CAPSICUM CHACOENSE SEEDS

Capsicum chacoense

Rare wild pepper species native to the Gran Chaco in South America. Beautiful plants with tiny bullet-shaped peppers that ripen from dark green blushed with purple to bright scarlet red. Our plants had striking purple stems and leaf veins, but this is likely due to our cool nights and isn’t a given in warmer regions.

Flavor and heat are somewhat variable among plants. For the most part we found these little pods to have excellent flavor and intense but tolerable heat. We prefer C. chacoense to most selections of wild C. annuum that we've grown. Though fairly seedy, the fruits are juicy and a delight to eat out of hand. Pods dry beautifully and look great in a little glass jar.

Start these seeds indoors. Tuck just beneath the surface of moist soil, pressing to keep seed snug. Mist generously with hot water and cover with plastic to maintain moisture and temperature. Kept warm (around 85°F) and moist in bright light seeds germinate in 2-4 weeks. Use a heat mat and grow lights. Cool night temperatures will delay germination significantly. Once seedlings have true leaves, prick out to grow on in individual 3" containers at warm temperatures in bright light. Very slow-growing initially.

These plants love heat, and in most northern gardens are best in a container on a hot sunny patio. Compared to wild C. annuum, this species is much earlier to flower, but the fruits are just as slow to ripen where nights are cool, and there are typically fewer fruits in general. Flavor is superior and heat is less sharp, although the SHU may be similar. Some growers report mild heat, but all of ours were HOT.

Packet contains at least 10 seeds.