Chilies range from green, butter yellow, peachy orange, and fire-engine red, to plum and a pitch black hue. The colour doesn’t have a direct correlation to the flavour or spice level of each chili pepper. Visit a local nursery to find out what variety will thrive in your local environment. Certain chilies are used in different areas of the world for special recipes; for example, Serrano chilies are used primarily in Mexican dishes, habanero peppers are common throughout Mexico and Latin America, and the Calcutta pepper is used in Asian curries. [1] X Research source
You can grow chilies from seeds or starts from nurseries, but you’ll have much more variety with growing the former. Starting seedlings is easy; just plan it out at least 6 weeks prior to transplanting the chilies outdoors. Chilies can be transplanted outdoors after your area’s last frost date.
Test the pH of your soil and determine if you need to make further adjustments; chilies like soil that has a neutral or slightly acidic pH of 6. 5-7. The further in advance you can prepare your soil, the better your chilies will grow.
Depending on the type of chilies you are growing, you may need to use a trellis. For example, bell peppers do better with the support of a trellis.
If you’re aiming to make chili powder or pepper flakes with your chilies, leave them to shrivel and dry up on their own on the branch before harvesting.
