[CH] Bug Repellant Pepper plants??
Calvin Donaghey (gdonaghey@bitstreet.com)
Mon, 24 May 1999 18:41:13 -0500
Hello all,
Has anyone else had experience with a pepper plant that gives off a
strong pepper odor?
Two years ago I got some seeds from the germ plasm bank (chosen based on
their appearance in DeWitt & Bosland's book "Peppers of the World" p.37
--USDA 439384-- because I have an enthusiasm for small wild pods,
especially Baccatums). They got a good start last year and are
exceptionally flavorful, hot little torpedos. They don't exactly match
the picture, so they may be some variant strain. I never noticed
anything unusual last year, but this year the plant came back out of the
roots (mild winter) and is growing in leaps and bounds. It gives off a
distinctive pepper odor and the bugs have not touched it except for a
nibble off of one leaf. The plant first appeared around March 1, and is
now 2' X 2' with several flowers and literally hundreds of buds. The
odor is discernable downwind from several feet away, but it doesn't
smell hot, it just smells peppery, kind of a chopped pepper smell. None
of my other bushes do this, and the usual crowd of aphids has been
bothering them. I was out sprayng soap and looked the plant over-- no
bugs, so it didn't get sprayed. That was 2 weeks ago, and still no
bugs. The source of the seeds was listed as Peru. Anyone else seen
anything like this?? Time will tell whether the plant really does keep
off the bugs, but what a genetic advantage if it does!!!!
Thanks for listening.
Calvin