# @ahs_gardening on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DbqMlybkzRT
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/68776438-ahs-gardening-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/25f56159d7.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-08-05T13:00:51.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** American Horticultural Society | American Gardener Magazine (@ahs_gardening) — https://gondola.cc/ahs_gardening

## Caption

It's pepper season. 🌶️⁠
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If your garden is suddenly producing more peppers than you know what to do with, here's a fun fact to enjoy while you're harvesting.⁠
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The jalapeño, the ghost pepper, the Tabasco pepper, and the sweet bell pepper aren't just different varieties. They're members of five distinct Capsicum species, each with its own history, flavors, and surprising traits.⁠
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In "Heat, History, and the Human Condition," Krista Kjellman Schmidt and Matt Mattus explore the remarkable diversity behind one of the world's most widely grown crops.⁠
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🌶️ Capsicum annuum – The shape-shifters. Sweet bells, jalapeños, poblanos, cayennes, and countless others all belong here.⁠
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🌶️ Capsicum chinense – Home to habaneros, Scotch bonnets, ghost peppers, and Carolina Reapers. Famous for blistering heat—and surprisingly fruity, tropical flavors.⁠
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🌶️ Capsicum baccatum – South America's beloved ají peppers, prized for their bright, fruity flavor and starring role in Peruvian cuisine.⁠
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🌶️ Capsicum frutescens – Bird's-eye peppers and the peppers behind the iconic Tabasco sauce. Small peppers with a global impact.⁠
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🌶️ Capsicum pubescens – The outliers, with fuzzy leaves, black seeds, and an unusual tolerance for cooler weather.⁠
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So... what's ripening in your garden right now? 🌶️⁠
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To learn more about peppers, their flavor, identity, and culture across time and place, visit our July/August issue at ahsgardening.org. ⁠
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Not a member yet? Join us at ahsgardening.org and get a copy of this magazine delivered straight to your door. ⁠
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Writers: Krista Kjellman Schmidt (kkjschmidt) and Matt Mattus (matt_mattus) ⁠
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📸 creds: Matt Mattus ⁠
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#ahsgardening #americanhorticulturalsociety #americangardener #domesticateddynamos #chilepeppers #capsicum #foodhistory #gardentotable #horticulture #ediblegardening #pepperpower #plantprofiles #plantdiversity

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## Tags

gardentotable, ediblegardening, horticulture, americanhorticulturalsociety, capsicum, americangardener, pepperpower, chilepeppers, plantprofiles, plantdiversity, foodhistory, domesticateddynamos, ahsgardening

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