Fish Pepper

[applestar]

Returning to the forum for public viewing for third season in a row, here is my best/showiest variegated out of three Fish pepper. It's been overwintered in the house twice so it is now three years old, and you may have seen it previously featured in one of the overwintering pepper threads.

This year, the Fish pepper was planted in the Front Porch-side bed along with another, less variegated but more productive Fish, Aji Hot Lemon, and Peppadew hot peppers, Lady in Red salvias, Black Prince snapdragons, and Dolce Flambé petunias.

Fish Pepper (best variegation); Dolce Flambé
Petunia and Black Prince Snapdragon

(There's a Variegated Virginia Creeper in the background to the top left of the photo, but this Fish is way more variegated)

[JC's Garden]

I've never heard of "Fish Pepper". Are the good in cooking?

[applestar]

The story of the ‘Fish’ pepper is about bee stings and black history, and a delicious hot white sauce. All the ‘Fish’ peppers now sold by seed companies trace back to seed I shared many years ago through Seed Savers Exchange. From my grandfather’s little seed jar, this unique variegated-leaf pepper spread to the world of pepper aficionados and, because of its ornamental character, to landscape gardeners.

Read more: https://www.motherearthnews.com/organic- ... z380OFBS9l

[DDMcKenna]

Wow, and WOW! Thanks for sharing

[applestar]

Update

Can you see the little white/variegated fruits?

This is another, less variegated but super productive plant that I was training into a standard, but it started growing extra variegated new shoots from the bottom. So now I don't know what. I'm going to do.

Tomorrow, I'll try to remember to take a picture of the one in the Spiral Garden that is less variegated but has a white fruit growing.

[applestar]

Here is the third Fish pepper in the Spiral Garden. Compared to the other two, it has medium variegation in the leaves and some heavily variegated fruits including nearly all white.

All three are overwintered plants. The extra variegated plant seems to be unusual, so in addition to planning on saving seeds separately, I took some cuttings and rooted them.

[applestar]

This is the productive, not very variegated Fish pepper with fruits starting to turn red. This plant has almost no variegation at all on the fruits.

I think I'll try to save any fruits with variegation from this plant.

I also decided to harvest and use green fruits that are not significantly variegated from the super variegated plant so that I will be letting the better variegated and mostly white fruits mature to save seeds from.... Except there was one fruit that looked almost all green so I picked it, and when I turned it over, the other half was almost entirely white!

[applestar]

Another collage illustrating the difference in the three plants:

(1) LEFT: Nearly no variegation -- but you do see the variegated foliage starting to grow from the base. Some fruits are sometimes lightly streaked. Tallest of the three and productive.
(2) TOP TWO RIGHT: Medium/Average variegation -- fruits are about 50:50 variegated, but sometimes throws near white fruits

(3) BOTTOM RIGHT: Super variegated -- foliage and fruits are nearly white, very slow to grow and stingy with fruits

[applestar]

Some of the harvested ripe fruits from the minimally variegated plant. One on the left and three on the right were slightly variegated -- you can sort of see the stripes -- but the others were solid green and turned solid red.

Right-most fruit was fatter than normal -- maybe a double blossom.

[applestar]

Super variegated Fish fruits are finally ripening -- here is one, along with some other peppers. Notice the color of the calyces and stems. The purple antho stemmed ones are Bolivian Rainbow peppers.

image.jpg (44.09 KiB) Viewed 21083 times

Hot Lemon, super variegated Fish, Bolivian Rainbow (4), Peppadew

[applestar]

I'm overwintering all three plants -- super variegated, average variegated, and least variegated. They are all fruiting still.

Here are the fruits on the super variegated plant:

[applestar]

Remember that super variegated FISH pepper? It grew and ripened these fruits that I harvested today. These are small compared to the main season with biggest being about 1.5 inches long. You can see how much variegation is expressed in the fruit stems and calyces.

The medium or average variegated plant croaked, but the least variegated is also fruiting. I'm intrigued by this fruit that is hanging from a significantly more variegated branch that started growing near the base of the plant -- not only for the amount of variegation in the fruit stem and calyces which though less than the supervariegated, is more at the level of average variegation that was not seen on this plant during the main growing season -- but also this light orange color which I don't remember as being part of the color development for the Fish peppers.

[applestar]

That strange light orange colored pod is still the same color.
One of the kids dropped something on the plant and broke the branch the fruit is on, but it's still attached so I've left it in place. It should have turned red by now (normally green straight to red) so I don't think it's going to change.

Would this be considered a sport? ...or could the aphid infestation cause this

[pepperhead212]

If that pepper was green when the branch was broken, it may be like some peppers I have had on plants I pulled out of the ground when frost was eminent, then left them on my inside porch to ripen. Many would only turn orange, or very light red, if they had not started ripening before the plant was pulled.

[applestar]

Nope. When I took the previous photo of it (in the village) it was still attached.
Definitely saving seeds from this one and will shoehorn some of its seedlings into the garden, but I can't tell if it's fully ripe yet. -- Still, peppers are like tomatoes and the seeds should be viable once blushed.

[Peppery1]

I'm thinking of growing three of the peppers you mention here: peppadew, which I know about, lemon pepper and fish pepper, which I don't. Can you tell me how these two (lemon pepper & fish pepper) taste and if you'd grow them again? I've heard good things but haven't tried them yet. Those are some beautiful pictures and some gorgeous peppers, btw.

[applestar]

Wow I missed Peppery1’s question. Sorry about that

I have to tell you I am a complete neophyte at reviewing pepper flavors. All I can say is Hot Lemon has a sort of flowery taste that I think people describe as citrusy. Fish has an amazingly wonderful aroma that intensifies when dehydrated.

Now, I came to post this:

Top photo is an uppdate photo of the now 4 yr old plant I refer to as my "Super Variegated (SuperVar) Fish Pepper" It's the correct color in dark forest green.

Bottom left is a the best variegated seedling grown from seeds from the above plant this spring. It is in typical green/cream foliar combination.

Bottom right is a 4 yr old "sibling" of the SuperVar that has always been the LEAST variegated/mostly solid green.
Unlike the compact SuperVar, it has aways grown twice as big and loaded with solid green fruits but occasionally exhibited variegation. Last fall, something changed and it grew a substantially variegated branch from the base of the plant. This year, it is growing this upper new branch with significant variegation and same dark forest green coloring as the SuperVar.

[applestar]

This year's Best variegated seedling (grown from seeds of SuperVar) to the left. I'm pretty sure this is the mother plant on the right -- variegation has faded but you can still see them.

...out of frame but the Least Var plant in the pot you see the edge of is loaded with fruits right now -- as productive as ever. I don't expect the wonderfully variegated little princess to grow very big or produce much. That has been the pattern so far.

...just remembered I kept one other plant but I don't have a recent picture. I'll have to get one and post next chance I get.

[rainbowgardener]

Here's a fish pepper I grew from seeds you sent, applestar:

2015-08-07 14.00.16.jpg (68.96 KiB) Viewed 21233 times

the new leaves start out mostly pure white and then darken up as they mature. End up mostly green with silvery spots.

Here's some of its peppers

2015-08-07 14.01.47.jpg (31.14 KiB) Viewed 21233 times

They also start out with a lot of white striping and mature to green and then to red.

It's at least 3 feet tall and covered in little peppers -very productive.

(pictures show better if you click to enlarge)

[applestar]

Looks great! I love it that you planted your among the flowers
Thanks for posting these pictures

Remember, you can pot these up and bring inside for the winter if you want, or of course start new ones from seeds again next year. The variegation seem to express better on new leaves when temperatures are cooler.

Since degree of variegation on a plant is variable, it pays to start extras and select for best variegation.

[rainbowgardener]

I should get a picture of my collection of large pots lined up, ready to move!

Unfortunately, the pepper plant is not going to be one of them. Maybe next year you can send me a few more seeds!

[applestar]

I don't envy your having to make those choices

No problem re: seeds -- that means you'll have to PM me your new address

[applestar]

White fish peppers are starting to form

...since I want to use them as white peppers, I have to catch them before they blush, but I want to let them grow as big as they are going to get....

[applestar]

Subject: Fish Pepper

This year's Best variegated seedling (grown from seeds of SuperVar) to the left. I'm pretty sure this is the mother plant on the right -- variegation has faded but you can still see them.


...out of frame but the Least Var plant in the pot you see the edge of is loaded with fruits right now -- as productive as ever. I don't expect the wonderfully variegated little princess to grow very big or produce much. That has been the pattern so far.

...just remembered I kept one other plant but I don't have a recent picture. I'll have to get one and post next chance I get.

Here it is -- now dubbed SuperVarX 2015 -- after overwintering in the house under WWL lights. I planted all of 2015 seed-started next gen SuperVars -- three plants -- in this container with the mother SuperVar in the front right corner next to the new SuperVarX 2015.

All of my overwintered peppers were hit hard by what I thought were TRM's ( tomato russet mites ) but am now wondering if they were Broad Mites. In any case, the end result seems to be the same -- all growth points become compromised until the plant RESETS and starts growing new shoots from the base. And the plant in the back left corner didn't recover. So here we have two 2015's and the mother SuperVar.


I'm bagging some of the trusses so I can save uncontaminated seeds after these flowers set fruit inside the bag.

[Lindsaylew82]

Wow! They are so white!

[applestar]

Yeah, I'm not sure how healthy SuperVarX 2015 is. So far seems to be doing OK and is starting to grow floral trusses. Do you suppose it needs more fertilizer because it doesn't have as much chlorophyll?

For comparison, here is the LeastVar (out of the three plants with SuperVar. MedVar kicked the bucket a couple of winters ago). It started to grow much more variegated foliage ...last year? The year before? And hasn't gone back to the solid green fruits. But it still tends to be taller/lankier and more productive than SuperVar. I'm waiting to see if it grows any more yellow-orange fruits, which might have been a sport.

[Lindsaylew82]

I would imagine that it might need more ferts. I didn't really think about it as a lack of chlorophyll until you mentioned it, but I would imaging that photosynthesis would be diminished with the stronger variegated leaves. I wonder if there is some other way the plant uses the lack of color. What is the original purpose of the variegation in the plant world? Adaptation for stronger, hotter light? Seems like it would make them more susceptible to pest. Do they suffer from pests more?

[applestar]

Subject: Applestar's 2016 Tomatoes (& peppers & eggplants)

Three Fish pepper plants from my supervariegated selection in the same pot. The front-right (from labeled edge) original mother plant has been over-wintered is several years old, other two were grown from her seeds last year.

[rainbowgardener]

In general, plants with a lot of white on them have less chlorophyll and struggle more. They need more sun than the same plant not variegated, to make up for less chlorophyll to capture it with. They may get lankier, just as plants grown with not enough light get leggy. And they may be a bit weaker, more vulnerable to pests, etc.

[KitchenGardener]

In general, plants with a lot of white on them have less chlorophyll and struggle more. They need more sun than the same plant not variegated, to make up for less chlorophyll to capture it with. They may get lankier, just as plants grown with not enough light get leggy. And they may be a bit weaker, more vulnerable to pests, etc.

RG: thank you for this info - you are a font of knowledge!

[applestar]

Subject: Fish Pepper
Sun Sep 18, 2016 6:42 pm

Subject: Applestar's 2016 Tomatoes (& peppers & eggplants)

Three Fish pepper plants from my supervariegated selection in the same pot. The front-right (from labeled edge) original mother plant has been over-wintered is several years old, other two were grown from her seeds last year.

The extremely variegated Fish peppers didn’t survive the winter.

This year, I have one 2017 survivor that was started last year and was grown in the ground in Apple Guild bed to replace the oldest since that was the one I thought would die... but the 2014 plant wasn’t quite finished and came back with one growing bud, so I’m letting it grow to see what happens.

[applestar]

Subject: Applestar’s 2019-2020 Winter Indoor Garden

That's cool; I wish I could discover a sport! Well I guess I did when those Yellow Pear seedlings showed variegation, but to be honest I don't have the room to experiment with sports. I do good to have room to grow my usual stuff, LOL!

So is the fish pepper thick skinned? I was wondering if it may be ok for drying?

Have you seen Fwroggy lately?

BUMP
Ah ha! I knew I had started a thread about Fish Peppers ...I guess I had forgotten and neglected it.

...also it looks like I never posted a cut-fruit photo...

So I just took one of a typical red Fish pepper. The middle photo is the same red Fish pepper and a very dark red-orange fruit from one of the Goldfish plants that I have been trying to figure out because the fruit is redder and bigger than it should be — approx. 3 inches long.

It came from the decently variegated plant to the right in the 3rd photo. The skimpy plant next to it has a typical orange-colored Goldfish fruit. It’s sad appearance can be blamed on one of our kitties who has decided pepper foliage makes good substitute for cat grass — she eats them and then upchucks them.



The right-most photo shows a typical Fish pepper with the variegated fruit (developing on the plant that the red fruit came from) — the white stripes become harder to see once the fruit is ripe and red.

[imafan26]

Yours are so beautiful. I had some seeds, I should try growing them again. Mine were not as variegated as yours.

[applestar]

Even not as variegated plants sometimes develop more variegation once they start growing secondary sub-branches. Sometimes the entire main stalk leaves and upper branches are not as variegated but then new growths start from leaf nodes much lower on the plant, and those are more variegated. They do seem to be showier in somewhat shadier location.

[TomatoNut95]

Thanks for this thread, @applestar! I recently received my fish pepper seeds in the mail and I'm so anxious to get them going to see how variegated the foliage will be! (and fruit) So, does the fish pepper grow like any other pepper, or would you say it would stay compact enough to fit in a pot or five-gallon bucket?

Wow, your kitty must be pretty brave to bite into a hot pepper! Catgrass. That reminds me....I've got seeds for that, I bought them to grow and give to my ex-coworker 'cause she had a cat. But she quit, and I still have the seeds.....is there another use for catgrass besides cats?

Is that three year old overwintered plant you mentioned still alive? I've never gotten a pepper to overwinter with the exception of that awful Chiltepin pepper I grew that time.