Pepper Seeds

Great reasons to grow your own peppers

You’ve heard about the “Dirty Dozen” list, right? Peppers, as much as we love them, are always on that list of convential produce exposed to the most pesticides. Save yourself from worrying about polluted peppers and grow your own this year! Peppers are as easy to as they are rewarding to harvest. Peppers pack a significant amount of nutritional benefit too—peppers, especially spicy chiles, contain a chemical compound called capsaicin, which is a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent. Not only that, but all peppers are rich in vitamin C, which our bodies use to build immunity and repair cells when we are sick.

Spicy peppers have added value

Even if you don’t love eating spicy peppers, it might be worth planting a few chiles in your garden—the spicy compounds in peppers repel many garden pests, including deer and rabbits. A spray made of ground-up hot peppers and water can be applied to the foliage of other plants in your garden to kill aphids and other bad bugs.

Maybe you’re more of a decorative gardener—did you know that Eden Brothers offers ornamental pepper seeds too? Tiny, color-changing fruits in shades of yellow, red, and purple make the perfect addition to cut flower arrangements and market bouquets.

How to start seeds and harvest your peppers

Start pepper seedlings in groups of three, and eventually thin one out and transplant the remaining two together. Space pairs about a foot and a half apart. Some pepper varieties appreciate the support of a stake or wire cage. Mulching the row with wood chips or straw will retain moisture in the soil, which also benefits the plants.

Harvest peppers when the fruit fills out and ridges appear. Fruit may be harvested when green, but the flavor improves when the fruit turns orange and red. Chile peppers get hotter the longer they stay on the plant. There’s hardly a vegetable where you have more control over the flavor profile than with peppers.

Discover your favorite homegrown pepper

We all have a relationship with peppers. Maybe you grew up eating spicy chiles, or maybe you prefer sweet peppers. Either way, pepper plants are one vegetable with the potential to bring us all together at dinner time. Eden Brothers carries more than 60 varieties of sweet peppers and hot chiles! In that spread, there’s bound to be at least a couple of varieties that spark your interest.

For more information about planting, growing, and harvesting pepper seeds, see the Pepper Seeds Planting Guide.