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Pepper cross-pollination

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by Shawn M on April 04, 2006 08:28 PM
Hello again. I am really enjoying reading the posts on this site, I'm learning a bunch.

I posted a question about pepper cross-pollination on another site, but didn't get much for responses and was hoping to get some more info.

I'm planting bell peppers, multi-colored bush peppers, jalepenos, and a HOT pepper from Vietnam.

I don't want to save seeds from the Vietnamese peppers because I don't want to lose any of the heat they have. My question is what do you think will happen to the seeds from the bell peppers? Will next years crop have a bit of "kick" to them? I love bell peppers, but a little heat would be nice in salads and other cooking.

I would really appreciate any comments/past experience.

Shawn
by obywan59 on April 04, 2006 08:42 PM
They may very well develop a little heat Shawn. Nancy Bubel, in The Seed Starter's Handbook recommends keeping sweet peppers and hot peppers separtated if you don't want this to happen.

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Terry

May the force be with you
by johnCT on April 04, 2006 09:17 PM
Are they hybrids? Statistically speaking, the chances are small that they'll cross. Maybe 15-20% for peppers in general. Depending, of course, on the MANY variables present in your garden. If you're worried, use mechanical controls like blossom bagging or isolation distance to further reduce or eliminate the possibility. As far as F1 or F2 generation characteristics, there is nearly no way to know what you'll get.

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John - Zone 6
by Shawn M on April 04, 2006 09:32 PM
The bush peppers may be hybrid (bought from Park Seeds). I can't say about the bell and jalepenos, I bought peppers from the store and dried the seeds to plant. The Vietnamese peppers my wife got from a friend should not be hybrid.

I'm not worried about keeping the peppers from cross-pollinating. It's easy to get seeds. But I do plan on keeping some of the bell pepper seeds to see if I can get something interesting next year.

Thanks,

Shawn
by johnCT on April 04, 2006 09:34 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Shawn M:
I bought peppers from the store and dried the seeds to plant.
They are surely hybrids then. No telling what you'll get. Why not just find a nice variety that suits your taste by growing different kinds?

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John - Zone 6

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