It looks like a jalapeño and even tastes like a jalapeño, but the Fresno pepper has a few tricks up its sleeve that makes it a very popular chili in its own right. It delivers a slightly spicier medium heat (2,500 to 10,000 Scoville heat units), often like a mild serrano chili, and in its mature red form, the Fresno pepper has a more complex fruitier, smokier taste than a jalapeño. This is a favorite for foodies looking for a twist on the norm. Fresno chilies were first cultivated in 1952 by Clarence Brown Hamlin, and he named the chili after Fresno, California.
| Common Name | Fresno Chile pepper |
| Botanical Name | Capsicum annuum |
| Family | Solanaceae |
| Plant Type | Perennial, vegetable |
| Size | 1–4 ft. tall, 1–2 ft. wide |
| Sun Exposure | Full sun |
| Soil Type | Moist, well-drained |
| Soil pH | Acidic, neutral |
| Bloom Time | Summer |
| Hardiness Zones | 9–11 (USDA) |
When to Plant?
This will be determined by your planting zone. There is a final frost date for each area. As a result, you can plan your gardening activities around this date. Check our Frost Dates Across North America: First & Last Frost Dates Chart. However, the date will not be the same for every plant.
How to Plant
As soon as seedlings emerge, provide plenty of light on a sunny windowsill or grow seedlings 3-4 inches beneath fluorescent plant lights turned on 16 hours per day, off for 8 hours at night. Raise the lights as the plants grow taller. Incandescent bulbs will not work for this process because they will get too hot. Most plants require a dark period to grow, do not leave lights on for 24 hours.
Seedlings do not need much fertilizer, feed when they are 3-4 weeks old using a starter solution (half strength of a complete indoor houseplant food) according to manufacturer’s directions.
If you are growing in small cells, you may need to transplant the seedlings to 3 or 4-inch pots when seedlings have at least 3 pairs of leaves before transplanting to the garden, so they have enough room to develop strong roots.
Before planting in the garden, seedling plants need to be “hardened off”.
How to Cultivate
Keep weeds under control during the growing season. Weeds compete with plants for water, space, and nutrients, so control them by either cultivating often or using mulch to prevent their seeds from germinating.
Mulches also help retain soil moisture and maintain even soil temperatures. This is especially important for peppers, as their roots may be easily damaged when weeding, and this can lead to blossom end rot.
Keep plants well-watered during the growing season, especially during dry spells.
It’s best to water with a drip or trickle system that delivers water at low pressure at the soil level. If you water with overhead sprinklers, water early in the day so the foliage has time to dry off before evening, to minimize disease problems. Keep the soil moist but not saturated.
Note that hot peppers tend to be hotter when they have less water and fertilizer. If they receive plenty of water and fertilizer, they may be milder than expected. Monitor for pests and diseases. Check with your local Cooperative Extension Service for pest controls recommended for your area.
Try planting pepper plants near tomatoes, parsley, basil, and carrots in your home vegetable garden. Don’t plant them near fennel or kohlrabi. Peppers are very colorful when in full fruit and combine well with green herbs, okra, beans, and cucumber fences in the garden bed.
Accustom young plants to outdoor conditions by moving them to a sheltered place outside for a week. Be sure to protect them from wind and hot sun at first. If frost threatens at night, cover or brings containers indoors, then take them out again in the morning. This hardening off process toughens the plant’s cell structure and reduces transplant shock and scalding.
How to Harvest
Peppers will turn green when starting to approach maturity. They can be harvested at this point, or allowed to ripen on the plant. If collected early, plants will continue to flower and fruit more frequently, though this early collection might result in differences in flavor if used fresh. Use scissors or snip to cut branches and harvest peppers. Do not remove by hand as plants can be easily damaged.
Hydroponics
Germination: To germinate Fresno Chile pepper seeds, select high-quality seeds and soak them in lukewarm water for 24 hours before planting. Plant the seeds in a propagation tray or small pots filled with seed-starting mix and keep them warm and moist until they germinate, which should take around 7-10 days.
pH range: The pH range for growing Fresno Chile pepper hydroponically should be between 5.5 to 6.5.
EC: The optimal EC range for Fresno Chile pepper is between 1.5 to 2.5 mS/cm. This level provides enough nutrients for the plant to grow healthily.
PPM: The optimal PPM range for Fresno Chile pepper is between 1050 to 1750 ppm.
Humidity: The ideal humidity level for growing Fresno Chile pepper hydroponically is around 60% to 70%. You can use a humidifier to maintain the desired humidity level.
Light hours: Fresno Chile pepper plants require 12-14 hours of light per day for optimal growth. You can use grow lights such as LED, HPS or CFL to provide light.
Temperature air: The ideal temperature range for Fresno Chile pepper is between 75°F to 85°F during the day and 65°F to 70°F at night.
Temperature water: The optimal water temperature for growing Fresno Chile pepper hydroponically is between 65°F to 75°F.
With these guidelines, you should be able to grow healthy plants hydroponically. Good luck, and happy growing!
Common Pests and Diseases
Gray leaf spot (Stemphylium spp.)
Symptoms: Fruit symptoms are the most common although stem, leaves and roots can also be infected; disease causes characteristic sunken circular lesions on the fruit; the indentations on may have visible concentric brown and yellow rings; lesion centers turn tan in color as they mature and become dotted with small black fungal fruiting bodies (microsclerotia); lesions can grow very large
Cause: Fungus
Management
As pepper nursery beds seem to be more susceptible to gray leaf spot infection, control relies on good management of the beds; beds should be well ventilated and all crop debris should be promptly removed; beds should not be planted next to pepper or tomato fields; if disease is present and spreading then application of appropriate fumigant fungicides should be effective at eradicating the pathogen; lesions on plants in an established field usually do not warrant treatment
We’ve compiled a list of videos that will teach you how to grow fresno chile pepper.
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