Image of Chile De arbol plant at Google
The Chile de árbol which means tree chili in Spanish is a Mexican chili pepper.
Overview
- It is a small and potent Mexican chili pepper.
- This pepper is also known as bird’s beak chile and rat’s tail chile.
- These chilis are about 2 to 3 inches (5.1 to 7.6 cm) long, and 1?4 to 3?8 inch (0.64 to 0.95 cm) in diameter.
- Their heat index is between 15,000 and 30,000 Scoville units.
- The peppers are a bright red color when mature.
- Chile de árbol peppers can be found fresh, dried, or powdered.
- The seeds and white arches can be removed from the pepper to bring down its hotness.
Growing/Caring conditions for De árbol
- Sow seedlings indoors.
- It prefers well-drained soils, such as silty or sandy loams, and 800–2,000 mm (31–79 in) of annual precipitation.
- Sow them late spring to early summer.
- A soil ph of 7.0 – 8.5 is good for this plant.
- The plant requires full sun.
- This plant needs temperatures to be at least 64 degrees F to germinate.
- Sow those eight to ten weeks before the last frost date for your area.
- They are a difficult in germination and seedlings grow slowly at first.
- Provide bottom heat or heat lamps to raise the soil temperature to 80 degrees.
- This will promote better and quicker germination.
- A heated germination mat works well.
- While your seedlings are growing, get your garden ready.
- Add plenty of compost, manure, and a general fertilizer.
- Peppers like hot weather.
- Transplant young seedlings outdoors after the last chance of frost.
- If the weather is still cool, delay transplanting a few days.
- Keep them in a cold frame, indoors.
- Space 18-24 inches apart, in rows 24 to 30 inches apart.
- Mulching around the peppers to keep down weeds, retain moisture, and help to feed the plant.
- As the peppers develop, use a fertilizer higher in Phosphorous and Potassium.
- Providing too much nitrogen will result in a great looking bushy, green plant, but few fruits.
- Peppers can be picked as soon as they reach a size which is edible.
- Continuous harvesting encourages the fruit to produce new flowers.
- Spider mites and aphids are the most common problems.
- An occasional borer insect is also known to attack this plant.
- Try an organic insecticide or dust.
- Fungal infections can be treated with fungicides. Apply treatment as soon as you see it.
- Potential pests include aphids, white flies, cutworms, pepper maggots, and Colorado potato beetles.
- Diseases include Verticillium wilt and mosaic virus.
- Frost will stunt or kill the plants.
- Cold weather can cause the plant to slow down or stunt it.
- Use a hot cap in on cold and frosty spring nights.
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