I'm wondering because the white flies left my evil little hot
peppers alone this year, but went after the sweeter peppers.
And I have more evil hot peppers than I know what to do with :-).

--
Chris

I didn't know that hot peppers were evil! I rather like them in chili.

Actually, all of the vegetables and fruits that we like, and that have
strong flavours, like cabbage or hot peppers or mustard or radishes, have
their strong flavours because of chemical defenses developed by the plants
against insects.

One way to make use of them is to liquidize them and spray them on poorly
defended plants. Another way, often more effective because it lasts longer,
is to grow these plants in mixed beds (e.g. hot peppers next to sweet
peppers, and no two sweet peppers being next to each other). If you have a
very diverse bed or garden, with a healthy mix of protective plants, you
will see very few insect pests. From the insect's perspective, the density
of acceptable food will be too low and there'd be too many noxious (to the
insect) plants.

If you have so many hot peppers that you can't eat them all, process the
surplus into a home made bug spray, and save the seeds to plant next year.

Cheers,

Ted

--
R.E. (Ted) Byers, Ph.D., Ed.D.
R & D Decision Support Solutions
http://www.randddecisionsupportsolutions.com/
Healthy Living Through Informed Decision Making

As I understand the matter, and in very simplified terms:

culinary definition: traditional assignments stand, so for example apple
is fruit, and tomatoe is vegetable

botanical definition: fruits result from a ripened and hypertrophied
ovary of a seed producing plant, all other parts are considered vegetable

So for example, vanilla pods are a fruit!

Cheers,
Xi

Ray wrote:
Can someone tell me what differs between a vegetable and a fruit?

That's good to know Kenni. Since most of us here on RGO are closer to
botanists than supreme court judges, I'll stick with fruit until I'm
taken to court. :-)

Steve
PS Of course, the real answer is that they are both vegetable AND
fruit. The same as cucumbers, zucchini's, pumpkins, peppers, and ... ...
..... .... .... ....

Kenni Judd wrote:
Steve: The scientists/botanists/etc. and all sensible folks agree with
you -- tomatoes are fruit. But here in the US, they are by decree of the
Supreme Court, a vegetable ... which of course doesn't mean they don't
produce ethylene G. Kenni

"Steve" wrote in message
...

John DeGood wrote:


Susan Erickson wrote:


The problem is more apt to be that you have fruit close to the
plant. The ethylene gas that ripens fruit also ripens buds.


I've always kept apples, bananas, melons, peaches, pears, etc. far away
from my plants, but in recent weeks I've suddenly experienced serious bud
blasting on many of my orchids. I've never had this happen before.

Last month before the first frost I picked all the remaining tomatoes in
my garden and set them to ripen on a kitchen counter that happens to be
right next my orchid shelves. Until a few moments ago I always thought
of tomatoes as vegetables: after all, one grows them in a vegetable
garden. Susan's post just made me realize my terrible blunder: tomatoes
aren't vegetables -- they are fruit that produce ethylene to ripen.

I'm posting this so others hopefully won't repeat my stupid mistake.

John (I can't believe I did that!) DeGood

Well, you've finally settled that "vegetable or fruit" debate once and for
all! (not that I ever had any doubts)

You know... I have often brought in dozens of ripening tomatoes in the
fall (not this year) and they were stored a few feet away from some of my
orchids. I never gave it a thought before now either. Did I experience bud
blast? Not really. Maybe on some Dendrobiums, but that was on 2 unhealthy
plants that didn't have the energy to bloom anyway. Do tomatoes produce
even close to as much ethylene as apples? I doubt it. Do they produce
enough to blast orchid buds? I have no idea but I wouldn't be surprised!

Steve

On Wed, 9 Nov 2005 17:56:49 -0500 in Ted Byers wrote:
I'm wondering because the white flies left my evil little hot
peppers alone this year, but went after the sweeter peppers.
And I have more evil hot peppers than I know what to do with :-).

--
Chris

I didn't know that hot peppers were evil! I rather like them in chili.

These are tiny thai type peppers. People that know hot peppers ask
"Are they just hot without flavor, or do they have flavor too?"
People that think they knew hot peppers just bite into them, run off
for something to drink, then complain they are evil.

Actually, all of the vegetables and fruits that we like, and that have
strong flavours, like cabbage or hot peppers or mustard or radishes, have
their strong flavours because of chemical defenses developed by the plants
against insects.

One way to make use of them is to liquidize them and spray them on poorly
defended plants. Another way, often more effective because it lasts longer,
is to grow these plants in mixed beds (e.g. hot peppers next to sweet
peppers, and no two sweet peppers being next to each other). If you have a
very diverse bed or garden, with a healthy mix of protective plants, you
will see very few insect pests. From the insect's perspective, the density
of acceptable food will be too low and there'd be too many noxious (to the
insect) plants.

If you have so many hot peppers that you can't eat them all, process the
surplus into a home made bug spray, and save the seeds to plant next year.

Already in the process of saving them. In fact I've been
growing new plants from seed continually to keep the line going.
The bulk of the hot peppers are descended from hot peppers my
granddad used to grow, although I kept poor seed production practices
and let them cross with several other varieties.


--
Chris Dukes
Suspicion breeds confidence -- Brazil

Kenni Judd wrote:
Steve: The scientists/botanists/etc. and all sensible folks agree with
you -- tomatoes are fruit. But here in the US, they are by decree of the
Supreme Court, a vegetable ...

Nix v Hedden 1893. The case involved the payment of tariff duties on
imported vegetables. Hedden was the collector of duties. The Nix
brothers brought suit against him, arguing that tomatoes were fruit and
therefore exempt from the duties. The court ruled in Hedden's favor,
saying that the common definition of a vegetable prevailed over the
botanical definition of a fruit. The defense called as witnesses
several greengrocers who supported the idea that tomatoes were
considered to be vegetables.


J. Del Col

Already in the process of saving them. In fact I've been
growing new plants from seed continually to keep the line going.
The bulk of the hot peppers are descended from hot peppers my
granddad used to grow, although I kept poor seed production practices
and let them cross with several other varieties.

This makes them much more valuable, in a sense, relative to seed from most
commercial seed vendours, especially in terms of genetic diversity. You
could even turn the consequences of poor seed production practices to an
advantage by examining the plants produced to see if their unique genetic
composition has yeilded plants worth using for future line breeding efforts.
Additionally, looking at crop production ecologically, there may be
advantages to allowing some outbreeding to counter any negative effects of
inbreeding.

BTW, I visited Thailand a little over a dozen years ago, while I worked in
Singapore. I know the peppers there are quite hot, but certainly quite
tasty when used in moderation. But my sisters and their families are wimps
in that they find a single Scotch Bonnet in a kilogram of meat and another
kilogram of beans and sweet peppers outrageously hot. When eating it, they
tell me their mouths are on fire; all the while I am eating it and finding
it quite mild. Very few of them will eat a meat sauce I have prepared
unless I verify I have made the sissy version. ;-)

Cheers,

Ted

--
R.E. (Ted) Byers, Ph.D., Ed.D.
R & D Decision Support Solutions
http://www.randddecisionsupportsolutions.com/
Healthy Living Through Informed Decision Making

You probably already know that soaking a good number of the little evil ones
in vinegar makes a good "hot sauce" for greens (turnips, collards, mustard)
and "beans" (navy beans, black-eyed peas, etc.). But if not, give it a try.
Kenni

"?" wrote in message
rg...
On Wed, 9 Nov 2005 17:56:49 -0500 in
Ted Byers wrote:
I'm wondering because the white flies left my evil little hot
peppers alone this year, but went after the sweeter peppers.
And I have more evil hot peppers than I know what to do with :-).

--
Chris

I didn't know that hot peppers were evil! I rather like them in chili.

These are tiny thai type peppers. People that know hot peppers ask
"Are they just hot without flavor, or do they have flavor too?"
People that think they knew hot peppers just bite into them, run off
for something to drink, then complain they are evil.

Actually, all of the vegetables and fruits that we like, and that have
strong flavours, like cabbage or hot peppers or mustard or radishes, have
their strong flavours because of chemical defenses developed by the
plants
against insects.

One way to make use of them is to liquidize them and spray them on poorly
defended plants. Another way, often more effective because it lasts
longer,
is to grow these plants in mixed beds (e.g. hot peppers next to sweet
peppers, and no two sweet peppers being next to each other). If you have
a
very diverse bed or garden, with a healthy mix of protective plants, you
will see very few insect pests. From the insect's perspective, the
density
of acceptable food will be too low and there'd be too many noxious (to
the
insect) plants.

If you have so many hot peppers that you can't eat them all, process the
surplus into a home made bug spray, and save the seeds to plant next
year.

Already in the process of saving them. In fact I've been
growing new plants from seed continually to keep the line going.
The bulk of the hot peppers are descended from hot peppers my
granddad used to grow, although I kept poor seed production practices
and let them cross with several other varieties.


--
Chris Dukes
Suspicion breeds confidence -- Brazil

If you add herbs to this, soak in a closed container for a month (at least)
and then mix with vegetable or olive oil, you get a nice spicy salad
dressing.
Murri

"Kenni Judd" wrote in message
...
You probably already know that soaking a good number of the little evil
ones in vinegar makes a good "hot sauce" for greens (turnips, collards,
mustard) and "beans" (navy beans, black-eyed peas, etc.). But if not,
give it a try. Kenni

"?" wrote in message
rg...
On Wed, 9 Nov 2005 17:56:49 -0500 in
Ted Byers wrote:
I'm wondering because the white flies left my evil little hot
peppers alone this year, but went after the sweeter peppers.
And I have more evil hot peppers than I know what to do with :-).

--
Chris

I didn't know that hot peppers were evil! I rather like them in chili.

These are tiny thai type peppers. People that know hot peppers ask
"Are they just hot without flavor, or do they have flavor too?"
People that think they knew hot peppers just bite into them, run off
for something to drink, then complain they are evil.

Actually, all of the vegetables and fruits that we like, and that have
strong flavours, like cabbage or hot peppers or mustard or radishes,
have
their strong flavours because of chemical defenses developed by the
plants
against insects.

One way to make use of them is to liquidize them and spray them on
poorly
defended plants. Another way, often more effective because it lasts
longer,
is to grow these plants in mixed beds (e.g. hot peppers next to sweet
peppers, and no two sweet peppers being next to each other). If you
have a
very diverse bed or garden, with a healthy mix of protective plants, you
will see very few insect pests. From the insect's perspective, the
density
of acceptable food will be too low and there'd be too many noxious (to
the
insect) plants.

If you have so many hot peppers that you can't eat them all, process the
surplus into a home made bug spray, and save the seeds to plant next
year.

Already in the process of saving them. In fact I've been
growing new plants from seed continually to keep the line going.
The bulk of the hot peppers are descended from hot peppers my
granddad used to grow, although I kept poor seed production practices
and let them cross with several other varieties.


--
Chris Dukes
Suspicion breeds confidence -- Brazil