by Rich Blood | Feb 16, 2021 | Blog, Botany, Pepper Myths And Misinformation, Taxonomy, Traveling the World in Search of Peppers
In taxonomy, some mysteries refuse to die. Capsicum arachnoideum was one of them. A name whispered in old papers, a supposed wild Bolivian species with small purple flowers, hairy leaves, and long spider-leg calyx appendages. For decades, it hovered somewhere between...
by Rich Blood | Feb 27, 2020 | Blog, Pepper Myths And Misinformation, Spicy, Traveling the World in Search of Peppers
Ajà Charapita peppers, red and yellow, served with lime wedges at a restaurant in Iquitos, Peru—hardly the stuff of $25,000-a-kilo luxury. In 2014, I roamed Peru’s Belén Market in Iquitos, grabbing handfuls of Ajà Charapita—pea-sized chilis bursting with citrusy...
by Rich Blood | Dec 11, 2019 | Blog, Botany, Ecology, Traveling the World in Search of Peppers
In the remote landscapes of Bolivia, I have rediscovered an endangered pepper species. The elusive Capsicum eshbaughii, named after renowned botanist Dr. William Eshbaugh. This species offers a glimpse into the biodiversity of the region. Efforts to preserve its...
