Not having luck with Pequins?
We had a customer write that they were having no luck with Pequin seeds, that, after two months, their Pequin plants they grew from seed didn't produce any peppers while his other pepper varieties did well. He said that the Pequin plants he bought from the garden nursery did better.
Well, don't despair if you have a Pequin plant that hasn't produced after 2 months after starting them from seed – they need a long growing season to produce. Pequins, also known as Bird Peppers, are native gems of the warmer areas of southern North America down into northern South America. In fact, the Chile Pequin is the official state native pepper of Texas!
Nursery's greenhouse-grown Pequins are good for gardeners in short seasons as they've been growing for a long time before you get them, and they have nice sized roots and plant size for a head-start in the spring.
You can start them from seed but if you have a short growing season, it's best to start them extra early so that you can get at least 120+ days of growing time so that you can get peppers. Chile Pequin can be grown as an annual or perennial herb or sub-shrub, if there is no frost, they can live for many, many years.
Pequin pepper plants are naturally slow growers, they typically take 3 months (between 90 to 130 days) to start producing their berry-like fruits. The lack of fruit after two months is often normal. Pequin seeds require a long growing season, the plants may not even start producing until late summer or even fall, with the peppers themselves taking time to ripen to their mature red color.
Too much Nitrogen = No Peppers:
Also, make sure your pepper plants don't get too much nitrogen fertilizer, which will result in lots of leaves but no blooms or pods, especially later in the season.
Lack of sunlight, or weather can also play a factor, cold weather under 50˚ F and hot weather over 90˚ F can cause plants to drop blooms and not develop pods. Also, a hard frost can be fatal to Pequin plants so protect them from temperatures under 40˚F.
How to grow chile pequin from seed?
Our advice: Start these pepper seeds extra early indoors, about 12+ weeks before spring planting, use a seedling heat-mat to keep the seeds warm enough to germinate. Once they germinate, and as they grow, keep potting the seedlings up so they don't get root bound, and so that you have a nice sized plant and root-ball to transplant come spring.
Avoid leggy Pequin seedlings while growing indoors: After they germinate, put a fan on the seedlings for circulation, or brush them daily with your hands to encourage them to grow more healthy & stout while under lights indoors. Air circulation and movement keeps all seedlings from getting leggy, and it helps prevent damping off disease.
Wait to transplant outside until it's consistently 50˚F at night and after all chance of cold weather has passed. You can also grow Pequin plants in a large pot so that you can move it indoors in the fall if you have a shorter season and frost comes early before the plant has had a chance to produce or ripen pods.
Growing Pequin peppers from seed is best for gardeners who have long growing seasons in the south – they can be perennial and grow like shrubs for people in Texas! For those in short seasons, you can start the seeds extra-early indoors for a much longer growing period, or some people grow them in pots and bring them indoors during cold weather to protect them from frost. You can grow them year-round this way, even in shorter seasons. While indoors, supplemental grow lights are important to keep them growing.
Pequin Alternatives for Short Growing Seasons:
A good Pequin alternative for short season gardens: Santaka Peppers, shown above, are great for short seasons with quick 70-80 day maturity!
You may also just decide to grow shorter season peppers, which are much more likely to have produced pods after 2 months of growing. We have a great selection of short season peppers in all shapes, colors, sizes and heat levels to choose from. 
Fresnos (shown above,) are another red pepper that, while much larger than Pequins, are a great alternative for those in short growing seasons.
