Cayenne Flame Chilli

Why I grow it

I grow cayenne because I use it. Simple as that.

It's the chilli that adds the kick to our gazpacho, and it's one of those incredibly useful plants to have growing when you cook a lot. The long, slender fruit can be used fresh, but they're also brilliant dried — meaning a good summer crop can keep supplying the kitchen long after the plants themselves have finished.

At a glance

Type: Cayenne chilli
Heat: Hot
Fruit: Long and slender, green ripening to red
Position: Full sun, warm and sheltered
Growth: Bushy
Best for: Fresh cooking, drying and making chilli powder

In the kitchen

Use the fruit fresh whenever a dish needs proper heat — curries, sauces, marinades, stir-fries and, importantly around here, David's Gazpacho.

Cayenne is also one of the most useful chillies for preserving. Let the fruit ripen fully red, then dry them whole to store or grind them into flakes or powder. Suddenly one summer plant becomes a jar of home-grown cayenne for the pantry.

Try it with: David's Tomato — the tomato my dad selected specifically for our gazpacho. Cayenne provides the heat in the recipe.

In the garden

Cayenne Flame loves warmth and sunshine. The plants produce slender chillies that begin green and ripen through to bright red. Harvest them at either stage for fresh use, or allow them to ripen completely if you're planning to dry them.

Jo's growing tip

I like planting chillies and capsicums in pairs. Although their flowers are self-fertile, I've found plants grown together perform particularly well — they create a sheltered little growing pocket, physically support one another as they fill out, and give visiting pollinators plenty of flowers to move between.

Care

Grow in fertile, well-drained soil in a warm, sunny and sheltered position. Water consistently while flowering and fruiting and feed regularly once fruit production begins. Support the plant if it becomes heavily laden and protect from frost.

What you'll receive

One healthy, established seedling grown here at A Garden Between. Plants naturally vary in size and shape and may be supplied in reused nursery pots or growing bags — perfectly useful plastic doesn't need replacing simply because it doesn't match.