Farm XL Pepper Garden

[maskedsonnet]

Used getting the first round of COVID vaccine (and they're right when they say it's like getting a tetanus shot, the day after I couldn't lift my arm past my shoulder lol) as an excuse to go visit Mom and Dad for a few days - just got back home this morning to a very pleasant surprise!! My Sugar Rush Red has PEPPERS!!! Several of these guys:



Very excited to see them ripen up and taste them! I've never had this variety before

[Sher]

What a wonderful surprise!

[Shawn]

[maskedsonnet]

About to have LOTS of peppers!!! 

[Sher]

They are everywhere! The second photo looks like it is trying to hide/hoard all its peppers from you! 

[Shawn]

So many peppers.. what will you make with them?

[campingcorgis]

Wow!  I'm super impressed!  Like Shawn, I'm curious what your plans might be for the peppers!  

[maskedsonnet]

Poppers for sure with the jalapenos!! I also like to freeze peppers for later, since it looks like there might be too many to JUST make poppers, much as I love them and would eat them for every meal. Maybe I'll even try making a BIG batch of poppers and freezing some for quick snacks! I've never tried that before, and I LOVE freezer cooking, it makes it so easy to stash ready-made meals for later.

The sugar rush reds I'm not sure yet, I've never had them before. Depending on the flavor I may just eat them alone as snacks, if they're as sweet as the name implies. Otherwise, I put peppers in pretty much everything I cook, can't go wrong dicing up a pepper and throwing it in the pan with whatever's cooking! 

[campingcorgis]

Don't forget to try the Jalapeno Bites - they are yummy!  Popular at potluck's too, if you have one coming up.  

I'm with you on chopping up some peppers and throwing them in pretty much anything!  From salads to stir fries, eggs, meatloaf and so on.  

[maskedsonnet]

Oh!! I had forgotten about those (I always say if we’re relying on my memory we’re in trouble, too easily distracted - phone alerts are a life-saver)! They sound delicious, I gotta try those. They’re in my bookmarks now! p:

[campingcorgis]

Timers, lists & spreadsheets are my saviors!  I keep ongoing lists for the grocery store, Costco, the restaurant supply store...and now, for seeds to order!  Then, of course, there are the online "wish lists"...LOL  

[maskedsonnet]

Everything in my room is looking rather nibbled-upon and sad, as I'm still battling thrips. I released several lady bugs in the room a few weeks ago, and they seem to have brought the population down quite a lot, though I can still see bugs crawling around. Today I also got my weakest vacuum out and put the hose with brush attachment on it, and vacuumed the leaves of all the plants in the room, hopefully not sucking up too many ladybugs while I sucked up all the thrips I could see. I very carefully tested it on the tougher potted plants before starting on my AeroGarden plants, to make sure the suction wasn't enough to damage the plants. It actually worked really well! Sucked all the dead leaves off in addition to bugs, which was nice. This vacuum is going to live in that room now to clean up plants!

The sugar rush reds haven't started changing colors yet, but they're still doing well!


A couple of the orange spice jalapenos are close, and I got to harvest one today! They are a very pretty shade of orange. I'll cut it up and try it later tonight

[campingcorgis]

Keeping good thoughts for you!!!  

[Sher]

The pepper is a pretty color!

I don't have any advice on the thrips. It sounds like you are waging war against them on all fronts.

[Shawn]

I am sending good vibes your way to end the thrips...  I would love to hear your assessment of the pepper.  Post it on the Pepper Review thread and I can add it to the list

[maskedsonnet]

Added my review to the thread. It's a sweet, mildly spicy pepper in a very fun color!

[Sher]

Your review was great! I would like to grow those someday.

[maskedsonnet]

They've certainly made me look forward to trying my other two jalapeno types. The pumpkin spice is supposed to be a lighter shade of orange, and the lemon spice looks like a really fun shade of yellow in the vendor photos! The colors are half the fun for me lol

[campingcorgis]

Oooo, I have the pumpkin spice seeds too.  Hope to try them in the near future!  

[maskedsonnet]

One of the Sugar Rush Reds are getting close! Also got to try out a lemon spice jalapeno!! Super small due to bug activity, but a very fun and sunny yellow. Sweet, with a slight citrusy taste. Just like the Orange Spice, it wasn't hot at all at the tip, but then I hit the spicy part and it was waaaay hotter than the Orange Spice. Spicier, I would say, than a regular jalapeno. Very yummy with a fun pop of color!!