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Whether you like 'em sweet or hot, peppers are growing in more home gardens than ever before as new and colorful varieties are being made available.

In the U.S., sweet bell peppers are by far the most popular, but as Mexican food comes to the fore, pepper varieties such as jalapeno, cayenne, and chile are "hot" on the list of home grown garden vegetables.

Usually planted about the same time as tomatoes, the pepper is usually started in pots indoors in early spring, then transplanted outdoors when all danger of frost is past.

As a rule of thumb, the pepper takes a bit more patience, since it is usually smaller and slower growing. The payoff, however, is an abundant crop of either deep green or bright red or yellow prize specimens that are the pride of any home gardener.

An added advantage? The more you harvest, the more peppers the plant will produce. Many pepper varieties can be picked at any time while still maintaining their flavor and crunch. To get the full and rich amount of vitamins A & C, however, leave peppers to ripen to full maturity. Peppers can be eaten raw, pickled, cooked and stuffed, or used in relishes, sauces and stews.

Just remember to keep plants supplied with well-drained soil, plenty of sun and uniformly moist (but not water-logged) during the peak growing season to keep your peppers healthy and growing.

Feed once when setting out, then again with a nitrogen fertilizer as fruit begins to set.

Regulary inspect for sticky "dew" on the underside of leaves caused by aphids. They be easily eliminated by spraying the underside of leaves with a mild soapy solution, or ask your garden center expert chemical sprays might cure a particularly bad infestion.

Elsewhere on the Web, check out more information at tops sites on the subject...

On the Web - How to plant & grow peppers :

Watch Your Garden Grow - Peppers - How to grow home garden sweet pepper varieties, including when to plant or harvest, spacing & depth, care & feeding, plus tips on preserving and cooking with related recipes & instructions, from the University of Illinois Extension.

Pepper - Excellent one-page fact sheet with helpful Q&A including answers to common problems such as leaf spot, stem rot and other maladies plus more on how to grow and pickle jalapeno peppers (recipe included), a history of pepper cultivation, tips on growing and fertilizing, storage and nutrition information.

How to Grow Peppers - Step-by-step, illustrated instructions for setting out plants, spacing, fertilizing, staking & watering with related warnings, tips on recommended varieties, and visitor comments.

Growing Peppers in Containers - Illustrated guide to growing crop varieties or ornamental chiles in hanging baskets, barrels, pots & containers with seeding & transplanting tips, advice on pest and disease control including white flies and aphids, with links to recommended seed and plant sources.

About Peppers - Archived story feature from Mother Earth News providing facts & information on organic pepper gardening including natural remedies for common pests & diseases, suggested varieties by maturity dates, related recipes.

Secrets of Peppers - Comprehensive information on growing hot peppers with guides to starting, transplanting, fertilizing and harvesting your crop, resources for where to purchase seeds, photo gallery, and table illustrating a number of varieties, related "heat" index, and growing times.

Growing Chile Peppers - Everything Northerners need to know, with this guide from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden featuring varieties for cool climates, maturity dates, optimum conditions for germinating seeds indoors, site preparation and seedling transplantation, and more on growing, maintaining and harvesting, related links.

Browse the Chiff Chef Recipe File

Sausage & Peppers | Grilled Salmon with Roasted Peppers

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