I am amazed that this
Bishop's Kiss chilli has survived on a light windowsill all this time. This is an odd shaped chilli which may be closely related to a variety known as Friars Hat, or Bishop's Hat.
Given the right climate a chilli plant and its relatives are perennial, but I was thrilled that these made such a different addition to my Christmas decorations this year. I kept them going as long as I could, but it was my intention to save seed to grow this year.
The secret when saving your own seed from any plant is to get the fruit as ripe as possible, even to the point of slightly going over. These ripe chilli have just turned the corner and I can see that the skin is starting to get a bit wrinkly. This is the best time to save seed which is as ripe as it can possibly be.
In our British climate they need such a long growing season that it is usually best to plant chilli and pepper seed in a heated propagator as early as January or February. Well this will certainly be fresh seed! I hope it germinates.
I have just spread the seed out on a plate for a few days to completely dry off. I might plant a few straight away, and I think I will put the rest in a dry, cool, airtight tin for a few weeks to plant a second batch in February. Just a little germination experiment really. I do have a few spare seeds if you want to try some, send me an email.
Given the right climate a chilli plant and its relatives are perennial, but I was thrilled that these made such a different addition to my Christmas decorations this year. I kept them going as long as I could, but it was my intention to save seed to grow this year.
The secret when saving your own seed from any plant is to get the fruit as ripe as possible, even to the point of slightly going over. These ripe chilli have just turned the corner and I can see that the skin is starting to get a bit wrinkly. This is the best time to save seed which is as ripe as it can possibly be.
In our British climate they need such a long growing season that it is usually best to plant chilli and pepper seed in a heated propagator as early as January or February. Well this will certainly be fresh seed! I hope it germinates.
I have just spread the seed out on a plate for a few days to completely dry off. I might plant a few straight away, and I think I will put the rest in a dry, cool, airtight tin for a few weeks to plant a second batch in February. Just a little germination experiment really. I do have a few spare seeds if you want to try some, send me an email.