Serrano Chile - Heirloom Pepper

Serranos are one of the hottest chiles available in U.S. markets. Short bushy plants produce loads of chiles over a long season. They're easy to tuck into in your garden. They have a bright, sharp taste, are substantially hotter than Jalapenos. Usually picked when they're green (and hottest), they mellow out as they turn red. Very pretty peppers either way.

About 2" long, Serranos have thick flesh and a fresh, clear, searing hot flavor. They can be used interchangeably with Jalapenos, but are hotter. Go easy. This is a great salsa pepper, is excellent pickled. Minced or sliced into rounds, it's great in any spicy recipe, even Thai.

Germination:

Thoroughly moisten your seed-starting mix, and then fill your pots/containers to within 1/2" of the top.

Place two or three seeds into each small container or each cell of a seed starter. Cover the seed with about 1/4" of soil.

Water to ensure good seed-to-mix contact. You can use a plant mister or just dribble a stream of water over the top. You don't need to soak the soil, just moisten the top layer.
(You don't want to heavily water and "push" seeds to deep that they can't germinate.)

Keep the mix moist but not soaking wet. Lay some plastic kitchen wrap and a rubber band over pots to keep in heat and moisture.

Place the pots in a warm, sunny spot or on top of a heat mat. (Seeds won't germinate until the soil itself is 75-80 degrees.)

Check pots daily. As soon as you see sprouts, remove the covering and place the pots in a sunny window or under grow lights, keeping the lights just an inch or two above the tops of the plants.

10 seeds