If you love Hatch green chile and gardening, then you have to grow Hatch green chiles! We have several varieties of Hatch chile seeds available, ranging from mild to extra-extra XX hot, so you can grow the Hatch wherever you garden. We have gardeners growing our Hatch chiles all over the world!
Growing Hatch Green Chile is easy:
Peppers love a long hot growing season. In the US, they do well in regions 5-11. In most areas, you will need to start the seeds indoors in a warm place and grow until the last frost is over and the soil has warmed up in a hot, sunny location.
The secret to germinating chile pepper seeds is to keep them warm! The soil temperature must remain between 80° F – 90° F for successful germination.
Once the Hatch chile seeds have sprouted, you can keep them under growlights or in a sunny south facing window (or both) to keep them growing strong until it's time to plant when the soil has warmed up and nights have warmed up (peppers will die of frost!).
Hardening Off & Planting Green Chiles:
Make sure to harden off your Hatch chile seedlings by bringing them gradually outside during the day, and eventually leaving them outside all night if the temperature is over 50-60 degrees. Once they've had a few days to acclimate to the sun, plant the Hatch chile plants in a sunny location with soil that has been amended with compost. Read how compost helps grow huge green chiles »
Then watch them grow! The hotter it is the better, water the plants regularly. Give them a good long soak two or three times per week during dry, hot spells. Try to keep the soil slightly moist but never muddy – don't drown them!
Learn more about How to Grow Peppers »
Mulching:
Add a mulch like grass clippings, composted wood chips or straw, this will help keep weeds down and keep the soil warm and moist, and it keeps the soil from splashing up on the leaves.
Harvesting Green Chiles:
Hatch chiles usually take about 85 days before ready for harvest, so be patient as they ripen. Immature Hatch chiles will taste "green" and will be less flavorful than a chile that has been allowed to ripen longer. In Hatch, New Mexico, the harvest season runs from August to September, though some seasons we harvest earlier in mid July or as late as October – it all depends on the weather!
Other chile peppers can be harvested sooner, depending on the pepper, you could be harvesting within 4-8 weeks. Many peppers are harvested at an immature green stage. The traditional bell pepper, for example, is harvested green, even though most varieties will mature red, orange, or yellow. Flavor usually increases the more mature the pepper, but we think all peppers are delicious, from green to red to black!
For earlier harvests, grow early chile pepper varieties like the Early Jalapeno Seeds which are ready earlier than other peppers.
Check out all of the Hatch chiles you can grow from seed »
