Black Pearl Pepper

Latin name: Capsicum annuum

🌱 Days to Sprout: 10-21

😋 Ready for Full Dose of plant food with true leaves or roots .5-inch long

✂️ Thin to: 1 plant per yCube

🍅 Days to Maturity: 90-100

💡 Light Zone: High

📏 Plant Size: 2 ft

💚 Care Level: Advanced

The Black Pearl pepper is a stunning, award-winning variety developed by the USDA's Agricultural Research Service. Its wild ancestors originated in the Americas.

The Black Pearl is a show-stopping pepper plant known for its dramatic deep purple-black foliage that grows even darker when exposed to bright light. It produces tiny, pearl-shaped peppers that start off as an onyx black and eventually mature to a crimson red. These chilies pack a surprising pop of heat along with a light, citrusy-sweet flavor.

Black Pearl peppers can be used as you would a jalapeño or cayenne chili. Because they are tiny, they aren't ideal for stuffing, but chopping them up is a fun way to add a dramatic visual flair and a medium-high heat to salsas, stir-fries, stews, and chili oils.

💡Temperature: Prefers warmer temperatures (70-85°F).

🐝 Pollination: Peppers require pollination. Flowers develop 4-6 weeks after sprouting. Remove the first set of flower buds that grow to encourage root and foliage development. When the next flowers appear, hand-pollinate them by gently shaking the entire plant, or gently disturb the inside of blossoms with your finger or a small brush. 

TIP: If you have different types of peppers growing on your Gardyn (Jalapeño, Banana, etc.) be careful not to use the same finger or brush to pollinate across varieties! Otherwise, your plants will crossbreed, resulting in mixed flavors and shapes. 

🫶 Support: We suggest using our Plant Belt to support the plant and its heavy fruit as it matures. 

✂️ Pruning: These peppers require minimal pruning. Snip away yellow or brown leaves if they appear, and trim branches to ensure the plant stays within the Gardyn's light. Check the roots monthly and trim any that are brown or extending past the yPod.

🔎 Plant Health: Gardyn peppers are prolific producers, even if they show signs of Edema, a harmless disorder. Aphids are a common pest, but you can use our prevention tricks to keep them at bay!

🌶 Harvest: Black Pearl peppers are ready to harvest when the tiny, round fruits turn from onyx black to a striking crimson red, though you can also harvest them when they are black if you prefer a different look. For both stages, the longer they stay on the plant, they'll continue to ripen, change color, and turn sweeter! Harvest by cutting each pepper at its individual stem at the color preferred.

Our Plant Health & Nutrition Team thoroughly tests each variety we offer to bring you the most flavorful and high-quality plants. We regularly rotate our plant portfolio, so please note, availability varies.