Has anyone else tried growing Capsicum pubescens peppers here in the PNW (common names include manzano, rocoto/rukutu, and locoto/luqutu)? With their preference for cooler weather, they seem like a good fit for our climate.
I have one seedling someone gave me last year (I think it was @jsteph00921?), which was started too late to produce last year. It has overwintered in my greenhouse OK, but not great, defoliating a lot and the leaves it did keep were pale and deformed looking, but it is starting to push a spring flush now:
I saw my local Safeway had some yesterday (oddly enough, next to the dragonfruit rather than the peppers), so I grabbed the smallest and largest ones out of the pile to taste them and get some extra seeds. The smaller orange one is quite a bit spicier than the larger yellow one, but they are both definitely “hot peppers”:
Tag said Melissa’s produce. If I manage to get some on my own plant this season, I may plant it in the ground in the greenhouse, to see how big it will get if it keeps successfully overwintering. I’m not a big hot pepper user, but I do like hot sauce, so I may try making my own if this works out.
Here’s a post in a thread with more info on these peppers: