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Growing chilli plants

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  • diggersjodiggersjo Posts: 172
    This was taken Jan23... 

    Yorkshire, ex Italy and North East coast. Growing too old for it!
  • LeadFarmerLeadFarmer Posts: 1,500
    Were those chillies left on the plant overwinter from the previous year?
  • diggersjodiggersjo Posts: 172
    It did overwinter and continued to produce (albeit a lot less) throughout. I did "prune" the two plants I have, but was lax and did not make a note of when I did it. I do know I did so a little bit at a time.
    Yorkshire, ex Italy and North East coast. Growing too old for it!
  • LeadFarmerLeadFarmer Posts: 1,500
    Does freezing whole chillies lessen the heat or flavour at all, as I find freezing other fruit can sometimes lessen the sweetness.
  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,340
    I think it does.
    I had been using frozen since last summer and recently started using fresh ones again - nearly blew my head off last night with some fresh little Thai chillies.

    Last year I grew Scotch Bonnet  - I didn't realise it had such a strong scent and taste, which I really don't like, but the frozen ones had just the same smell and taste, so the flavour and scent to be preserved but not so much the heat.
    That's what I found anyway :)

    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • diggersjodiggersjo Posts: 172
    It is supposed to enhance the heat according to what I've read. To be honest we have been freezing them whole for many a year and never noticed any difference. These are the latest (Basket Of Fire), all from the same plant.

    Yorkshire, ex Italy and North East coast. Growing too old for it!
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Pete.8 said:
    The Indian couple who used to run the corner shop across the road were gifted lots of chillies from local growers.
    She blitzed them in a processor, then put it in freezer bags - not too much. Then she pressed the bag flat so it was about 5mm thick and froze it.
    When she wanted some to add some chilli to food, she'd just snap a bit off.
    Now that is a very good idea! Economical on freezer space, and no chopping when you get them out.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • LunarSeaLunarSea Posts: 1,923
    diggersjo said:
    It is supposed to enhance the heat according to what I've read.

    It certainly seems to with our Apache chillies. Certainly no loss of heat anyway, even after being frozen for 2 years.
    Clay soil - Cheshire/Derbyshire border

    I play with plants and soil and sometimes it's successful

  • LeadFarmerLeadFarmer Posts: 1,500
    I bought a cheap £23 vacuum bag sealing machine today and vacuum sealed some chillies for the freezer, first cutting them each in half seeing as there will be air inside each chilli. It worked well, and when I come to open the bag to get some out I'll be able to re-vac the bag again.
  • You guys are doing awesome with your chilies. I miss the good 'ol days my chilies are bountiful with just 2 varieties. Now... I'm still having a very long way to understand how my environment works... As I am near to an erupting volcano and I have a lot of ash fall to clean on... so my chilies are not as good as it seems. I have a 20 different kinds of sick chilies lately. And I have no choice but to uproot them. :'(
    I really don't have a Good backyard. But used my balcony as container Gardening place. No stopping from my passion.
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