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  • Writer's pictureAdele

Chillies!


It has been a super hot summer here. Too hot for lots of produce but the chilli plants have thrived. In fact they are still going strong as I write this, 17th October. We grew all of our chillies from seed, starting the super hot varieties indoors in February. As this is our first year with a smallholding we have been experimenting where they grow the best .You would think the polytunnel right? The polytunnel is a great nursery and essential for bringing the seedlings on, but the plants outside in the raised bed are doing much better.

Last winter we created some raised beds and filled them with layers of twigs, leaves and the compost we make. We covered them with cardboard until the springtime, then added another layer of compost and planted the young chilli plants in them. They shot up, looked really healthy and towards the end of summer started bearing lots of fruit. We have grown piri piri chillies for that Nando style sauce, Jalapenos for poppers, pickling and cowboy candy, serranos for the same, some long hot Indian chillies to add to curries, the Mexican Arbol chilli which dries really quickly and makes a great salsa. One of my favourite everyday chillies is the Aji Limon, a yellow chilli with a bit of heat and a slight citrus taste.

The Ghost pepper, or naga chilli has been a surprise. Yes it is VERY hot, but makes a great hot sauce. I am still scared to use the Carolina Reaper though, it is the hottest chilli in the world! These are just a few of the wonderful chilli plants we have. Next year we hope to increase our production and grow enough to sell, and who knows we may end up with a full blown chilli farm!




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