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What Makes Peppers Grow Hotter?

Helltaco

Helltaco

What are the dos and don'ts to making a pepper grow hottest? What do you need in the soil? How much sun should they get and how hot should it be? What time of year do you do what to them? How much water and when?

Great Sages, Master Gardeners and Gurus, what are the tricks you learned ?
 
I think there are probably many factors, but I know too much water will make peppers not as hot.

I don't know this for sure, but I imagine the Brix level is pretty much going to be similar. So a healthy plant + not over watering = more Cap
 
JayT said:
After the plants start fruiting, I only water when they begin to wilt. As much sun as they will take.
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I assume this works, I do exactly that and we are always amazed at how insanely hot even my jalapenos are much less my super hots. I also make sure to use a calcium supplement every couple of weeks once they are in the dirt.
 
Its called stressing. NMSU has done extensive study on it. It does work. I also try only to water in the morning and/or after sundown.
 
willard3 said:
I don't stress my plants at all in hydro and they are plenty picante for me.
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I think it would be safe to say we are not talking about super hots

EDIT: or if we are you put that same hydro pepper growing out in the sun in a raised bed. I would bet it would be hotter.
 
Several methods of stressing your plants. I prefer using vulgar language. I've cussed and cursed them brutally. Talking smack about their mom works good too. Accusing them of being homophobes gets a good response.

I tried the Madonna videos like Al suggested but that killed them. Too much stress. Now I show them old videos of boy bands. They start out liking them at first but after the third day nonstop I swear they want to kill me. I've seen capsaicin actually running out of the pods, like they were drooling they wanted to get to me so bad.
 
Make a plant think it may die (stress) and it kicks into reproduction mode. The capsaicin is there to protect the seeds. So, stress could help for sure, but may I assume a stressed healthy plant? Stressed with sun? Peppers hot or sweet that I have grown have had their dicks knocked in the dirt from the sun at my house in Mexifornia. Perhaps a sunburned half dead plant with three peppers could be hotter, but that's at a high production cost. I intend to put up some shade for my peppers this year, but I will experiment with sun and shade on different plants of the same type. You are what you eat and the same applies to plants. Key Limes are not Key Limes if they are not grown in the Keys. A walla walla sweet onion grown in my yard is not the same as one grown in Walla Walla county in Washington. I ate at a very nice looking salad bar outside of Denver once and now I know why some kids don't like vegetables. Thy tasted horrible because of the soil and water that grew them. So, what needs to be in the soil to grow peppers hot? If Brix level is important what make an affective Trix level?

The Madonna thing reminds me of part of a parody I wrote, "...Beethoven is the fellow, Who can grow my leeks mellow, The corn prefers a rock an' roll band..."
 
I read somewhere that ripping leaves in half will simulate an insect attack and make them hotter. Ive done it about twice per year on my in ground plants ever since Seems to work. I try to get a lot of leaves per plant when I do it.
 
mx5inpa said:
I read somewhere that ripping leaves in half will simulate an insect attack and make them hotter. Ive done it about twice per year on my in ground plants ever since Seems to work. I try to get a lot of leaves per plant when I do it.
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Then perhaps an attack with real insects might be easier on larger grows. What insects could safely do this under what conditions around what kinds of plants?
 
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