Would You Like to Play a Game? Help Me Pick Some(5) Peppers

KingLeerUK

KingLeerUK

I've been informed that additions to my pepper collection for 2019 are going to be limited to 5 new choices. As such, I've been trolling through various seed catalogs to try and find the best choices for my growing situation and culinary preference.  Those are as follows:
 
Growing Environment:
  • Central Florida, Zone 9b
  • Fabric Pots, 7-10 gallon maximum size (I might be able to get away with one 15 gallon)
  • fun sun to full shade options are available between the yard and the porch
  • I can control the watering by moving plants in and out of cover, so I'm not at the mercy of the torrential rains we sometimes get in FL
Culinary Preference:
  • I've gotten away from growing most superhots due to rarely using them (beyond making powders or the occasional nuclear salsa)
  • I like a low-to-medium-high heat when I'm going to eat something spicy.  I'll happily order a Thai hot curry at a restaurant, but we all know that isn't using a Carolina Reaper.  Eating raw pods I'm probably going to tap out before getting to a Red Savina.
  • Flavor > Heat
  • I'm looking for unique flavors to experiment with in the kitchen
  • I really love Orange Rocotos, but I've never been able to get seeds to start (bad luck?) and I'm not sure how plants would do in this climate.  My list below has 4 difference Pubescens options, of which I'd probably only try to grow one due to space/time/conditions.
 
Here Is My Prospective Pepper Contender List:
  • Lal Mirch
  • Guajillo
  • Korita
  • Bishop's Crown (this one is a definite)
  • Fushimi
  • Spaghetti Chili
  • Shishito
  • Orange Manzano
  • Red Rocoto
  • Yellow Rocoto
  • Locoto
  • Aji Charapita
 
For reference, this is what I currently have growing:
  • Aji Fantasy
  • Aji Jobito
  • Aji Rosita Rojo
  • Aji Verde
  • Aleppo
  • Brazilian Starfish
  • Brazilian Starfish Orange
  • Cream Fatali
  • Çumra Cherry
  • Dedo de Moca
  • Farmers Jalapeno
  • Hinkle Hatz
  • Jamy
  • Kung Pao
  • Pasilla de Oaxaca
  • Sweet Cayenne
  • Trinidad Scorpion Moruga
  • Turkish Sweet Bell
  • Yukari Bakan
Suggestions are always welcome, I'd love to hear what you'd pick from my list or what you would substitute instead (and why).
 
That's what I have read as well, but I've also seen at least a few people who have had success with the correct combination of variety, conditions and luck. I could possibly grow indoors under a filtered skylight, which would provide a more regulated temperature and indirect light.
 
Ghaleon said:
Bahamian Goats ✅
Chocolate Habanero✅
ANY Scotch Bonnet✅ I would go P. Dreadie
Carolina Reaper Peach (Trust me....delicious!)✅ Peach superhots are amazing!
Click to expand...
And I would add Aji Pineapple for its tropical hit when fresh and its not too hot!
 
You already have a great list. Good balance between the sweet Baccatums and hotter Moruga Scorpion.
 
For drying and powders and flakes .......Guajillo.
 
I'm pretty sure the Guajillo is going to make the list, simply due to it being so versatile.
 
Per my past experience with Trinidad Moruga Scorpions, one plant is more than enough:
 
NGi7JCa.jpg

This was  a single plant, over 4' across and it just got bigger over the season, producing hundreds of pods.
 
 
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I could never use or give away so many superhots, so I ended up making powders and flakes in my dehydrator.
 
d811t84.jpg

 
 
 
 
I grew Guajillos this year. On the one hand, it's been awesome because it makes me feel like a real danged Farmer. On the other hand, it's the most boring chile I've ever grown. The plants are goofy looking, too. Skinny, leggy little things with more big, irregular pods than the feeble plants can handle. It's actually kinda cool looking, in a very awkward way...
 
I've got two Bishop's Crowns growing this year, and I'm impressed.

They've turned into my hugest pepper plants (I should have given them more room when I planted them in the ground).

Very prolific with a heat kick somewhere around low Jalapeño level.  Supposedly, they can get hotter than a Jalapeño.  It may just be due to my growing conditions.

I have a Shishito growing this year, but unfortunately, it seems to be the favorite of some kind of pepper boring pest.  I haven't been able to get a pepper all the way to ripeness yet.

After looking over your list, now I'm also interested in trying the Guajillo next year.

I going to let you and Solid7 take point on growing Rocotos in the deep South.  If you guys have any luck, I might give them a try one year.
 
DontPanic said:
I've got two Bishop's Crowns growing this year, and I'm impressed.

They've turned into my hugest pepper plants (I should have given them more room when I planted them in the ground).

Very prolific with a heat kick somewhere around low Jalapeño level.  Supposedly, they can get hotter than a Jalapeño.  It may just be due to my growing conditions.

I have a Shishito growing this year, but unfortunately, it seems to be the favorite of some kind of pepper boring pest.  I haven't been able to get a pepper all the way to ripeness yet.

After looking over your list, now I'm also interested in trying the Guajillo next year.

I going to let you and Solid7 take point on growing Rocotos in the deep South.  If you guys have any luck, I might give them a try one year.
Click to expand...
 
 
I haven't had fresh Bishop's Crowns now for a couple of years so I am looking forward to possibly having them again.  When I grew them before they where almost vinelike in their habit and ended up being over 6 feet tall, staked up.  My best plants were located under my east-side porch eves and only received full sun for the first 1/3 of the day and indirect for the remainder.  My pods never got very hot at all, always below jalapeno heat with some pods only having the faintest hint of warmth, almost like a banana pepper heat.  They made for wonderful snacking and were one of the peppers that I could easily give away or bring a bag into the office and watch them disappear over the course of a day as people came back for more.  The flavor is very similar to Brazilian Starfish, with the Brazilian's being notably hotter and having thinner walls.
 
It's simply too hot and humid for them in Florida, most of the common varieties come from places with more temperate weather. Other growers have little difficulty growing rocotos, and there are a number of threads on this forum that reflect that.

The flip side of the coin is that here in central Florida we can grow mist chiles almost year round. I had a Tabasco plant that lived through 3 Winters and produced so much I couldn't keep up with it.
 
Ghaleon said:
What makes growing Rocotos so hard?
Click to expand...
 

Its not the growing part thats hard. Mine grow just fine but getting fruit to set is another story. My buddy in Idaho probably got 20 times more pods than i did sofar and plenty of them are ripe already. His climate is drier and nights are much cooler.
 
Before I got on this forum, I had no idea on that. I didn't think there was such thing as too hot for peppers. I didn't know about flowers dropping or anything like that. I always figured the hotter the better and that they'd be year-round growers in tropical climates.
 
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