# Habanero growing **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 5, 2002, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516 "2002-06-05T18:07:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![satanslawyer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@satanslawyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/satanslawyer)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2002, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/1 "2002-06-05T18:07:41Z")
I’m ordering some habanero plants and am wondering. I know you can grow them here in Portland, OR. But would growing them in a greenhouse help? Would they yield more peppers? Also, is there a way to trim them back so they produce more peppers? ---
**Author:** ![Threadkiller](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aca169/32.png) [@Threadkiller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Threadkiller)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2002, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/2 "2002-06-05T19:43:39Z")
Try taking them inside when it’s too cold [http://www.geocities.com/BourbonStreet/Square/9333/index.html](http://www.geocities.com/BourbonStreet/Square/9333/index.html) Exposure to street musicians and Mardi Gras may or may not be required ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/3 "2002-06-06T03:06:21Z")
No, trimming pepper plants doesn’t produce more peppers. What makes for more peppers is a long, warm growing season with steady soil moisture. If your Portland summer doesn’t look like it’s going to be a hot, sunny one 😃 , then I’d definitely consider growing them in the greenhouse. [http://www.superseeds.com/LatinAmer.htm](http://www.superseeds.com/LatinAmer.htm) > [@](#): > > W570. HABANERO > The loveliest fruits and plants and the hottest of all the chiles. Habanero can be successfully grown in our climate although yields will be higher in areas with a longer growing season. This variety is also called Scotch Bonnet and the fruits, beautiful, deep orange when mature, do indeed resemble a tam in shape. Here, plants are only a little over a foot high and the light green, serrated leaves are very attractive. Yields of green peppers run about 10 per plant with a few of these turning orange. Ten peppers per plant is pretty good, IMO. “Our climate” refers to the State of Maine. General pepper cultivation. [http://eesc.orst.edu/agcomwebfile/edmat/html/ec/ec1227/ec1227.html](http://eesc.orst.edu/agcomwebfile/edmat/html/ec/ec1227/ec1227.html) ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/4 "2002-06-06T03:11:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by satanslawyer \* > \*\*I’m ordering some habanero plants and am wondering. I know you can grow them here in Portland, OR. But would growing them in a greenhouse help? Would they yield more peppers? > > Also, is there a way to trim them back so they produce more peppers? \*\* Your summer should be warm enough. Habaneros specifically, seem to respond to additional fertilizer in the way of fish fertilizer or even burying a dead fish under them. They like as much warmth as possible. Pruning won’t help. If they’re happy, they’ll produce enough peppers to kill you. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![stockton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@stockton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stockton)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/5 "2002-06-06T03:38:50Z")
Thanks for posting this - I wandered in to post a GQ about peppers. I’ll just scam onto yours, if you don’t mind. We planted peppers VERY early, and got lucky. It’s been 80-90 deg F here for the last several weeks, and we’re watering every morning and night. Our yellow hot bananas are now about 6" long, our longhorn (skinny, curvy red hot guys) are curling and about 4" long. THEY ARE ALL STILL BRIGHT GREEN. Here’s my hijack GQ: Do you pick them when they’re green and wait until they get color? Am I too impatient? These things are full-sized, but green (I have a TON of green tomatoes, too). When does a doper pick a pepper? ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/6 "2002-06-06T03:41:53Z")
_Organic Gardening_ did a piece on Habeneros a couple of years ago, and what the author of that piece would do is to pluck the blossoms off the plants up until the end of June, after which he’d leave them alone and that’d gave him tons more peppers! ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/7 "2002-06-06T16:27:25Z")
Can you get one of the peppers from the store, take out the seeds, dry them & then plant those? ---
**Author:** ![Morgainelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Morgainelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgainelf)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/habanero-growing/112516/8 "2002-06-06T18:38:03Z")
**stockton** , be patient. Your peppers will turn color. You can pick them and eat them green, but they’ll taste different than they will once fully ripe. **handy** , yes.