By Andrew Oldham
THE growing of chillies is a slow affair.
Sowed in February in a heated propagator. Potted on in March. Kept in a warm place until all frost has passed. It’s long journey to an unheated greenhouse or south facing windowsill. You can still pick up plants now and cut this out.
I plant in terracotta pots but I have planted them in large plastic milk bottles which I cut in half, discarding the handle end (don’t forget drainage holes).
Peppers need a short cane pushed down to the bottom of the pot that you can tie to. This supports the growing plant and stops it flopping over. I pinch the lead shoot out at 4-6 leaves and they bush out producing more fruit (hence the need for support).
Choose your chillies wisely. The heat of chillies is measured on the Scoville Heat Units (SHU) scale. A bell pepper is 0-100 but the Dorset Naga is 800,000-1,600,000 SHU. There are hotter chillies – the Carolina Reaper is the hottest pepper in the world at 2,200,000 SHU.
This brings us to how you should handle your chillies. I would recommend gloves for really hot chillies. Without gloves, the act of scratching your eye, ear or other delicate regions after touching a chilli will result in pain. Anyone who has ever chopped up chillies and rubbed their nose will testify to this.
I am growing Etna (50,000 SHU), which has an upright variety making it easier to pick and after handling I wash my hands.
The Back Lane Veg Patch is a new garden under construction on the Saddleworth hills. This column focuses on growing food and flowers for use in the kitchen and home.
If you have any questions on growing you can contact Andrew on twitter
@Backlanevegpat1
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