Capsicum annuum (70 days) F-1 hybrid. Johnny’s debuted Carmen in 2006 to much critical acclaim, including a coveted AAS. A classic Italian Corno di Toro type, Carmen features unusually sweet horn-shaped tapered pointed 2½x6" fruits averaging 5 oz that won rave reviews from all seven of our tasters. (How often does that happen at Fedco?) Great for salads, especially as they ripen from green to deep carmine, with good sweet flavor. Rob and Janika called Carmen “fruity,” “nutty,” “sweet with a hint of spice.” Emily Skrobis emotes, “Wildly flavorful. I love it even though it’s a hybrid. I make sure to freeze some roasted Carmens each season.” Walls are only medium-thick, so take care not to get them overly charred when roasting. Upright medium-sized plants with excellent protective canopy. Widely adapted and early maturing in its class. ③
This item is certified organic
3757
Carmen
- Organic
Additional Information
Elongated Picklers, Fryers & Roasters
About 110–210 seeds/g.
Peppers
Days to full-color maturity are from transplanting date.
Capsicum comes from the Greek kapto which means ‘bite.’
Culture: Start indoors in March or April. Minimum germination soil temperature 60°, optimal range 68-95°. Set out in June. Very tender, will not tolerate frost, dislike wind, will not set fruit in cold or extremely hot temperatures or in drought conditions. Black plastic highly recommended. Row cover improves fruit set in windy spots. Pick first green peppers when they reach full size to increase total yield significantly. Green peppers, though edible, are not ripe. Peppers ripen to red, yellow, orange, etc.
Saving Seed: Saving pepper seed is easy! Remove core of the fully ripe pepper (usually red or orange) and dry on a coffee filter. When dry, rake seeds off the core with a butter knife. To ensure true-to-type seed, grow open- pollinated varieties and separate by 30 feet. Use only the first fruits for seed; allow only 3–4 fruits per plant to grow and remove all others. Fewer fruits = larger seeds = greater seed viability. Later fruits often have germination rates of only 60%.
Diseases:
BLS: Bacterial Leaf Spot
CMV: Cucumber Mosaic Virus
TMV: Tobacco Mosaic Virus
Germination Testing
For the latest results of our germination tests, please see the germination page.
Our Seeds are Non-GMO
All of our seeds are non-GMO, and free of neonicotinoids and fungicides. Fedco is one of the original companies to sign the Safe Seed Pledge.
This item is certified organic