Plant Care Library

Group/Class:  Hot Poblano

Description:

A lovely dried variety that is easy to grow and perfect for containers and gardens; produces 6" long medium hot poblano peppers that emerge dark green and mature to chocolatey brown; very wrinkly when dried and rich in flavor that is perfect for sauces

Edible Qualities

Mulato Pepper is an annual vegetable plant that is commonly grown for its edible qualities, although it does have ornamental merits as well. It produces dark green heart-shaped peppers (which are technically 'berries') which can be harvested at any point. The fruit will often fade to dark brown over time. The peppers have a smoky taste.

The peppers are most often used in the following ways:

• Eating When Cooked/Prepared
• Cooking
• Drying
• Seasoning
• Sauces

Planting & Growing

Mulato Pepper will grow to be about 3 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 20 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 24 inches apart. This vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop.

This plant can be integrated into a landscape or flower garden by creative gardeners, but is usually grown in a designated vegetable garden. It should only be grown in full sunlight. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone over the growing season to conserve soil moisture. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.

Mulato Pepper is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.