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  1. Roasted Jalapeno Hot Sauce Recipe ROASTED JALAPENO HOT SAUCE: 3-10+ jalapenos (whatever you have, or any hot peppers or red chile) 1 medium onion chopped (about 1 cup) 5-6+ cloves garlic chopped 1-2 Carrots 1/2-1 cup of tomato sauce (or a few fresh tomatoes) ¼ cup vinegar of choice 1 teaspoon lemon juice or lime juice Salt to taste Grill or broil jalapenos, to blister the skin (you can also use other hot peppers such as hot Hatch chile). You can also roast or broil fresh tomatoes, garlic and carrots (though don't ...
  2. Pico de Gallo Recipe Pico de Gallo Recipe: 1 cup diced white, red or green onions2-3+ jalapeño or serrano peppers*, ribs and seeds removed, finely choppedJuice of one lime2-3+ garlic cloves, minced5-10+ ripe tomatoes, diced1 bunch of cilantro, choppedSalt & pepper to taste Instructions:Combine all of the chopped/diced ingredients in a large bowl. Let it marinate for 15 minutes or more, serve with tortilla chips or use as a topping for tacos! Variations: *You can use any hot peppers in this recipe, includin...
  3. How to Transplant Pepper Plants How to Transplant Pepper Plants Whether you started your own pepper seeds, or if you're transplanting peppers from the garden center, here are our top tips for best success. Transplanting peppers is a simple process, though there are a few tricks to help your pepper transplants thrive. 1. Make sure to harden off your seedlings first! This simply means to bring indoor-started pepper plants outside and expose them to the sun gradually. This will help avoid transplant shock. 2. Create Labe...
  4. How to grow hot peppers: The best advice from pepper growers What is the best hot pepper growing advice you have ever received? Just go for it! Some people just don't try. Grow some of the fastest growing peppers to start, as they are easier to germinate and you get to harvest them much sooner than some other varieties such as many of the super hot peppers. These fast growing peppers are also great for short season gardening – so you can get plenty of peppers before your first frost. Start Seeds Indoors: We recommend starting hot pepper seeds ...
  5. Happy June Gardening! It's June 1st, but it's not too late to plant zucchini seeds! Our Summer Squash Black Beauty Zucchini produces a huge crop of tender zucchini squash during the summer - and they are super fast growing, they start to harvest in 55 days! We direct sow the seeds in mounds in the garden, zucchini plants grow fast and don't like to get root bound, so starting them indoors is unnecessary. It's June...Is it too late to plant seeds? There are plenty of other veggies that you can p...
  6. Problems growing carrots? We used to have trouble growing carrots, specifically with sowing carrot seeds, likely because we did not keep them consistently moist during their germination period. Carrot seeds not germinating? Carrot seeds can be planted directly into the garden soil and are easy to grow. But there is a secret to growing carrots and getting the seeds to germinate. If you have problems with carrots in your garden (or at least starting the seeds), use the Carrot Board Trick: For best results, sow car...
  7. Fried Zucchini Blossoms Recipe Fried Zucchini Blossoms Recipe Did you know that you can eat the beautiful zucchini blossoms? We like to stuff them with hummus or cheese and garlic, hot pepper flakes, and basil then dunk them in a simple flour and soda water batter and fry in a cast iron skillet. YUM! See recipe... Baked or FriedZucchini Blossoms Recipe INGREDIENTS: 8-12 Squash Blossoms (any zucchini, squash or pumpkin blossoms)Fresh Basil or Sage Leaves (1/2 cup+)Hummus (homemade or store-bought)orRicotta Cheese (a...
  8. When to Plant Cucumber Seeds Wondering when to plant cucumber seeds? Well, it's mid-June and it is the perfect time to plant cucumber seeds! You can plant cucumbers seeds after all chance of frost has past, for many areas in the United States that is from May to June, depending on your growing region. As they are fast growing, you could also plant cucumber seeds in June and early July and still have time for a harvest in late summer and fall. We find that they do best when planted directly in the ground. But, if you ...
  9. Gardening Challenges What are your biggest garden challenges? Every gardener has challenges, it's part of what makes gardening fun! Learning something new every year, gardeners accumulate lots of knowledge over time via experience. What are some of your top challenges in your garden? WeatherWeather can be harsh sometimes, especially with late spring storms, hurricanes and tropical storms, non-stop rain, freezing cold temperatures, super hot 90˚F+ temperatures, you name it. We like to start many vegetables suc...
  10. What is the best way to transplant tomato plants? Transplanting tomatoes? Here's our five top tips for the best way to transplant tomato plants into your garden: 1. Harden off your indoor-started tomato seedlings first so they don't get shocked by sun, pick an overcast day, or plant in the morning or evening so you aren't planting in full sun. 2. Amend soil where you will be planting with homemade compost if you have it. You can also put some compost deep into the planting hole. 3. Pinch off some of the lower leaves. 4. Remove s...
  11. Green Chile Sauce Recipe Green Chile Sauce Goes great on everything! Use it on top of burritos, roasted vegetables, potatoes, tacos, sandwiches, burgers, or use it as a salsa with chips. Ingredients:4 Tbs butter1/2 yellow onion (diced)6 Tbs all purpose flour1Tbs chicken bullion1 1/2 C water 1/2 cup chopped hatch green chile (roasted)salt and pepper to taste Directions:1. In a medium saucepan, melt butter and add in onions. Saute onions until they become fragrant and translucent. 2. Once onions are cooked, turn down t...
  12. Why are my seedings dying after sprouting? Why are my seedings dying after sprouting? Why are my seedlings falling over? These are common questions we get from gardeners starting seeds. It could be Damping Off. Gardeners often run into seedling damping off – where their seedlings mysteriously start to shrivel and wilt at the base, then flop over and die. Damping off often occurs with overwatering and lack of air circulation, which allows water molds and fungi to grow and cause seedings to collapse and die, often overnight. Overly w...
  13. Why are my seedlings falling over? Why are my seedlings falling over?It could be Damping Off. These are common questions from gardeners starting vegetables from seed: Why are my seedings dying after sprouting? Why are my seedlings leggy? Why are my seedlings wilting? Why do my seedlings keep dying? Seedling above is affected by damping off. Every year we get hear from some gardeners that their seedlings mysteriously started wilting, flopping over, and dying – most of the time this is caused by damping off, an invisible kil...
  14. Which is hotter red or green Hatch chile? Which is hotter, red or green Hatch chile? You may think that red chile is hotter than green Hatch chile, but it really depends on the variety! Did you know that all Hatch chile varieties eventually turn red as they ripen to full maturity? That doesn't mean they necessarily get hotter – as they redden they develop deeper often sweeter flavor, while the heat level doesn't typically increase. Hot Hatch Chile varieties are usually always hot, and mild chile varieties are usually alw...
  15. When should I plant my seeds? When should I plant my seeds? This is a great question! The first thing to do is to determine your last average frost date, which you may determine here: almanac.com/gardening/frostdates. Afterward, count back six to eight weeks to start your seeds. Also, consider the first frost date in the fall because the period between your last frost date in the spring and the first frost date in the fall is your growing window. So, note each seed variety's maturity date to ensure you have enough t...
  16. Best Tomatoes for Salsa - Grow from seeds! The best tomatoes for salsa include a wide range of tomato varieties. Don't limit yourself to just one kind of tomato for your salsa! Often, fresh chopped tomato salsas like pico-de-gallo are made with firm, fleshy tomatoes such as San Marzanos or Roma Tomatoes. However, this is because those are the types that you can find in the stores. But that doesn't mean they are the only (or best) tomatoes for salsa! Good heirloom tomatoes are not often available at the grocery store. But you ...
  17. When to Top Pepper Plants Are you thinking about topping your chilli plants? Wondering when to top your pepper plants? Our answer: Keep it simple, we say don't worry about topping your plants at all! If you grow peppers from seed – you may wonder if (and when) you should top your pepper plants. In our experience, topping pepper plants does not necessarily result in more peppers than their un-topped counterparts. If you are growing your peppers outdoors, we don't think topping is necessary. We find that toppi...
  18. How to Prune Tomato Plants If you grow tomato seeds, here are our top tips for how to prune tomato plants so they are more productive and healthy all season: First, you can start with pruning your young tomato plants – pruning off some of the first blossoms can help the tomato plant will help it put more energy into growing bigger. Pruning off the first blossoms on your seedlings and plants is especially good to do before transplanting, so they can spend energy getting their roots settled in before going into seed pr...
  19. What are the best pepper seeds for beginners? What are the best pepper seeds for beginners? Beginners should start with some of the fastest growing peppers. These peppers are great for people who are just starting to grow pepper seeds as they germinate quickly and grow into productive pepper plants even in short seasons. Many of these peppers are great for container gardening and for short seasons with late or early frosts in the spring and fall. These easy pepper seeds will give you the confidence to grow more and more each season. Som...
  20. Best Pepper Seeds for Planting If you're looking for the best pepper seeds for planting, you've come to the right place! Sandia Seed carries over 101+ pepper seeds from super hot peppers to sweet peppers and everything in between. Check out our List of Peppers by Heat to find a heat level that is just right for you. Our Peppers of the World are easy to grow in any vegetable garden, so you can taste some of the best flavors from all over the planet. Peppers don't all taste the same, they have a wide variety of f...