So a little while back, when I had thought I was done starting seeds for 2018, someone posted a "what's your favorite pepper?" thread and I was surprised to see how many THPers claimed Serranos as their favorite. I'd grown Hot Rod Serranos (fwiu an F1 hybrid) last year, and I used to grow piles of Serranos at work, and I always liked'm, so I figured "why not?" I ordered seeds real quick, got them started, and now I've got a bunch of pods hanging on 9 plants ...
Now, i have no legit gripe against the Hot Rods, and I'm growing 3 of those, but F1 hybrids aren't necessarily my style, such as it is, so I wanted to dick around with other Serranos as well.
So, I'm growing 3 generic, plane Jane Serranos, 3 Serrano Tampiqueños, and the 3 Hot Rods. So far, I've only gotten ripe Hot Rods, but I've got some initial impression of the things...
The Hot Rods are supposed to be extra early and quite productive. So far, they are living up to those expectations. All 3 plants have as many pods on it as they can support... They were the first to set pods, and their pods were first to ripen. But, they are the least fuzzy plants by far, and the plant structure is pretty much generic annuum...
The generic Serranos are, by far, the fuzziest. They grew tall, but also bushy. One of these has a bunch of pods on it, one had a respectable amount, and the third is the biggest plant but is lagging far behind the other two in terms of production.
The Tampiqueños are pretty fuzzy, but not so fuzzy as the other Serranos. They grew fairly short, but ridiculously bushy. They basically started out extra leggy and grew almost gorizontally, but then several branches shot up from the main stem and each plant looks like a little Grove made up of several plants. I love the plants' structure. However, they are lagging far behind the other two...
Of course, once I get to sample a bright red pod of each, I'll probably decide based on that. (Actually, I have enough seeds in reservem Ethan I'll have another year or 2 growing all three before I have to make my mind up...)
But, as of right now, I like the Hot Rods for their productivity, the Tampique of for the way the plant itsekf grows, but I'd crown the generic jawns as King b/c, seemingly, they are the best of both worlds. But... We gotta wait til I eat these things...
Now, i have no legit gripe against the Hot Rods, and I'm growing 3 of those, but F1 hybrids aren't necessarily my style, such as it is, so I wanted to dick around with other Serranos as well.
So, I'm growing 3 generic, plane Jane Serranos, 3 Serrano Tampiqueños, and the 3 Hot Rods. So far, I've only gotten ripe Hot Rods, but I've got some initial impression of the things...
The Hot Rods are supposed to be extra early and quite productive. So far, they are living up to those expectations. All 3 plants have as many pods on it as they can support... They were the first to set pods, and their pods were first to ripen. But, they are the least fuzzy plants by far, and the plant structure is pretty much generic annuum...
The generic Serranos are, by far, the fuzziest. They grew tall, but also bushy. One of these has a bunch of pods on it, one had a respectable amount, and the third is the biggest plant but is lagging far behind the other two in terms of production.
The Tampiqueños are pretty fuzzy, but not so fuzzy as the other Serranos. They grew fairly short, but ridiculously bushy. They basically started out extra leggy and grew almost gorizontally, but then several branches shot up from the main stem and each plant looks like a little Grove made up of several plants. I love the plants' structure. However, they are lagging far behind the other two...
Of course, once I get to sample a bright red pod of each, I'll probably decide based on that. (Actually, I have enough seeds in reservem Ethan I'll have another year or 2 growing all three before I have to make my mind up...)
But, as of right now, I like the Hot Rods for their productivity, the Tampique of for the way the plant itsekf grows, but I'd crown the generic jawns as King b/c, seemingly, they are the best of both worlds. But... We gotta wait til I eat these things...
 