My Dad used to make this using only the peppers and vinegar. He used long slender green (and an occasional red) cayenne peppers which he grew. He packed the peppers in bottles with a small neck (such as Worcestershire or Tabasco) and heated the vinegar before pouring it over the peppers. He called it Hot Sauce and sprinkled it over turnip greens, black eyed peas and almost anything else which needed a kick. If I were making it today I'd put it in the fridge when it cools. Pepper Pique Source: Ziedrich The Joy of Pickling 12 medium long or conical chili peppers such as cayenne, de arbol or jalapeno 4 cloves garlic 12 black peppercorns 1/2 tsp pickling salt 1 cup cider vinegar Put the peppers, garlic cloves, peppercorns and salt into a bottle with a capacity of about 12 ounces. (A rum bottle is most authentic, but a small wine vinegar bottle will do, particularly if you've kept the plastic inner and outer caps.) Using a funnel, pour enough vinegar into the bottle to cover well. Put the caps on and shake to dissolve the salt. Let the bottle sit 2 to 3 days undisturbed so the vinegar can absorb the other flavors. The longer it sits the hotter it gets. Store the bottle in the refrigerator or in a cool place. Until the pepper flavor gets weak, you can top off the bottle with fresh vinegar as needed.

No, peppers are self-pollinating. But supply some air movement to help things along and to encourage strong stems. Dennis

Ronny -- You are totally right. Actually looking just at that part, there is a distinct difference. And I did pick Thai peppers when I was there, so... *blush* The immature pods of that yellow one were the same color as that, though.

I do not plan to overwinter any plants. I'm in NH, the colder side of zone 5. I started seeds in three different batches based on days to maturity. I think almost everything had a chance to ripen except for Pasilla Bahio which although very productive, did not get beyond dark green except for one pepper that started to turn brown. I felt kind of bad to pull up plants, shake off dirt and then deliver them to compost bin. I was surprised at what a strong root system some had. All peppers were grown either outdoors or in a high tunnel with the sides rolled up. Despite having sides rolled up, the plastic roof creates temps around 100 F most sunny days and seems to be a great growing environment for peppers and tomatoes. Some of the peppers such as a round Torpepo rossi pepper did poorly outdoors but not too bad in the high tunnel. Last night temps were predicted to go to high 20s so high tunnel was closed up and the bulk of the peppers picked except for the middle bed which I covered with Agribon fabric and crossed my fingers. I did not dare plant peppers until the end of May since temps in the high tunnel get as cold as outside temps. I transplanted once to large Red Solo cups (with holes drilled in bottom) and watered with diluted fish fertilizer while plants were under lights. In May I started hardening off the plants. I have a garden cart that can be wheeled into the garage at night. Some plants blossomed and had started forming peppers before they got planted in the ground. I did not remove the baby peppers (sorry, broke the rules). I also water with fish emulsion when I transplant and again once a week for the next week or so. We usually get a light frost around 9/18 but didn't this year although plants outdoors got damaged by cold air/wind around that time and damage increased on some plants. Gold spike cayenne didn't seem to be bothered much but other plants such as the bells lost a lot of leaves. I grew less heat but still tasty versions of hot peppers from the mild category of one seed supplier. Sweet cayenne was extremely productive both inside and outdoors. Not much heat but I think it will make an interesting powder plus sliced and frozen for future casseroles. Santa Fe grande was named as a sub for Jalapeno but has thinner flesh. It was very productive. I got catalog crazies so ordered far too many varieties, started 3 seeds of each and despite poor germination on a few, had far too many plants in the spring. I gave away some. My biggest mistake was ordering peppers I have never tasted before. Although it's fun to have different varieties, I'm confused about how to use them. Dehydrating a lot!