenne succumbed to some sort of fungus and snapped.

I'm pinning all my hopes on a pusa jwala which has started to grow several great looking pods.
 
I have had varying heat levels from Jalapeno pods even from the same plant, same thing goes for my Serrano, I can pull a pod one day and munch it down raw and have only a medium heat, then grab a pod off the same plant the next day and be totally shocked at the heat that its packing when I eat it, so I wouldnt despair just yet, give those babys some time let 'em get ripe.
 
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