Re: [CH] Seed swap

Brent Thompson (brent@hplbct.hpl.hp.com)
Fri, 05 Feb 1999 08:53:57 -0800

> Manzano chillies were a favourite of the ancient Inca Empire.
> (The same guys that gave you chocolate - the Incas ...

Are you sure about this origin of cacao?  Being a plant of the humid
tropics and historically linked with the Mayas who lived in exactly such a
region and all, it is difficult to imagine the (Andean) Incas were actually
the ones who discovered, used, developed, domesticated, or popularized
cacao.

> I would love to stuff dozens of Manzanos like Jalapeņos but I am always
> saving seed for other gardeners and have only eaten them chopped in salsas.

Especially if fully ripe (when beginning to soften and get wrinkly), the
seed core of rocoto just lifts out all in one unit after you cut around the
stem, which then leaves the bulk of the rocoto fruit intact and ready for
stuffing.

> They are a most delicious chilli.

Indeed they are.
 ---   Brent