A Good Old Fashioned RedHotChiliPepper Grow Off

[andIhalped]

The bees also love the sunflowers. They'll overnight on the compound heads in torpor in the cool of the night.

I also grow huge lots of oregano because the bees love their flowers, too.

We should all do as much as we can for bees. They've done so much for us as species & in return have gotten the back of the hand, by which I mean nicotinoids, habitat destruction, etc.

 

[Itibitiguy]

My peppers havnt done much this year but this is 5 days of ground cherries.

 

[BeezLuiz]

What is a ground cherry? They kinda look like tomatillos.

 

[Itibitiguy]

I've never had a tomatillo, but the ground cherry has a sweet orange berry inside. Everyone kind of describes the taste differently.... almost a tropical favour

 

[newty]

Yum!! Those look delish Iti!

I just harvested all my outdoor goodies so I’ll update soon.

I love sunflowers too, unfortunately I started mine too late

5537F936-B02D-4DEB-86B6-1D9146AA3E1E.jpeg

• newty
• Sep 15, 2018

Just hatching lol

Next year I’m loading that front bed in March! Lol

I also found both my lady bugs on these sunflowers so they must use them as homes I’m thinking

I already started my garden planning for next year based on what I’ve learned

#savethebees

 

[Itibitiguy]

I had the same problem with the sunflowers the last couple years... didnt do any this year. The bumblebees are loving the ground cherries... easy to see 3 or 4 in the GH all the time.... now there nest are elusive to find.

 

[BeezLuiz]

I've never had a tomatillo, but the ground cherry has a sweet orange berry inside. Everyone kind of describes the taste differently.... almost a tropical favour

OK, I google'd them. They are indeed related, but different. Tomatillos are the main ingredient is Mexican green sauces and salsas (chili verde). I would imagine ground cherries can be used in similar dishes. How do you eat them - plain, cooked?

 

[Itibitiguy]

I eat them plain. They are very sweet, great on salads, and for deserts. I haven't tried cooking with them much. They do have that tomato texture inside.

 

[BeezLuiz]

They do look great. I've never seen them here (northern calif), but will keep a look out. I bet they would make a good salsa if roasted first.

 

[andIhalped]

I also found both my lady bugs on these sunflowers so they must use them as homes I’m thinking

I already started my garden planning for next year based on what I’ve learned

#savethebees

Great!

But we don't need to save the bees. They've got a millenia of survival R&D under their belt.

We, as a society & individuals, just need to stop doing things that kill them.

 

[newty]

Perfect! I’ll keep doing my part

 

[Kismet]

Looking great guys ! Started off strong with the garden this year kinda let it get overgrown towards the end but have some stuff coming in i'll post when i do the final harvest. Was curious about the ground cherries iti. Grew some tomatillos last year (totally different) and some ground cherry peppers(pimentos) this year so kept on vaguely remembering ground cherries all summer ? Hahaha

 

[Itibitiguy]

We just went to the farmers market with them last week... sold out in 2 hours. so this year is a pilot project year, I've already started saving seeds for next year.

 

[andIhalped]

Perfect! I’ll keep doing my part

I know you will!

 

[BeezLuiz]

I like to make pepper jelly with my pepper harvest each year. My habaneros & jalapenos are ready for harvest so I think it's time to whip up a batch.

20180916_111026.jpg

• BeezLuiz
• Sep 17, 2018

Habaneros ready to harvest

20180917_090203.jpg

• BeezLuiz
• Sep 17, 2018

4 pepper jelly. Habanero, jalapeno, poblano & Anaheim.

 

[andIhalped]

I also found both my lady bugs on these sunflowers so they must use them as homes I’m thinking

I already started my garden planning for next year based on what I’ve learned

#savethebees

Speaking of bees, today I happened to be listening to an interview with a bee expert, & learned something that sorta blew me away:

Honey bees are fairly ineffective at pollinating tomatoes, but bumblebees are not, because bumblebees change the pitch of their buzz to a frequency that resonates with the tom. flowers so that they disgorge pollen. That’s fairly incredible!
(If I can track down an online podcast, I’ll post a link later).

On the topic of what to do to help bees survive, he said simple steps are to plant more flowers and eliminate or sharply curtail the use of all insecticides, including organic ones (e.g. diatomaceous earth is just effective at killing bees as it is anything else).

As I recall, his new book on bees is called “Buzz” a title that might also resonate with those on this site.

 

[andIhalped]

I like to make pepper jelly with my pepper harvest each year. My habaneros & jalapenos are ready for harvest so I think it's time to whip up a batch.

20180916_111026.jpg

• BeezLuiz
• Sep 17, 2018

Habaneros ready to harvest

20180917_090203.jpg

• BeezLuiz
• Sep 17, 2018

4 pepper jelly. Habanero, jalapeno, poblano & Anaheim.

Looks absolutely mouth-watering!

I think I'm gonna give pepper jelly a whirl this year. I've got hundreds of Peruvian Yellow waiting to be harvested. they're almost as hot as habaneros.

Are online recipes any good?

If so, I'll find one. If not, could you share one?

Grow on!

 

[BeezLuiz]

I'd be happy to share. It's a pretty straight-forward recipe -- I'll have to dig it out of my recipe binder. We enjoy putting it on crackers with cream cheese - the cheese helps sooth the heat. Also good as a glaze on pork chops or fish.

 

[Itibitiguy]

My wife bought habanero and cilantro jelly at the farmers market the other week. Good stuff.

I think I see somewhere that honey bees aren't the best pollinators... as they collect everything and don't tend to spread things around like bumblebees

 

[BeezLuiz]

I originally got my recipe online (Habanero Pepper Jelly at Allrecipes website), but have adjusted a lot of that recipe to suit my preferences. I also seem to tweek each time I make it.

1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
6 cups white sugar
5 oz Certo liquid fruit pectin
3/4 cup grated carrot
2 cups diced peppers

The pectin usually comes in two 3 oz packets, but I've found that using all 6 oz results in jelly that is a bit too thick for my preference, but it's probably still ok for most people.

The 2 cups of diced peppers can be any combination of peppers that you like. My last batch was 1/2 cup each of habaneros, jalapenos, anahiem and poblano. It was pretty hot, but my family really liked it. If you want a more mild version, I would recommend increasing the anahiem or poblano ratio, or even using bell pepper. Just keep the total amount of peppers to 2 cups.

Cook the vinegar and sugar in a sauce pan over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved.
Add the carrots and peppers, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the pectin and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Stir constantly. Skim any foam from the jelly that may develop.

That's all there is to it really. It's now ready to go into your canning jars. The recipe makes 8 half-pint jars. I'm assuming you know what to do as far as canning/preserving them.

Also, I find that after I remove them from the hot canning bath, the pepper chunks tend to float to the top. While it's cooling, every 15 minutes I flip the jars so that the pepper pieces even out throughout the liquid.

Good luck, and enjoy