Nice Christmas Plant !!
Written: Aug 12 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Nice Christmas Plant!!
Cons: People mix it up with the
"Jerusalem Cherry"
The Bottom Line: Great Holiday Plant!!
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| TopDamit's Full Review: Ornamental Pepper |
OTHER NAMES: Christmas Pepper, Ornamental Pepper, Winter Pepper.
Ornamental Pepper is an indoor ornamental grown for its colorful peppers, & sold around Christmas. In the USA 1970's / 80's & before it was common to see this plant sold next to Poinsettia's.
Now in 2003 they are less commonly seen / out of favor. Plants are known to be VERY hot to taste, so they now sell Poinsettia's instead of Ornamental Pepper.
Please be aware there is "another plant" sold at Christmas/Fall time that people confuse with the Ornamental Pepper. Both look similar, but the "Jerusalem Cherry / Christmas Cherry is usually sold next to, or instead of, the pepper plants. The Jerusalem Cherry's fruits look more like a "cherry tomato", where the Ornamental Pepper usually are smaller & longer fruits. The Jerusalem Cherry is poisonous if you eat the berries. If you are unsure which plant you have, please go to www.jerusalemcherry.com & reference the pictures.
The Ornamental Pepper is a indoor/outdoor plant usually grown as an annual. It prefers full sun and likes lots of water. Can be grown indoors if given plenty of light. Indoors they like sun & cool temp, around 55 to 60 F.
The colorful fruits are hot and are edible. Ornamental Pepper is a tender perennial. As a houseplant, it requires full sun to thrive, but it will survive with moderate to bright light. Mist the plant often if possible. Temperatures above 70ish F(indoors)& dry or lack of humidity will cause the plant to lose its leaves and blooms (but again only indoors). Indoors, try to keep it in a cool room around 55 to 60 F if possible with full sun. Outdoors, it does well even when is over 90 degrees F outside, as long as its well watered. The plant should be potted in a rich, well drained potting soil, and kept moist during the growing cycle. Feed with a liquid 'tomato/blooming' fertilizer every two weeks while the plant is growing vigorously, but feed once a month with a lesser amount of fert when the plant has finished blooming.
After the fruits have dropped, cut the plant back drastically, and in the spring, when danger of frost has passed, plant it outside, in a semi- sunny place. If you live in a frost free zone, the plant will develop into a nice 1-2 foot, woody shrub. If you want to keep the plant going in frost zones, you will need to dig the plant up, repot, and begin the cycle all over again.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
TopDamit
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Member: Thomas Patrick Piedmont
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 2 members
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