Gypsy: A Vegetal Truth

Why is it so difficult to grow peppers?  They get the same treatment as the other plants in the garden:  soil, sun, water.  They aren't plagued by pests.  The plants grow nicely.  But I don't get peppers.  I mean, I eventually (usually) get peppers, but not until fall when frost is threatening.

I've read that pepper plants really don't like cold, and setting them out too early in spring (even after the frost-free date), can hinder growth all season.  So last year I waited and waited, and eventually planted out my seed-grown plants.  It didn't help.

This year I planted several varieties of peppers that I started from seed (yellow, carnival, Zavory habanero, and fish).  I also planted one 'Gypsy' pepper that my cousin started from seed.  All were started around the same time and planted out on the same date, in the same section of the garden.  'Gypsy' was a slightly larger plant than the others, but not by much.

What do I have now?  Gypsy peppers!  I'm so excited to have peppers while it is still summer and I can put them in salads with my tomatoes and cukes!  Here are some peppers growing:

Gypsy peppers start out whitish-yellow and eventually turn bright yellow then orange.  Here is my first August-picked pepper (Monday, August 6th):

A portrait of Gypsy

Along with the pepper, more cukes and my first Brandywine tomato:

Since then (August 10th), I've picked four more peppers (including one yellow one that fell off while I was picking the others), six more cukes, and a mess of beans and maters:

These are cukes #25-30 for those keeping count (me)

The peppers have been delicious.  Sweet and crunchy.  There's only one more Gypsy on the plant.  I've already asked Sue to start more of these next year.

More good pepper news:  one of my plants is finally making a pepper! This is going to be a yellow pepper, I think.

See it?  There on the bottom? 

Of course, it is so small, it likely won't be ready until mid-September.