Peppers
1 plant/ 3.5” pot. Pepper plants are cold sensitive. We do not recommend planting them outdoors until June, and even then, with season extension tools like mini hoophouses or walls of water in combination with frost cloth.
For seed saving, opt for open pollinated varieties. Seeds saved from hybrid varieties will likely not produce future generations with the same characteristics.
Varieties currently available for planting in greenhouses (that are above freezing at night!):
SPICY:
‘Early Jalapeño’: Open pollinated. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 74 days green/ 94 days red. Cylindrical fruits are of the smaller, traditional size (2-2 1/2") and some checking on their skins.
‘Pathfinder’: Hybrid. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 74 days. If you’re over jalapeños and trying to take heat to the next level, look no further than this serrano. Pathfinder is even more prolific than its predecessor, Sureño, exhibiting sturdy compact plants laden with 4 ½–5 inch, deep green peppers.
SWEET:
‘Aura’: Hybrid. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 67 days green/ 87 golden yellow. This thick walled sweet mini bell goes great with ‘Glow’. Fruits are 2–3 lobed, 4–5" long and tapered on medium sized plants. They turn from green to yellow to gold at full maturity.
‘Carmen’: Hybrid. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 74 days green/ 94 days red. An award winning Corno di Toro (or "Bull's Horn") pepper popular in Italy. Early, adaptable, and notably sweet (especially when fully red-ripe) with a shapely tapered silhouette. Begins green, then deepens to a beautiful carmine at maturity. Excellent roasted, grilled, and in salads. Great paired with yellow Corno di Toro 'Escamillo.' Bred by Johnny's Selected Seeds and named for the gypsy Carmen from the French opera. Upright, medium-sized plant. Suitable for indoor and outdoor growing. Fruits avg. 6" long x 2 1/2" wide. Avg. weight 5 oz.
‘Escamillo’: Hybrid. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 74 days green/ 94 days yellow. Delicious yellow Italian frying pepper. The golden-yellow counterpart to lovely 'Carmen' and a refined take on the popular Corno di Toro (or "Bull's Horn") pepper class. Bred by Johnny's Selected Seeds and named for Carmen's love interest in the French opera: the bullfighter Escamillo. Intoxicating sweetness any way it is prepared, but traditionally used for frying. Broad-shouldered with an attractive taper. Fruits avg. 6" long x 2-2 1/2" wide. AAS winner.
‘Jimmy Nardello’s’: Open Pollinated. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 89 days. An almost uncanny sweet, fruity flavor makes these peppers tempting and delightful eaten straight off the plant, but traditional Italian cuisine typically uses them for frying. The long, slender fruit will easily reach 6–9 inches starting green and ripening to red. Super productive, disease-resistant plants.
SHISHITO:
Open pollinated. Expected days to maturity in Central Oregon: 74 days green / 89 days red. Avg. 3–3 1/2" fruits are thin-walled and have no heat (although occasionally one can have a little kick). Popular in Japan, where its thin walls make it particularly suitable for tempura. Also very good roasted, in stir-fries, or sautéed. In Asia, the fruits are always cooked green, but they may also be used red. Thinly sliced, the red, slightly sweet fruits are excellent in salads and cole slaws.