Earthbox Update - Week Eighteen: Peppers are Exhibitionists, Tomatoes Are Shy

A throw back to the '60s: the tie-dyed pepper

Awww...tiny finger-tip sized baby Bell (pre-adult, tie-dye stage)

I've learned this week that peppers are brazen hussies--shamelessly flaunting themselves in all their pepperish glory. These are the showgirls of the garden. Not an ounce of modesty in sight. Their proud calls vary from, "Look at me! I'm a six-inch, horn-shaped Carmen!" to "Look at ME! I'm a Golden Bell, half-way to my golden status!" But one thing's for sure and that's that nobody ever accused a pepper of being self-conscious.

Now tomatoes...a different story. This mama plant is five feet tall and just as wide (so not so modest in size), and yet, I could barely see her beautiful red-turning-to-purple-and-black fruit. Tomatoes are shy, secretive creatures. They make you work for it.

Next time you're out for drinks, check out the tomato and the pepper types in your midst. You know what I mean ;)

A shy Black Krim

Brazen Carmens (pre-ripe Red)

Brazen in bunches!