What it is
Jalapeño (Capsicum annuum) is in the Solanaceae (Nightshade) family. The workhorse hot pepper. Productive, heat-tough, and happy in a five-gallon bucket on a Texas patio.
How to grow it
It wants full sun, water it moderate, even, and give it well-drained loam soil. Target a soil pH around 6.0–6.8. Space plants about 18 in apart. Expect roughly 70–85. Warm-season annual.
How it's used
Jalapeño is used: fresh, pickled, smoked (chipotle), stuffed.
🔎 How to identify it
- Thick-walled dark green pods ripening to red
- Small white flowers
- Compact bushy plant
Edibility
PartsRipe fruit
UsesFresh, pickled, smoked (chipotle), stuffed
CautionCapsaicin irritates eyes and skin — wash hands after handling.
🌤 Before you plant: check the live 7-day garden weather to time it right for frost and heat.
Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.