chili pepper plant is small

[stangoldsmith]

I am growing two chili pepper plants, one habanero and one supposedly thai chili, both are in medium flower pots.

The habaneros have blossomed and I have three ripe peppers but the thai chilis seem like they are tiny and have not grown in over a month from their size (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch at most), but there are a lot of them (100 or so) on the plant.

Are they ever going to grow longer? Is there a thai chili plant that is only tiny chilis? Should I even bother harvesting these tiny chillis? Many of them are drying out.

I've attached a picture of them from about a month ago, they are all the same size still.

Thanks!

[Eldon Kreider]

There is a Thai chili plant that is quite small, has small leaves and produces peppers that average 1/2 inch or so in length. I grow them every now and then. The ripe peppers dry very well and keep for several years.

The seed I bought years ago was labeled Thai Hot. The more common Thai Dragon produces peppers that run three to four inches long. One caveat if you plan to save seed. This variety crosses quite readily with some of the ornamental peppers but not with bell peppers. I found this out one year when the peppers grown from seed looked like the purple ornamental peppers grown nearby. Fortunately, I had some older dried peppers that were not accidental hybrids, which is why I know that the tiny seeds can be viable for several years.

[JohnE O]

I've got the exact same situation. The thai's I find in the store are about 4" long while the one's in my garden are only about an inch at most. I'm planning on picking and freezing all my chili's this weekend. While I haven't eaten any yet I'm betting they're going to be pretty hot based on the small size.

[coney with everything]

Hey Stan, you might want to check out the Gardening board.

[TongoRad]

If they've changed color then they are mature- don't go by the size. Many varieties of chile are supposed to be that small. It seems that you've got quite a few- time to start using them! I used to grow a variety called centennial that was that size but turned purple when mature; they went great with fruit like mango, and the purple played off of the deep yellow beautifully.

Also- if they are in containers it will help to feed them regularly, their roots have nowhere to go in search of nutrients.