Greetings, great traveller of the unknown. Welcome aboard the Spaceship Cynical, a place you'll probably regret visiting. I'm pleased to announce that the nation has now been fully inoculated against rabies, and that the Gods were kind enough to do so before making it rain for the first time in many weeks. It seems as if the rain dance I performed around the washing line in late August worked a treat. I've been soaked to the skin on several occasions whilst out walking the hound ever since. The grass has grown back with a vengeance and was in dire need of cutting within just one week of the first downpour, but it had to wait for at least two because it was just too wet. Attempting to cut it any sooner would likely have resulted in me being electrocuted, which would have made a terrible mess. When I finally managed to get the lawnmower out, it was knee-high to a pygmy and I had to stop and unblock it multiple times. By the time I'd finished, the lawn looked worse than it did before I started.
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| Chilli Harvest - 3rd September 2026 |
The first rains brought with them the delightful aroma of petrichor, which made the
Carolina Reaper do the conga and the
Peruvian White break out into chant and perform several sacred icaros whilst shaking the foliage of its neighbour, the
Moruga Scorpion. Anyhow, several wasp stings and one face full of fertiliser later, and here we are, about to break open the gate to the right side of the garden and venture forth into the realm of hot and spicy delights. I guess it's about time I treated you to some early autumn colour. Incidentally, I posted a
chilli plant update around this time last year too. Scanning through that post earlier made me regret not adding
Fatalii to this year's grow list.
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| Guardian of the Pods - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Chilli Harvest - 21st September 2026 |
Although not chilli-related in the slightest, I also have a relatively small collection of desert cacti — if you can call 67 cactus plants a small collection. From time to time, you may see a random photo of one or two of them appearing in the blog posts. Here is
Copiapoa leonensis, which comes from Quebrada el León in the Atacama region of Chile.
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| Copiapoa Leonensis - 9th September 2026 |
The
Aji Largo plants have performed exceptionally well again this year. I've been picking ripe peppers from both plants for several weeks, and there are still many more yet to ripen. These next 18 photos were taken between 26th August and 20th September. I upload the images to the website in stages over several weeks and then insert them into a draft page before tidying up the HTML code. Then, when it comes to throwing a blog post together, all I have to do is write the text and cut and paste the code into the relevant sections. There was quite a collection of photos building up on the backend, so I thought it was high time to dump some of them into a post before things get out of hand.
All three of the
Rocoto plants might have been eaten if they'd gone out into the garden any sooner than they did. Five or six of the farmer's sheep broke through the bottom hedge and went on a rampage around the garden. They even ate some of the old root balls from last year's chilli plants that were lying around waiting to be broken up and dug into the soil. We shooed them out and the farmer blocked up the hole with some wire netting, which thankfully did the trick. 🐑
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| Aji Largo - 26th August 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 26th August 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 26th August 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 26th August 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 26th August 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 19th September 2026 |
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| Aji Largo - 20th September 2026 |
The
Aji Lemon plant looks very chaotic and has been pumping out pods all summer long. However, next year I'm going to build a bamboo frame around it, because tying it up is too time-consuming and uses too much string. I have built cages around this variety in the past and will do so again. This next photo shows a branch that I must have missed; as a result, it bent under the weight of the fruit.
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Aji Lemon - 19th September 2026
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| Aji Lemon - 1st September 2026 |
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| Aji Lemon - 1st September 2026 |
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Aji Lemon - 19th September 2026
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Aji Lemon - 19th September 2026
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| Aji Lemon - 19th September 2026 |
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Aji Lemon - 19th September 2026
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| Aji Lemon - 20th September 2026 |
The
Bahamian Goat plant still has a few pods left to ripen, but from what I can see, it has nearly finished. I already have a big bag of these in the freezer. The seeds for this plant came from the USA.
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| Bahamian Goat - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Bahamian Goat - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Bahamian Goat - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Bahamian Goat - 3rd September 2026 |
Thankfully, the
Caribbean Red Habanero plant turned out to be just that — a genuine Caribbean Red Habanero. I used to grow this variety religiously back in the day, and it was always a favourite of mine. However, one year I forgot to save the seeds, and when I purchased new ones, they turned out to be for a different
C. chinense variety instead. Ever since then, I've been looking to get hold of seeds for the true Caribbean Red, but to no avail. It has become increasingly difficult to source authentic seeds for this variety in the UK. Normally, what you end up with is a seed packet labelled as Caribbean Red, but the resulting plants turn out to be another variety called
Antillais Caribbean. Once again, the seeds for this year's plant came from the USA. From what I can gather, this is (or at least used to be) a popular variety across the pond, so I figured the USA would be a great place to look — and I was right. The plant has performed well, considering it's only growing in the porch. Most of the fruit has been a decent size, though it varies more in shape compared to the plants I've grown before. Still, I'm certainly not complaining.
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 28th February 2026 |
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 21st April 2026 |
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 1st September 2026 |
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
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| Caribbean Red Habanero - 20th September 2026 |
I haven't photographed the
Chocolate Habanero plant this year. This is because it too is growing in the porch and has turned into a monster. Taking it out just to get photos would make putting it back again quite a task. However, it has been pumping out pods all summer, and there are still many more yet to ripen. Whenever I go into the porch, I see something new. One day I can reach over and grab the mail, and the following day I see a long branch dangling in front of my face, almost like the Chilli Gods are trying to entice me with spicy offerings. 😁
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| Chocolate Habanero - 22nd August 2026 |
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| Chocolate Habanero - 22nd August 2026 |
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| Chocolate Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
The Carolina Reaper plant has been a beast! It has to be one of the most prolific
superhot plants I've grown to date. These next seven photos were taken between 1st and 20th September. If you would like to look at more, you can head on over to my
Carolina Reaper page. As of writing this, there are currently 120 photos on that page; however, I'm sure a few more will be added before the end of the season.
"Who in the heck is Caroline the Reaper?" 😆
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| Carolina Reaper - 1st September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 19th September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 19th September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 19th September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 19th September 2026 |
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| Carolina Reaper - 20th September 2026 |
This year's
Trinidad Moruga Scorpion plant is performing well. Three things I've noticed are that A) the plant isn't quite as prolific as some of those I've grown in the past, B) the fruit have a more consistent, even shape, and C) they're not "quite" as hot. The emphasis is on "quite" because they are still superhot chillies, but I've had hotter Moruga Scorpions than these. The hottest ones I've tried to date were grown from seeds purchased from
Sea Spring Seeds. These next six photos were taken between 1st and 20th September.
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 1st September 2026 |
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 4th September 2026 |
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 19th September 2026 |
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 19th September 2026 |
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 19th September 2026 |
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| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion - 20th September 2026 |
The
Peruvian White Habanero plant has been very productive, as usual. As much as I like the flavour and heat profile of these chillies, I certainly hate picking them! One of the main reasons I don't grow many wild
Capsicum species is because I hate standing there and picking the fruit. I'm still having nightmares after picking
Dwarf Chiltepins around this time last year. However, I think the
Cumari Pollux was the worst. It took me close to two hours one year just to harvest all the fruit from a single plant! People who enjoy picking wilds are probably the same kind of people who would enjoy catching flies with chopsticks!
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| Peruvian White Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
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| Peruvian White Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
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| Peruvian White Habanero - 20th September 2026 |
For one reason or another, I haven't bothered photographing the
Orange Habanero plant much this year. Here's a photo I took a few nights back. The plant has been producing well, and I've been picking ripe fruit here and there. Most of the fruit doesn't show up in the photo because it's hidden beneath the foliage. This variety can sometimes be incredibly prolific!
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| Orange Habanero - 19th September 2026 |
The
Ring of Fire plant has been steadily producing fruit all summer, most of which has been harvested at the unripe stage and then frozen for later use in curries and the like. This next photo shows the plant and was taken three nights ago. If you're a big fan of
Indian curries and looking for a chilli variety that is easy to grow and doesn't require a lot of space, then Ring of Fire is an excellent choice.
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| Ring of Fire - 19th September 2026 |
Rocky Road Rocoto is a nice
C. pubescens variety and one that would make an excellent choice for anyone wishing to dip their toes into the water with this species. The plant took a while to catch up with my two Aji Largo plants — only due to being started a few weeks later — but it got there in the end, and some of the peppers are now ripening. Would I grow this variety again? Probably, but it doesn't stand out for me. I
isolated flowers on the plant and have several pods containing true-to-type seeds should I decide to do so. However, nothing beats Aji Largo for me. My two favourite
C. pubescens varieties to date are
Aji Largo and
Guatemalan Orange Rocoto. I didn't save seeds for the latter when I last grew it, and I've been on the lookout for more ever since. If you know of anywhere selling seeds for it, then please hit me up.
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| Rocky Road Rocoto - 19th September 2026 |
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| Rocky Road Rocoto - 20th September 2026 |
Malawi Bird's Eye is a kitchen plant and has been pumping out pods all season. I picked a bunch of ripe ones a few weeks ago, and the plant is currently in the process of setting more. This next photo was taken last night; you should be able to see the new fruit starting to form. This year's plant is growing in a 5-litre pot. If I grow it again next year, I might do so in a slightly smaller pot. Even though it's not a particularly large plant, it does get in the way a bit sometimes.
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| Malawi Bird's Eye - 21st September 2026 |
These next two photos show the chilli plants in the greenhouse on 1st September and 19th September. The tomato plants were taken down on 6th September, which meant I was then able to space the chilli plants out a bit. This is a relief, because I no longer have to remove three of the chilli plants and put them outside just to be able to get inside the greenhouse to water everything. Crowding them in like that always seems like a good idea at the beginning of the growing season when I'm mentally juggling where each plant will grow, but later on, it's always a pain in the backside — especially on windy days when I have to anchor three of them down to prevent them from being blown over and damaged!
Incidentally, someone asked me what variety of tomatoes I had growing in the greenhouse. To answer your question, it was only one variety. My dad used to grow tomato plants every year and save seeds from each variety without isolating any flowers or trusses. One of the varieties he used to grow was called Black Russian. However, it was only several years later, when I grew Black Russian from a newly purchased packet of seeds, that I realised the variety he used to grow and know as Black Russian was, in fact, a hybrid. It doesn't have a name yet, but it is far tastier than the genuine Black Russian — and also tastier than the variety I think it is crossed with. I managed to find some seeds he'd saved for it at the bottom of his old seed box. I had no idea how long they'd been there or whether they'd even germinate, but thankfully, I managed to get a few to sprout, and as of writing this, I have more drying.
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| Chilli Plants in the Greenhouse - 1st September 2026 |
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| Chilli Plants in the Greenhouse - 19th September 2026 |
These next four photos were taken between 22nd August and 20th September and show some of my recent chilli harvests. If you're interested in knowing which varieties are shown here, they are as follows:
Orange Habanero,
Chocolate Habanero,
Peruvian White Habanero,
Bullet,
Ring of Fire,
Carolina Reaper,
Aji Lemon,
Aji Largo,
Bahamian Goat,
Moruga Scorpion,
Caribbean Red Habanero,
Malawi Bird's Eye, and
Rocky Road Rocoto.
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| Chilli Harvest - 22nd August 2026 |
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| Chilli Harvest - 3rd September 2026 |
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| Chilli Harvest - 20th September 2026 |
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| Chilli Harvest - 21st September 2026 |
Sadly, the
chilli growing season is now coming to a close, and it won't be very long until the nighttime temperatures drop significantly. I hope that your growing season has been a good one and that you've managed to harvest a sufficient amount of delicious spicy goodness to keep you going through the winter. The chilli freezer is quickly filling up, and it won't be long until it's filled to the brim yet again. I wouldn't mind, but I still have pods from last year to get through! It's been another good growing season for me — not just for
chillies, but other crops too, namely sweetcorn, French beans, carrots, tomatoes, and beetroot. Some of the beetroot have grown massive.
It always surprises me how a small website such as this one can get the traffic that it does from across the planet. Some days it might only get about 400 views, and others it can be well over 3,000. Something else I find amusing is how two pages published a day apart can have such odd traffic numbers. One page, which is linked several times and is quite easy to find, gets just 14 views in 24 hours; the other, which is hidden from search engines and only linked once from an obscure place, gets 88 views. This is why you should always use the internet as you would if someone were standing behind you, looking over your shoulder — because you never know who is watching. 😂
Spicemad
