Homeschool Garden Club - Chilli Peppers

One of the plants that survived the later winter storms was the chilli peppers. This was because we put them inside and the were not blow away with the greenhouse damage.

We had a good success with them last year and so when the opportunity of a packet came up this year in the seed swop - we took it.

We planted the seed up back in February and over the Easter Holidays the Orchard Training Homeschool Garden club meet up and one of the jobs we did was to pot these on and share them out.

Traditionally, they need a greenhouse or polytunnel but may of us just have them on the window cill. As the weather warms up, they were moved outside on good days to be pollinated and brought back at night and stay inside to ripen the fruit once the fruits start to set.

Apart from the fun factor of growing these chillis, member of both the Orchard Training Homeschool Garden Club and the Cookery Club like both Indian and Mexican food and want the chillis for their curries and fajitas. A couple of our Homeschool Garden Club do have polytunnels and had a great deal of success last year. The excess is shared with the Cookery Club members who like them but didn't have the space to grow them.

I, personally, don't like over hot chilli in my food and grow these for the pretty white flowers and the colourful fruits, gifting the chilli peppers once they are harvested. Whatever you do with them - give them a go because they are a good source of Vitamin C and Beta Carotene.

Vitamin C helps to protect cells and keeps them healthy, it also helps with maintaining healthy skin, blood vessels, bones and cartilage and with wound healing. It is always better to get your vitamin C from natural sources if possible, and this in one tasty way to do so. Although, I should warn you Chilli Pepper "Long Slim" is very hot! So you might want to grow a less fiery chilli pepper.

Beta carotene is a plant pigment that give the fruits their red, orange and yellow colour. It helps the body with Vitamin A, we need Vitamin A for good vision and eye health, to support out immune system and for health skin.