For once it looks like I will have several peppers per plant on my sweet peppers. They are Robertina variety (I bought some Spanish Mixed seeds but I am unsure if any of the plants I planted are those, as my labels got lost...). However on the couple of green fruit already on there )I guess the fruit has been there for about a fortnight and is about 8 cm long), I have noticed a black colouring on the skin. But it's healthy! I mean, there is no blemish or softening, it's just that some of the skin has changed colour, is this normal? Will the fruits go bad? Or is this the way they ripen? It's the first time I have had proper sized fruit so I have never noticed this before.
Also has anyone else noticed that peppers grow upwards on the plant? Mine are standing stright up from the stem, pointing towards the sky! I thought that was kind of funny!
It is normal for them to turn black / brown before they eventually turning red
Also has anyone else noticed that peppers grow upwards on the plant?
;D..well..usually mine hang down and often the whole plant keel over with the weight of the fruit unless I remember to cane them early enough. But pointing peppers.. ??? I suppose that depends of variety.. ???
In chillies that is common and suppose peppers being so closely related it would not be suprise.
THere are any number of black-skinned peppers, generally they go dark red when ripe, the black is caused by the anthocyanins (the red "ripe" colour coming along before the chlorophyll (green) is pulled out of the ripe fruit... SInmilarly things liek black tomatoes just add anthocyanins to the chlorophyll and don't withdraw the latter.... hence they're browny-black when ripe...
chrisc
there are also brown and purple varieties. since there is no label you guess is as good as anyone.
I am sure that they are either Robertina (which are red) or just mixed Bell Peppers in which case they will be red or yellow. But no black or purple ones! But I have been told a few times that they often go blackish before ripening so I will just keep an eye on them and see how they go.
My sweet banana peppers had black marks on the skin last year. The flesh was unharmed. My own deduction and others after having a browse is that it was either a bit of scorching from water droplets or a 'bit of a tan' (pigment production) on the most sun facing aspect of the fruit.
It really is the actual colour of the skin, like streaking that you get on an apple. The fruit is completely unblemished.
I grow a chilli which turns black, Meek & Mild, which looks and tastes like a pepper. Never come across a normal sweet pepper that points upwards but as some chillis do, seems possible.
Hmmm, are you sure they are not chillies.............I've never grown peppers that behave like that?
Some of my Frigitello's are turning black, given how early they've been this year I'm guessing that it too is ripening precursor.... didn't get any ripe ones last year but they were delicious green.... muast remember to have a bit of a harvest to encourage more fruit to be produced...
chrisc
Yes, I did not buy chilli seeds and they are much too big to be chillies, they are big like sweet peppers, just growing upwards!!! ;D ;D
I will have to take a picture of this wonder of nature!
Weird.... ???