Pepperdews

I have posted on the garden mb but will post here too as there's always a chance that someone follows this thread who doesn't follow the garden thread. Anyway I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experience in growing pepperdews. I really love them but they are in the 'treat' category price wise. Thanks.

Suzanna...I really love them too! If you find any seeds please let me know.

I tried to find these seeds last season and drew a complete blank.. most garden centers don't even know what they are for a start.I think its one of those plants/seeds that has not made it to or cant be bought into NZ.

Pepperdews is a trade name (and protected) - however you can buy cherry pepper seeds in NZ no problem.

Try Kings seeds nz.

Thanks Uli I have searched them and they look exactly right! Have you ever grown them? I have good crops of peppers and chillis so figure that these should be obliging too. Thanks again.

Gardenstuff online also has small pepper seeds.

I used to grow them and sell the seeds when I had my nursery and mail order catalogue. They were called cherry pepper then and are grown just like any pepper.

The "Peppadews" history is well docomented here:
http://gardenofeaden.blogspot.com/2009/08/how-to-grow-peppadew-peppers-from-seed.html and shows what good marketing can do :)
In another report it is merely stated:
"... In 1994, Johan Steenkamp found peppers growing near one of his homes in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. He tasted them, and found them very hot (at least to his tastebuds. It's not known if he's ever tasted a habanero, to get a general idea of what the upper end of the hot scale is.)
Many South Africans find even bell peppers hot to their tastes, so there's a reasonable chance the parents would have been sweet pepper plants, as opposed to chile pants.

He saved the seeds from the peppers, and planted them. He called the actual plant "Piquanté."

He had botanists at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research verify that it was a separate variety of chile plant that had sprung up, and he established the trademarks, and registered international plant breeders' rights for that pepper plant. The plant, obviously, is a hybrid that occurred naturally, from plants that originated in the New World, as peppers are not native to Africa.

Peppadew™ is a trademarked name. The name Peppadew applies to the processed peppers in the jar, not the plant. The company doesn't even want Peppadew used as an adjective, as in "Peppadew Soup."

http://www.practicallyedible.com/edible.nsf/pages/peppadewpeppers

If anybody is really keen he can order them here straight from South Africa:

http://www.bidorbuy.co.za/item/17185649/Peppadew_1000_seeds.html

The Botanical Name is Capiscum frutescens - which covers normal peppers, capsicum and most chilis.

These are a legal import into NZ IF from a reputable seed companyand in original packaging. You will need to pay MAF a fee for checking them on arrival though.

However despite the hype around them I reckon they are not different from normal cherry peppers - and if you pickle them with a bit of chilli added to the pickling solution you will get a very comparable product.

Wow, I didn't realise the search for these seeds was so interesting! Having become addicted to the pepperdews (1,177 scovilles according to Wikipedia) in the deli I'm wanting to grow my own... I'm trying a plant from Mitre10 called Chilli Cherry Large Hot (3500 scovilles) and hoping to save the seeds for next year. Might be able to pickle a small jar but need to look for a good recipe... hope they're not too hot...