Nyob Zoo All!
Check out our chili pepper plants this year! They did an amazing job considering the weather was pretty crazy this summer. I’d though I’d share with you all how we like to grow our chili peppers, how to we like to harvest them & store them. Chili peppers are an important ingredient to have in a Hmong dish. So it’s important for us to grow as much as we can to store them in the freezer so we can use them for our dishes.
I hope this video and written information helps those who wants to plant their own chili peppers someday or maybe next year. I’m still a newbie to gardening so be patient with me as I learn as well. So enjoy this video with my grandma, mom, and I. 🙂
Happy Gardening!
Germination
Since we live in Zone 8b, we start germination around mid February. February 15th for be exact. But depending where you live, it might be a little later. If it’s still cold, you’ll probably need to start it in March. But if you have a green house, it would be best to start it in February. But I suggest checking your area agricultural Zone to see when it’s best for you!
Germination steps:
- Add potting soil to the tray and sprinkle lightly with water to get it moist
- Add in 3 seeds per section
- Add another light layer of potting soil
- Sprinkle with more water
- Cover with a lid that comes in the seeding tray
- Place in a warm area around 65-85’F for a week to let it sprout
These are the seeds my grandma collects from last years harvest to plant this year. These are ready to be germinated. 
Potting soil for germination 
She likes to germinate them in seeding trays with potting soil and 3 pepper seeds in each section.
Time to plant
What you’ll need to plant
– Pepper starter plant (my grandma saved her own seeds and planted it herself. If you want chili pepper plants, check your local nursery, farmers market, and or online)
– Black thermoformed nursery pots (5-7 gallon ones) [Check your local plant nursery and or online for these]
– Soil Miracle Gro Moisture Control Potting Soil Mix (check your local plant nursery, Home depot, Lowes, etc)
– Styrofoam cups to cover
– Gloves
– Water
– Sunlight
– Patience 🙂
It will take at least 1 1/2 months for the peppers to fully be ready to be put into pots and be planted for the season. They should grow to be this big before potting
To see how my grandma plants the peppers, check the full video here: https://youtu.be/JFa1gTZKfo8
Cover with styrofoam cups to keep the pepper plants safe from the wind
Soil she likes to use for germination: Miracle-Gro Seed Starting Potting MixSoil she likes to use for planting: Miracle Gro Moisture Control Potting Soil Mix (Blue bag) 
Harvesting/Storing
Our pepper plants are ready to be harvest around late August to early September. It will continue to grow until the frost hits 
The peppers on the right are the ones we just harvest. We like to harvest at this color to keep it structurally firm. To give it more color/redness, we like to put it in an ice cream bin, cover it with a towel and a lid and then place it in a warm dark area for 3-4 days to ripen. The peppers on the left are what they look like after 4 days of ripening. Once they have ripen, give it a good rinse, bag them well, and then store it in the freezer.
After ripening! So gorgeous!
Store in a zip lock bag, place in a freezer for at least 6 months to a year. But trust me, these are probably gone in around 4 months! We love our peppers!
Drying out the super red and more mature peppers to collect the seeds for next years harvest!
What we like to use chili peppers in
- Chili pepper dip
- Salads
- Stir Fry
- Soup
- Sauce
- Curry
- Lots of dishes to give it some spices!
Playlist for pepper dips here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLobJGQzWrUdPCBhc1d7gsiW5P77iEh4a6
Tips/Tricks
- Pepper plants (especially the ones we grow) loves the hot weather as much as they love water. Direct sun is fine when planting but it should be watered once a day or every other day. The soil should be moist but not drench. Heat will help the pepper plant grow bigger. But make sure you also keep it hydrated.
- Place fresh cut grass on top of the top soil to keep the soil moist. But leave room around the roots so it doesn’t rot.
- If planting in the ground, watering differs and so it the condition. If you live in a hotter state it might be best to plant in the ground. Planting in the pots is best for colder states as the black thermo pots helps retain the heat. It also differs in watering as there is drainage at the bottom of the pot. So be aware of Hp level when planting in the ground vs in the pot.
- Fertilizer is used within 3 weeks to 1 month of planting the peppers in the pot. It will be added if we notice the plants aren’t growing any bigger due to weather etc.
- Weather will affect how your plant grows! Every year will be different than the last. So keep note and learn as you go. 🙂
Did I answer your question?
- We live in zone 8b so most of our plants will last until early October or until the frost hits. Our pepper plants lasted up until early October.
- The peppers we grow are called hov txob nplej in Hmong Leeg. I’m not sure what the English name of it is but the closest I found that grows really well in the USA is called Super Chili Peppers. Check them out online. Our peppers are probably a hybrid of other chilis that my grandma grows as well.
- Sorry we do not give out or sell our seeds!
- Where to buy black thermo nursery pots? Check online! or at your local plant/nursery shop
- Soil my grandma likes to use for germination: Miracle-Gro Seed Starting Potting Mix
- Soil my grandma likes to use for planting: Miracle Gro Moisture Control Potting Soil Mix (Blue bag) (not sponsored)
- Pruning is not necessary. My grandma doesn’t prune branches. You can if you want. The peppers we grow does a good job at producing quite a lot without pruning.
- For trail: When the pepper plant is at its end state, you can cut the plant off and leave at least 3 inches of the stem down to the roots. Leave it in the pot and cover it with thick plastic and place in a warm place (green house, indoors) and let it regrow for next season. If it does grow and doesn’t die when spring hits, the plant has survived! Let it grow and see if you get peppers 🙂
Happy Gardening!
