whats the apple trick? I never heard of it

Apples release a gas called Ethylene which accelates ripening of friut and veggies. if you cut a chunk of apple and put it in a paper bag with unripened peppers or tomatoes they will force them to ripen. it can also forece thins to go bad faster which is why apples (and believe bananas)are not great to have in the fridge. this picutre was taken last night (Thursday). I put the pepper in a small bag with a chunk of apple Monday morning. the pepper was completely green at the time. Google Ethelyne and you'll get the full scoop

IIRC, all fruit releases ethylene as it ripens. So the paper bag trick works on anything just by itself. But if you're trying to ripen a small amount, adding more of something else ripening will put more gas in the bag. Bananas are great for this, and apples would be too. I'm not sure that cutting the apple would help though. It might, I just don't know.

Bananas can go in the fridge if you need to slow down the softening (ripening) process. But the skins will turn black and they will look fugly.

Apples are okay in the fridge. Been doing it for decades and decades and decades.

Now, avacados you never want to put in the fridge. There is a flavor enzyme that just turns off when it gets cold and never comes back on. I prefer unrefrigerated tomatoes too, when I can find some that actually have flavor.

Peppers are not post-harvest ethylene receptive, fwiw.

The problem is apparently some peppers do respond to ethylene, but, some don't. But, even in the ones that do, it isn't as effective as with things like tomatoes. Personally, I don't mess with it.

Tomatoes you never want to store in the fridge. Same thing as avacados...you'll kill the flavor. Now, that's not to say that I don't refrigerate / chill them just before use or store leftover salsa, etc.. in the fridge. But, I don't store them there.

The effect of ethylene on peppers is more of a "rotting" effect of the cell walls rather than conversions of starches to sugars and nutrient changes.

Some peppers may express stronger colors under ethylene exposure, but it's an effect on carotenoid expression. This, basically (very basically), is the color of the pepper...the added benefit is generally just a higher vitamin A content (beta-carotine, for example). This provides an anti-oxidant benefit, too.

Not that I'll remember all the details, but, good to know! Thanks for the explanation!

Yeah. Thanks!

Any advice on the cut (vs. whole) apple part of the trick?

That one's a toss up. It's the act of the ripening (and rotting) that releases the ethylene in apples...which put out heavy ethylene content through the whole process.

A whole apple, uncut, releases a lot of ethylene on it's own, but a cut piece of apple would rot faster and therefore release more ethylene.

The size of the slice added + advanced rotting leading to more ethylene being given off vs. the greater size of the whole apple releasing more ethylene... *shrug*

I'd leave the apple whole to cut down on possible mess, myself...but it's not like it should be much of a mess.

We got into the Ethylene talk but does anyone know what kind of peppers these are?

Not I.

I prefer unrefrigerated tomatoes too, when I can find some that actually have flavor.
DMForcier,
Are you saying that it's difficult for you to find flavorful tomatoes?

Yep. I don't grow them and most of what is available here is the styrofoam never-rot varieties. There are some vine-ripes that aren't too bad, but kinda pricey.

andy, pics of the leaves and flowers would help. It's impossible (usually) to ID peps by the pods alone. Especially with such a small sample.

andy, ditto DMForcier, pics of the leaves and flowers would help. No guarantees we'll be able to nail it. Maybe, just maybe get somewhat close.

DMForcier, if you're looking for tomatoes that have flavor you either have to grow your own heirloom varieties or pay the price for them at a local farmer's market. The hybrid crap grown for big box retail is primarily focused on maximizing volume and shelf life.

Looks like an habanero-type variety andy -- odd color though.

DMForcier: A guy that grows hot peppers that DOESN'T grow tomatoes??? That just ain't right! ;)

Hell! One of the reasons I grow peppers is to have something to use with all of my tomatoes. Not to mention that there are very few produce items that have such a huge difference between "store bought" and homegrown as far as flavor is concerned.

Oh well. Different strokes. :)

Kevin

I'd love to have real tomatoes. But I grow in containers, not in-ground. We tried toms years ago, using the raised beds that the previous owners built and abandoned. We just didn't get enough sun and the plants didn't do well at all. Plus the soil here may be toxic to toms - it sure is to peppers.

DMF:

Don't get me weong. I have troubles growing maters in my soil also. I've just learned to work around it. Instead of expecting my plants to last deep into autumn, I do 2 plantings(1 early and 1 a couple months later). I'll use disease resistant varieties. Hell! I've even tried solarizing the soil -- a task that's somewhat difficult in my particular gardening areas. I've got to have my tomatoes though.

You actually might want to try that(solarizing) if you think your soil is bad.

Next best thing would be to go the ultra big container route. Oak barrels at home depot - 20 bucks. All you really need is a couple plants to have a nice supply all summer and fall.

OK. I'm done trying to talk you into more gardening work. ;)

Kevin

I think it
s some form of super hot. The they have the pointy end like a scorpian, especailly the smaller ones. I had one that was not quite all the way ripe that was getting mushy. I took a small nibble last night and it was WAY hotter than any of the fully ripened habs I've tasted. it was smoking.