If you’re bored with bell peppers, these sweet curled red peppers are perfect for brightening up garden-fresh recipes. They may look like cayennes, but they don’t have any spice. Former organic farmer Logan Hailey digs into the details of growing the best pepper she’s ever tasted. Imagine a pepper so sweet and crisp that you want to bite into it straight off the plant. ‘Jimmy Nardello’ is an Italian heirloom pepper that puts most bell peppers to shame. I have nothing against bells, but they get boring after a while. Nardellos are much more adaptable, easy to grow, and amazingly versatile in the kitchen. The long, tapered fruits have thin walls and a multi-dimensional fruity flavor. Whether you pan fry them, dry them, pickle them, or eat them fresh, ‘Jimmy Nardello’ peppers make other sweet peppers seem bland in comparison. Although they look similar to a cayenne pepper, these elongated red peppers are purely sweet and savory without any spice. The plants are vigorous and disease-resistant and have a unique history from their Italian home. They thrive in almost any climate, from the far North to the deep South. Let’s dig into how to grow this easygoing, high-yielding pepper! Where Does ‘Jimmy Nardello’ Get Its Name? The history of ‘Jimmy Nardello’ peppers is almost as rich and intriguing as their flavor. This Italian heirloom originated in the mountains of Italy and made its way to America in 1887. ‘Jimmy Nardello’ peppers are named after an Italian gardening family. The Nardiello family originated in the small mountain town of Ruoti, which sits about 100 miles east of Naples, Italy. In 1887, Giuseppe Nardiello decided to bring his family to the States. His wife Angella Nardiello carried a handful of the peppers in her bag when the family sailed from the port of Naples to Naugatuck, Connecticut. She promptly planted the seeds in their new garden. The sweet frying pepper thrived in Connecticut and quickly adapted to the climate. The unique red pepper was particularly adored by her 4th child, Jimmy. His teachers misspelled his last name in school by eliminating the “i” and writing Nardello. The surname stuck to Jimmy and his descendants. Jimmy continued to grow the special curved frying pepper and would string them up to dry in the shed for winter use. He saved the seeds year after year. Before Jimmy Nardello passed away in 1983, he donated some of his family’s heirloom pepper seeds to the Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa. They named the pepper ‘Jimmy Nardello’s Sweet Italian Frying Pepper.’ The seeds are now widely distributed in seed catalogs and nurseries. How Spicy are ‘Jimmy Nardello’ Peppers? ‘Jimmy Nardello’ peppers are sweet frying peppers without spice. Despite resembling a hot cayenne pepper, ‘Jimmy Nardellos’ have very little to no heat. These sweet peppers have complex, savory flavors and no spice. You can eat them raw! They range from 0 to 100 Scoville Heat Units (SHU), which is extremely low compared to a cayenne pepper’s ranking of 30,000 to 50,000 SHU. Propagation This revered heirloom is propagated by seed in the same way as all of your other pepper plants. It’s best to sow the seeds indoors 8-10 weeks before your expected last frost date. Direct sowing is not recommended except in the warmest climates. Seed Botanical Interests offers an exceptionally vigorous strain of ‘Jimmy Nardello’ seeds that will probably outperform every other pepper in your garden. The key is to start the tender plants off in a cozy environment where they won’t get stressed by temperature fluctuations. Like most peppers, ‘Jimmy Nardellos’ have a moderate-length growing season and benefit from a head start indoors. Since this heirloom is difficult to find in nurseries, it’s best to grow your own seedlings. The heirloom seeds have a fairly high germination rate when grown in a quality seed starting mix in a warm environment, such as a seed starting mat and a south-facing window or grow light setup. To grow vibrant ‘Jimmy Nardello’ seedlings: In the spring, start peppers 8-10 weeks before your last frost date. Clean a set of 4” deep Epic 4-cell trays and sanitize them with a diluted bleach spray. Fill the cells with a quality, well-drained seed starting mix, but don’t compress it down. Use your finger to make a small indent on the surface of the soil. Sow the 1-2 pepper seeds per cell, no deeper than ¼ inch in the soil. Very lightly dust with soil over the top. Gently water in with a rain wand on the lowest setting, taking care not to displace the seeds. Optionally, place the trays on a heated germination mat. Use a soil thermometer probe to ensure the soil is 70-90°F. Keep seeds in a bright, warm place. Maintain consistent moisture until seeds emerge in 10-25 days. Nurture indoors until rootballs mature and the outdoor nighttime temperatures are reliably above 55°F. The only issue you may encounter with pepper seedlings is damping off. Too much moisture and a lack of airflow can create conditions for a stem-girdling fungus to attack your baby peppers and rot the stems at the base. Be sure to plant in a well-drained mix with plenty of compost and vermiculite. If water pools up on the surface of the container or green algae forms, the mix is not draining properly, or it is waterlogged due to overwatering. Always check soil moisture before watering. Only irrigate until water flows out of the bottom of the pots, then stop. Planting Transplanting is as simple and straightforward as any other vegetable. Just be sure to properly harden off your seedlings and avoid planting too early in the season. ‘Jimmy Nardellos’ are extremely cold-tender and finicky about chilly nights. Maintenance Bushy pepper plants don’t need a trellis system like their tomato cousins, but they enjoy staking to keep heavy fruit yields off the ground. This is especially important if you live in an area with late summer storms that could blow over the plants and snap the stems. Create a pepper staking system with a bamboo, wooden, or sturdy metal stake next to the plant’s stem. Make sure the stake is buried at least 6” in the soil. Use twine or string to tie the stem to the stake to keep the plant upright. If you’re growing many pepper plants, you may want to use a Florida weave system with several stakes pounded every 2 feet and twine woven between them to create a long row of supported plants. The only other maintenance I’d recommend is mulching, especially if you live in a hot, dry climate. Dried leaf mulch or shredded organic straw are the best options for suppressing weeds and retaining soil moisture at the base of pepper plants. Mulch at least 1-2” deep and leave a small ring of space around the base of the stems to prevent rot.

If you’re looking for the sweetest strawberry to grow in your garden this year, look no further than 'Albion' strawberries. These day-neutral plants are easy to grow and produce tons of delicious fruit. In this article, horticulture expert Matt Dursum shows you how to plant, grow, and care for these high-yielding berries. ‘Albion’ Strawberries are wonderfully sweet and easy to grow. They produce sweet, deep red berries throughout the growing season. The large berries are super plump, juicy, and flavorful, making them ideal for desserts, jams, or for eating fresh off the plants. If you’re a first-time strawberry grower, you can grow these productive strawberries easily in containers, hanging gardens, vertical planters, or garden beds. They’re resilient to many diseases and handle high heat and humidity. Let’s dive into how to plant, grow, and care for these mouth-watering strawberries. You’ll enjoy the beginner-friendly ‘Albion’ strawberry plants with just a little maintenance and care. What Is It? ‘Albion’ is a gorgeous variety of strawberries that produces large, flavorful fruits. They have a conical shape and bright red color. The berries are flavorful and high in nutrients such as Vitamin C, fiber, and antioxidants. Because they’re day-neutral everbearing, you’ll enjoy harvesting ripe fruit throughout the season. They are excellent in desserts, salads, or eaten fresh. If you’re a beginning gardener, you’ll love these easy-to-grow plants. They thrive with very little care or attention. They’re also resilient to many pests and diseases. Characteristics These small herbaceous perennials grow radially from a central plant. They can adapt to many soil types and containers like vertical planters and hanging baskets. As they grow, they spread out by creating runners that continuously find new sources of water and soil. Each baby runner can be propagated into a brand new plant. As ground cover, these strawberries work incredibly well as a natural mulch. Their foliage protects the soil from losing moisture. Their foliage protects beneficial insects in your garden beds or containers. Before fruiting, the plants produce beautiful, tiny flowers that attract beneficial pollinators. If you want to create a magnificent edible garden, planting these large and easy-to-maintain strawberry plants is a great idea. Native Area Strawberry plants are native to the Americas. The genus has been harvested by Native Americans for millennia. In the 17th century, Europeans first documented their encounters with the delicious fruits. You can still find these wild ancestors growing in fields from the Northeast to the Northwest. When breeders got hold of the South American wild strawberry (Fragaria chiloensis), they bred it with the North American Fragaria virginiana. They created the species we know and love today, Fragaria × ananassa. These modern strawberries became garden and commercial staples around the world. ‘Albion’ varieties were first cultivated in 2006. They’re a cross between the varieties Cal 94.16-1 and Diamante. From their home in California, they quickly grew in popularity and soon became one of the dominant strawberry varieties grown commercially and in home gardens. Planting Planting ‘Albion’ strawberries is super easy, even for beginning gardeners. They thrive in most growing conditions and can tolerate both warm and cold temperatures once they’re mature. Below are some helpful pointers for getting healthy and delicious berries in your garden this year.

Are you a fan of fresh, sweet, juicy, tender figs? Fig trees are easy to grow and produce an abundance of delicious fruits that you can eat straight from the tree! In this article, gardening expert Liessa Bowen introduces the basics of growing your own fig tree. I love to pick and eat figs straight from my tree, and I am pleasantly surprised at how easy they are to grow. Figs embody a sweet, delicate taste of summer. These delicious fruits are native to the Mediterranean and central Asia and hardy in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 7 through 10. These small to medium-sized trees thrive in hot summers and tolerate mild to moderate winter weather. The common fig (Ficus carica), also known as the edible fig, is a member of the mulberry family (Moraceae). You can incorporate these attractive trees into your edible landscape or use one as a small accent tree in a sunny landscape. Mature trees are capable of producing hundreds of tasty fruits each summer. Enjoy them fresh or dried. Make them last longer by freezing or preserving them. If you love to eat figs, you will love to grow your own! These trees are low maintenance and easy to grow in your home landscape. You may be quite surprised to discover how many different varieties of figs you can choose from. With dozens of interesting cultivars available, it may be hard to choose one! Keep reading to learn more about the fabulous fig tree and how you can grow your own sweetly delicious, delicate fruits. Natural History Edible figs are native to central and southeastern Europe, the Middle East, and western Asia. In their natural habitat, they can become quite large, reaching 30 feet or more, and grow in a variety of sunny habitats. This is one of the earliest cultivated fruit trees and has been grown as a human food source for centuries. Over this time, breeders have produced many interesting fig cultivars with slight variations in fruit characteristics, tree size, and cold hardiness. Characteristics Fig trees are small to medium-sized trees or large shrubs. They have a rounded, many-branched form. The leaves are broad and deeply lobed, with a somewhat rough feeling from the tiny stiff hairs that cover each leaf. When broken, the leaves and stems exude a sticky, white latex material that can cause contact dermatitis and skin irritation in sensitive people. Wash exposed skin after handling raw figs and their white, sticky sap. To avoid getting the sap on your skin, wear gloves and long sleeves when harvesting fruits and otherwise working with these trees. Blooms appear in the spring, although you won’t see anything that looks like a flower. The flowering parts are actually inverted, appearing instead as small, firm, green fruits. Wild figs are internally pollinated by a fig wasp, but most cultivated figs do not need a pollinator because they are self-fertile. The fruit then develops as these inverted fruit-like flowers grow into the sweet and tasty fruits that we eat. Many varieties produce two crops. The first is known as a “breba” crop because it is brief and light, sometimes with just a few figs, sometimes with a few handfuls of fruits. The subsequent second crop is the main crop of fruits and this crop can be quite large. Fig fruits range in size from about one to three inches across. Propagation If you already have access to a mature fig tree, the easiest way to propagate it is by taking stem cuttings.