Getting the Most out of your Pepper Harvest

Do you want to add value to your pepper harvest? In this post, we’ll first discuss choosing the correct pepper variety, then cover finding creative ways to package your peppers, and lastly, we will refer to a few common value-added processes.

Carmen (F1)

Choosing the correct pepper variety:

Before the seed is ordered, it’s important to make the correct varietal choices. Ask yourself the following questions: What types of peppers perform best in my region? Are there regional favorites that my customers have asked for? What is the intended end use for the peppers? Are there under-served ethnic markets or restaurants?

Here at Johnny’s, we help our customers clearly identify the main benefits and attributes of each of our pepper varieties, including their intended end use. It pays to research the specific demands in your region before picking a type or variety of pepper.

Check out what other growers are selling at local farmers markets. If you have adventurous customers and most growers there are not growing specialty peppers, this might present you with an opportunity. If your customers are culinarily conservative, maybe the standard pepper varieties are best for you. Another good idea is to contact restaurants in your area to find out what they are looking for. You can show them pictures of unique varieties in Johnny’s catalog or on our website.  It’s better to do your homework ahead of time so you don’t get stuck with peppers you can’t sell.

Creative Packaging:

If you’re looking for a new, unique way to package your pepper varieties, try some of the ideas below:

•           Sell your snack peppers in mixed pints of small bags and market them as the perfect-sized, healthy snack
•           Offer different colored bell peppers in mixed packages
•           Combine similarly-sized specialty peppers such as Aura, Glow, and Lipstick and offer them as a colorful snack-pack  

Red Flame (F1) (OG)

Value-Added Processing

• Ristras: They take a bit of effort, but they typically sell quite well. String the peppers before they are dry to prevent breakage. Red Flame is a good choice for Ristras and wreaths. Bangkok would also make a nice mini ristra or wreath.
• Chiles: Chiles can also be dried and ground to sell as powder or flakes. Please note, this requires eye protection and a respirator so you won’t burn your eyes or lungs in the process. Again, it’s important to research the demand for this type of product in your area, as the selling price of this product would have to be quite high to justify the effort. 
•  Jalapenos and Serranos: Peppers can be smoked and sold as whole or powdered chipotles.
•  Anchos (Poblanos): These can be dried and powdered and made into mole sauce.
• Anaheims (Numex): These peppers are easily roasted and can be sold for several times what unroasted peppers fetch.

Specific Pepper Varieties:

• Carmen is a sweet Italian frying pepper that is also great roasted.
• Hungarian Hot Wax, Capperino, and Golden Greek are all good peppers for pickling.

Highlander (F1) (OG)

Continue exploring additional resources on the topic of value-added processing at Johnnyseeds.com by reviewing  “Getting Started with Value-Added Crops”. This article covers finding your niche and business basics for value-added processors. Also, be sure to read our profile on Johnny’s customer, Freedom Farms in Maine, where we discuss their process for roasting peppers.

A Word From Johnny's International Sales Department

Johnny's knowledgeable commercial sales team offers region-specific, year-round support to commercial customers. Our territory representatives offer information, resources, and assistance with:

Carmen Pepper

• Crop Planning

• Variety Selection
• Trend Awareness
• Regional Expertise

 We turned to our commercial sales team to offer their insight and expertise on the Blog. Our first commercial sales team post comes from Johnny’s International Sales Representative, Anthony Stevenson. Here’s a little background information on Anthony:

Anthony joined Johnny's International Sales Department in 2007. Anthony holds a Masters in Business Administration and is fluent in Spanish. He is the Territory Sales Representative for all countries excluding the United States and Canada. Anthony works to ensure his customers' success from garden to market by staying up-to-date with gardening techniques, culinary trends, and technical growing knowledge. Every spring he looks forward to starting his own garden — something he has done nearly every year since childhood.

Below, Anthony speaks to the various uses of Peppers throughout his sales territory:

A seed is only the beginning.  Tastes evolve, preferences change, and vegetables can have “a moment.”  In the fall, gardens are anticipated.  In the winter, they get planned.  In the spring, they are prepped and two, even three seasons of enjoyable labor yield a harvest that brings pride and a sense of accomplishment.  But in the beginning, all you have is the seed. 

Johnny’s has always been proud to supply our customers with seeds from our own award-winning breeding program.  My favorite vegetable is the pepper, and Johnny’s has bred many unique and delicious varieties.

Peppers are a very regional crop.  For example, what is grown in the American southwest and in northern Mexico is incredibly different from what is grown in Southeast Asia.  The good thing is that both types are fantastic and their differences should be embraced.

Italian corno di toro types like Carmen are sweet and can be eaten right off the vine or lightly fried or roasted.  Anaheim chilies like Highlander are used in the wonderful Mexican dish, Chiles Rellenos.  Serranos and Cayenne chilies like Red Flame bring a tolerable amount of heat to a dish.  But peppers don’t have to be eaten fresh.  A dried Poblano is an Ancho.  A dried Jalapeno is a Chipotle.  They can be dried and then pulverized or they can be pickled.  Peppers are diverse; with a myriad of different uses.

Gardening should be fun.  Go out and get some pepper seeds and have fun with them.  You won’t be disappointed.

Highlander Pepper

To contact Anthony, you can reach him via email at: astevenson@johnnyseeds.com, or Toll-Free at: 877-564-6697, ext. 5310.

Otherwise, for general inquiries about Johnny's Commercial Sales, email service@johnnyseeds.com and we will get back to you shortly.

Pepper Starting at Johnny’s Selected Seeds
— How We Do It —

Here is the basic process we follow when starting peppers here at Johnny’s …

In early April, once we have determined which varieties we want to grow and how many plants of each, we assemble the seeds, 20-row flats, and Johnny’s Germination Mix that we will need to start the growing process. We place masking tape on one edge of the 20-row flat, so we can keep track of the varieties we have sown. We fill the rows three-quarters full with the germination mix, tamp it down slightly, and seed our rows with 20–30 seeds per row. The flats are covered with more germination mix and watered lightly. A leak-proof tray is then set on top, to ensure that the flat retains moisture during germination, and the flat is placed in a warm (85°F/29°C), dark place.

As soon as the first few pepper seeds germinate, we take the trays out and place them on heat mats, with the temperature set to 75°F/24°C. Once the plants reach the stage where you can see the first true leaves, we “bump up” the seedlings to the 50-cell flats in which they are going to spend their most active growing time. Here in Albion, Maine, the length of time the seedlings will spend in the 50-cell flats is usually about 6 weeks, or until they are ready to be transplanted.
 

Our peppers are planted on IRT (infrared-transmitting plastic) mulch, with two rows per bed and plants 18” apart in staggered rows. The plastic mulch should be at least 32” across, which allows for the two rows to be planted away from the edges of the poly, where they may receive unwanted root pruning from mechanical cultivation. We fertilize the ground and lay the poly on slightly raised beds about a week prior to transplanting.

Depending on current weather conditions, we may install wire hoops and floating row covers immediately after transplanting, to add warmth and decrease transplant shock. These row covers are removed when nighttime temperatures reach an acceptable degree. 

During the main growing season, the pepper beds are mechanically cultivated regularly to limit weed competition. The planting holes are also checked for weeds, and hand weeded as necessary.

Depending on weather, a regular drip irrigation regimen will be established, in order to prevent any major fluctuations in soil moisture.

And that about sums it up for the pepper-starting routine we follow, here at Johnny’s.

— Brian Milliken,  Albion, Maine, 01/09/2013

To learn more about starting peppers, read:

§  Key Points to Growing Successful Pepper Transplants

§  JSS Pepper Selection