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Trinidad Scorpion - Red/orange last season - now black?

Whitewookie

Whitewookie

Hi folks. I have four Trinidad Scorpion plants that I grew from seed last season. I over-wintered them in the house. They appeared to go dormant for the winter, then bounce right back. They are bearing now, but the fruit is turning very dark purple-to-black in color as opposed to the red/orange I saw last year. I haven't harvested any yet, so I can't speak to their heat factor. The plants appear very healthy, as does the fruit. Has anyone else experienced this? Good? Bad?... Thanks, Harold
 
Cool. I'd hate to lose them after all these months. Any tips on how to tell when to harvest them? Last year I just waited until they turned red. Thanks for your time, Harold
 
def suntan. i have lots of peppers with purple sides/tops. in regards to when to harvest, when they are ripe. you will be able to tell, they should ripen to the same color they did last year, even though i have heard of plants reverting from yellow to red after years of overwintering, but i haven't seen this to verify.
 
Update, after a couple of weeks. You guys were definitely right. everything evened out and I've pulled the first few. The peppers from the overwintered plants are definitely hotter than the first year.
 
I have a random question: I have Trinidad Scorpion plants which have recently started to flower. When they do produce peppers, do I really want to avoid touching them with my bare skin or is that just an exaggeration by overly proud chilli growers?
 
There are others here much more learned than myself, but I haven't had a problem with them burning my hands when I harvest them or cut them up. Later when doing one's "business", if some pretty serious hand washing hasn't occurred... it can be a little intense. My advice would be wear gloves when processing. On the plant or when harvesting... no problem for me. Make no mistake though, when you taste test... They are unbelievably hot... very small pieces are in order on the first go...

Respects,
Harold
 
 The capsaicin is what burns. You should be fine just touching the outside of the pepper. You won't have a problem until the oil is released. (ie. cutting open the pepper). I would
definitely follow Whitewookie's advice and use gloves when processing your peppers. If you do that, you should be fine. No need to wear them when picking, just when processing.
  Good Luck!
 
Tim
 
You can handle them with bare hands for picking and handling whole peppers, but I've rubbed my eyes and nose after checking out some of my habs still green on the plant and seriously regretted it. They won't burn your hands, but be careful around those mucous membranes.
 
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