Red Peppers

I just had to tell you all about this. I went to the store yesterday. I was going through the veggie. isle and saw some very pretty red peppers. When I got close enough to see the price sign I almost fainted. They were 2.38 each, that is right EACH. I couldn't believe it. This means if I let mine get ripe I have a lot of money out in the yard.

Yesterday I bought a 6-pack of transplants at the nursery for 3.59... If I only get 2 peppers, I've more than made back my "investment"! (Our growing seasons out here are a little wacky... this isn't as bizarre as it sounds to be putting pepper transplants out now. We'll have heat through the end of October, at least.)

Outrageous, isn't it?

It sure is. You are right if you get two peppers than you made your money back. It is insane.

The orange and yellow and purple ones cost even more.

I don't need colored ones that bad. I have some of the pot peppers growing in the ground and I have let some of them get a nice red color. Maybe I should put out a stand and sell them for $2.00 a piece.

Hope they were large red peppers. A lot of the coloured bell peppers are imported from Holland. Do you know where the ones in your store came from?

No sorry I don't but I sure am not paying that much for one.

The ones we get here come from either California or Mexico. Not too much of a surprise, given how close we are to the border!

From the pepper plant's standpoint, once its fruits reach the stage of final coloring, that's a signal that the seeds have matured and the plant has done its job of reproducing itself for the next season, and it can begin shutting down. Also, the grower has to wait longer to harvest. These factors - delayed marketing (with more watering) and decreased production - cause price hikes at the store. Also, once mature, the marketing period is very short; if not bought and used quickly, the ripe fruits begin to shrivel, and the produce manager has to chuck some of them.

They wouldn't have to throw out so many if they didn't cost so much. Charge a little less and sell more. It evens out I think.

Also, pepper plants being the most low-maintenance thing in my garden, all I have to do is sit & wait for them to get red. They don't need water or attract pests or even require daily picking like those dratted cherry tomatoes.

So that's where our local peppers went - to AZ!
Seriously though, if I want a CA grown pepper, I have to go to the Farmer's Market (which is where I buy any produce we don't grown ourselves). Most of the peppers in our local supermarkets are still tagged as imports from Holland.

That is crazy isn't it since they can perfectly well be grown here.

I got my very first Earth Box for my birthday a couple of weeks ago, and just planted 6 red pepper transplants in it. We'll have heat for at least another 2 months at a minimum, so I'm hoping to get some peppers out of the deal. And that means fewer I'll have to buy!

Yuska, thanks for pointing out some of the commercial realities of pepper production. I never really thought about why they would be more expensive, just moaned about it! :) But I guess those reasons make sense. Also makes sense to grow my own, if I can!

This has been a vintage year in bell peppers...large red ones too. I have mostly California Wonders to boot!

I have been happily free of corn earworms, which eschew the corn in favor of the peppers.

Lots of big red peppers on every bush.

Had great luck with Cal. wonder myself! Got a couple nice big ones!

This is a "Wisconsin Lakes" from Seed Savers Exchange that I'm trying for the first time. I used several of the peppers at the green stage so I haven't really given it a fair chance, but many of the remaining ones are turning red now.

I've got "Earlired" from Sandhill Preservation for next year. I've never done peppers from seed (and this fall is my first time from transplants), so I'm looking forward to new adventures in peppering!

The ones I am growing are on a little bush that you could grow in a pot.
I am going to see if I can find that darn envelope.