Reflections on my 2006 Sweet Peppers

[nctomatoman]

I guess all of this abnormally warm weather is accelerating my return to thinking about gardening! So, just in case this is helpful to those making decisions about what to try this season, here is my 2006 sweet pepper assessment (and, note that all of these were grown in pots - about 12 inches wide and 12 inches in diameter, so not particulary large).

The winners:

Islander F1 - from JSS - probably the most beautiful of all sweet peppers (very pale green to deep lavendar, ripening to orange, then red) - great yield, quite sweet once it turns red. This one is fun to dehybridize as well.

Chervena Chusaica - from a trade; quite tall, needed staking, incredible yield of medium long, slender, pointed green peppers that went through orange to red, very sweet, plant was just loaded - very impressive.

Red Belgium - originally from a SSE trade - flowers and fruits when very small, stays compact, perfect for a pot - not quite a bell, small to medium blunt to slightly pointed, very pale yellow ripening to orange red, yields very heavily, quite sweet when red.

Cubanelle - I finally tried this one out, and was amazed at the yield! Long, frying type, pale green to orange red, great for salads, frying, freezing. Great things can come in very familiar packages!

Corno di Toro and Marconi - very similar varieties, very tall plants for peppers - staking necessary; quite long, wide but longer than wide, thick walls, high yields, medium green ripening to red, incredibly sweet, just wonderful.

Lipstick - really nice variety, a bit more compact than most of my other sweets, high yield, medium long, think walls, green to red, very sweet. A reliable variety that is a regular in my garden.

Jimmy Nardello - Wow! More fruit than foliage, it seemed - very long, some twisted, tall but manageable, slendar pointed thin walled green fruit turn deep red, perfect to grill, roast, fry, salads, freeze - you name it! Sweet and delicious.

Orange Bell - not the heaviest yielding, but maybe the most delicious bell pepper I've grown - got it through a SSE trade in the late 1980's, big blocky deep green fruit, thick walls, ripen deep orange, beautiful - our favorite for sauteing in olive oil with a bit of thyme and black pepper as a vegetable with our dinners. Also great as slabs on salads, or roasted.

Super Shepherd - another favorite, originally from Stokes, very tall plant, heavy yielder, Italian type but deep green to deep red, thick walls, very sweet and delicious.

World Beater did very well as a green to red bell in terms of yield, flavor, etc. but the sample that I grew out seemed to be crossed - the peppers were a medium to pale green ripening to orange then red, and my original strain from Blum years ago was larger, darker green. Whatever I had, it did just fine.

Not quite at the top level:

Tawny Port F1 - though it was a pepper machine (just incredible yield), I found it a bit thin walled and a bit bland in flavor - the sweetness was just not there, even when it turned from its initial deep green to a rich chocolate brown color. Due to the thin walls, it did not roast very well. I much prefer the expensive but wonderful Chocolate Bell that Stokes sells.

Italia - probably underperformed due to a viral disease (plant never looked very good) - the few long green ripening to red peppers were very good. It deserves another chance.

Clearly, it was as great a year for sweet peppers as it was a mediocre year for tomatoes in 2006.