Inconsistent Weather and Chilli Plants
One of the biggest problems with the lovely art of growing chillies in the UK is the Inconsistent Weather that we get
Chilli plants have traditionally grown in areas where the weather is pretty regular in its pattern, whether it be from the origins of the South American Rainforests or the sublime Caribbean day in day out sun
As a result the plants natural growth is a daily pattern of sun, a little water and nutrients in a stable humidity pattern
When the weather pattern doesn’t provide stability the effect on the chilli plants is visual
In 2012 we had the wettest season in 100 years and as a result the chilli pods grown showed signs of inconsistent weather
Small pods, slow pollination of flowers and reduced growth, with lower heat levels and less flavour per pod
This effect is more prevalent in chilli plants that have a weaker diversity of genes
These are typically wild plants and superhots, where most seeds still sold are from plants grown from areas in the world where they evolved
Plants such as C.Annuum including Jalapeno and Cayenne types are well travelled around the world from all manner of environments which has allowed the plants genes to develop to cope with the UK weather, so these plants can produce better crops in weaker sun conditions