pod Shape of Purple UFO peppers

[CryBaby]

Hi all! This year I planted 6 Purple UFO pepper plants from seeds. They are doing great - in the ground, ~2’ high, lots of early purple pods. However, on half of the plants the pods are shaped traditionally (like a UFO), on other plants the fruit looks like a purple jalapeño, and on one plant I have fruit of both shapes. Do you all have any idea why this might be?

 

[CaneDog]

If one of the plants has half and half, it's likely to be something other than genetic. Pods will take different shapes sometime based on environmental conditions and the condition of the plants. Can you post some pics?

 

[CryBaby]

I should have done that with the initial post. Here they are:
(2 more images, but they’re too large - will resize)

 

[CaneDog]

Wow! Those are really different. It's hard to imagine one plant with each of those pod shapes, which are so distinctly different. It even appears like the calyxes are different, though that might just be the effect of shoulders on the wider pods. I'm not sure what the long ones might be. Sometimes other indicators like flower and calyx composition will help you tell if something's been crossed out, which one might expect as a real possibility in this case. I wonder if they'll taste similarly and have similar heat.

 

[HellfireFarm]

I can't imagine that those are the same plant.

Ones on the right look a lot like pasillas to me.

 

[CryBaby]

I can't imagine that those are the same plant.

Ones on the right look a lot like pasillas to me.

The fruit from these plants all have the same heat level and type - much warmer than a pasilla. I also have one plant (planted from same seeds) that has fruit of both shapes. Any ideas? Even my seed seller is having to research this. Thanks!

 

[HellfireFarm]

fruit of both shapes on the same plant breaks my brain

How thick are the walls of the long ones?

 

[CryBaby]

Here is a picture of the plant with both types of fruit:

 

[CryBaby]

fruit of both shapes on the same plant breaks my brain

How thick are the walls of the long ones?

I’ll check…

 

[SatanicFlatIron]

Hi! I crossed the UFO purple with some red annuums (some F4 from one old project, with a cayenne-like shape) up to F2. Then I abandoned the project as the shapes obtained were not homogeneous on the same plant, and the bitter taste of UFO Purple did not deserve to continue the line.
Here are some photos in which you can see different shapes. On some plants the shapes were slightly different, some more ufo-shaped, others more wrinkled, others more elongated (like the other parent).

Additionally, some UFO crossings in F2 have lost the purple trait:

I think some of yours crossed with another cultivar.

However, with other varieties I have sometimes had different fruits on the same plant, for example this one should not be shaped like a pumpkin (I don't remember the shape of the other fruits on the plant, I think a classic bell pepper or a bishop's crown hat shape). This anomaly should be caused by environmental reasons.