Days to Maturity: 65 direct sow; 50 transplant
All-America Selections (AAS) Winner 2022
A hybrid hot pepper, Quickfire is grown as a fruit vegetable. Although Quickfire is highly ornamental, it is typically grown for its high yields of tasty peppers. The attractive plant sets small, star-shaped "perfect" flowers followed by a profusion of 1.7-inch, conical green fruits that mature red and stand erect on the plant. These Thai-type chilies are hot, rating 40,000 units on the Scoville scale. Use fresh or dried and ground as a spice. Hot peppers are a good source of vitamin C.
Typically grown as an annual, Quickfire, an herbaceous, frost-tender, short-lived evergreen perennial, is a member of the nightshade family (Solanaceae). A Capsicum annum, commonly called cayenne pepper, chili pepper, or hot pepper, Quickfire grows rapidly, forming a very compact, bushy plant with ovate, smooth-margined, dark green leaves. Quickfire matures early and continues producing for at least 3 months, and it can be sown and grown year-round indoors in decorative flowerpots.
Quickfire Hot Pepper is easy to grow from seed. It prefers a sunny location with fertile, organically rich, moist, well-draining soil but is adaptable to a wide range of soils. It is a low maintenance plant but pinching back young plants encourages bushiness. Quickfire, like all capsicums, is deer resistant and heat and drought tolerant.
A warm-season vegetable, sensitive to cold temperatures and frost, chili pepper seeds can be direct sown into warm spring soil after all threat of frost has passed. For an earlier harvest, seeds can be started indoors 6 to 8 weeks before transplanting. Flowers begin to set fruit with night temperatures between 55° and 75°F. Protect plants with row covers if temperatures are expected to dip below 50°F. Mulching helps to moderate soil temperature as well as to maintain soil moisture and control weeds.
If you plan to start your seeds indoors, be sure to check out our Bio Dome Seed Starter Kit. With the Bio Dome, you can control the temperature, light, and soil mix to ensure your seeds become strong for transplant.
