Red Goose Gardens

This year, we are growing three different types of Capsicum annuum: jalapeno, serrano, and cayenne chiles. Now used around the world and integral to many cuisines, capsicums originated in South America, and were brought back to the Old World by Cristóbal Colón. (If only he had stopped with that.) Although spicy, they are completely unrelated to the spice pepper, one of several spices Colón was in search of, and with which he confused this member of the nightshade family (or Solanaceae, the potato family).

Cayenne, native to and named after the capital of French Guyana, has a Scoville rating (SR) of 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU's). It is rarely grown by avocational gardeners. Commercially, it is usually dried and sold in a powdered form.

Jalapenos are named after Jalapa, the capital of the Mexican state of Veracruz. They weigh it at a less mouth-puckering 2,500 to 8,000  SHU's.

Serranos are 10,00 to 20,000 SHU's, shading from dark green to red as they ripen. Welcome to Mexico.