• To not miss anything and get all the information to succeed in your pepper planting, check out our Ultimate Pepper Growing Guide

The Aji Santa Cruz pepper is a variety of Baccatum pepper from the Aji pepper family known for being extremely flavorful. The peppers ripen from green to red and can reach 16 cm in length once mature. This pepper is very mild and you will need to germinate the seeds between January and March ideally. The plant can reach a height of 150cm in the ground, is sensitive to frost and must therefore remain in a pot indoors until all risk is eliminated.

• heat level: 1,000 on the Scoville scale.
• plant size approximately 150 cm.
• medium-sized fruit, approximately 16cm long.
• fruit color: Green during growth, Red at maturity.
• genus: Capsicum Baccatum.
• ideal germination: between January and March.
• harvest: between September and November.

What Equipment for growing my peppers?

To optimize your results, we recommend that you equip yourself with:

Aji Santa Cruz Pepper Seeds.
An enclosed growing space like a mini greenhouse.
Coco pellets, peat, or cotton (to germinate the seeds).
Labels (to avoid mixing up your seedlings).
Potting soil (ideally a mixture of 50% black peat and 50% blonde peat) or flowering potting soil which will also work.
Fertilizer for Peppers or Tomatoes, or 5-5-10 fertilizer for those in the know.
A water sprayer or watering can.
Gloves (if you don't like the feel of soil).
Pots with a diameter of 7 or 8 cm at the beginning before using 10-liter pots or larger depending on the pepper for repotting.

To make your life easier, we offer our mini greenhouse for growing your peppers.

How to Germinate my Pepper Seeds?

Growing peppers is a process that requires patience and some knowledge, but don't panic, we'll explain everything you need to germinate your pepper seeds!

Pepper seedlings are sown at the beginning of the year, generally between January at the earliest and March for the beginning of spring. To do this, you will need the equipment listed above.

You then have 2 options:
Plant your seed directly in a pot full of potting soil at half a cm depth
Place a seed on a coco pellet or on a piece of cotton.

In both cases, once the seed is in place, you will need to spray enough water to moisten the soil or cotton without soaking it, then place your coco pellet or cotton in a container like a mini greenhouse which will retain heat and humidity, thus providing oxygen. If you use a flower pot, you can simply stretch film over it and make small holes with a toothpick to oxygenate the plant.

The ideal is to maintain a constant temperature of 28 degrees. You can store your container behind a sunny window, on or near a radiator, or on a heating mat designed for this purpose.

OUR TIP:

Place your mini greenhouse on your internet box!

Remember to air out your growing area from time to time to avoid the appearance of fungi while keeping the soil moist. Once the first leaves appear, you will need to make sure to give your seedlings enough sunlight for 12 to 14 hours per day. Once the second set of leaves is well developed, you can then repot them.

Once in a pot, keep your plant near a heat source and exposed to the sun (ideally try to filter the light to avoid heat stress).

After the Ice Saints around mid-May, you can move your plant outdoors and plant your pepper in the ground if you wish, or leave it in a pot and place it on a balcony, a windowsill, or even along a wall, preferably on the south side.

How to water my Aji Santa Cruz Pepper?

When watering your Aji Santa Cruz pepper, be careful not to overwater. Too much water can drown the plant and lead to its demise. You simply need to let the soil dry between each watering to avoid insect proliferation and drowning of the plant.

Once the plant is well developed (once your plant reaches about thirty centimeters), you can cause water stress by stopping watering the plant for several days before resuming watering (be careful not to abuse this technique though, it would be a shame to let your pepper plant die).

How to properly prepare my harvest?

Once your pepper plant is in place, here are our tips to optimize your future harvest:

When your pepper plant reaches 15 to 20 cm in height, you can pinch the top of the stem (without breaking it) which should allow the plant to grow bushier and produce a little more.

If flowering is early for one of your plants, remove the first flowers to prevent them from demanding too much energy from the plant.

If your pepper plant is outdoors, insects will take care of pollinating the plant which will then produce peppers. If your plant is indoors, you will need to do this manually: take your clean finger and rub it lightly against each flower from one to another.

Don't hesitate to use a bamboo stake or rod to support your plant.

When to harvest my Aji Santa Cruz Pepper?

To harvest your Aji Santa Cruz pepper, as with others, you will need to look at its color! This pepper is harvested once it turns Red.