It’s mid-February and our seedlings are well underway. Fury Hot Sauce is going to be a game changer, but without peppers there’s no hot sauce right? Right! This year we’re growing a slew of new hot pepper varieties at our home for experimentation purposes, and our production peppers in the Niagara Region.

We’ve never managed crops in two locations simultaneously, but we’re very excited to bring the vision of Fury Hot Sauce to life. We’re one of the only brands out there taking full control of the process from seed to sauce. This meticulous attention to detail and quality control is why we’re so confidant that Fury Hot Sauce will stake its claim to that valuable real estate in your fridge.

It seems like there are new hot sauce companies popping up in every State(Merrca) and Province(Canada Eh) all day, every day(*ahem Fury Hot Sauce). All of these founders likely started out growing a simple Jalapeño plant and maybe graduated to Carolina Reaper’s or a few plants by year two. Before you know it, full-on chile-head!

One of the biggest points of contention when starting pepper seeds is the medium in which you start them. We’re here to tell you it doesn’t really matter, just start! Ignore the noise. Whether you choose to start your seeds in Jiffy “pucks” or “pods”, vermiculite, a custom soil amendment or toilet paper(yes this is a thing!), just do what feels right. You can be successful or unsuccessful in any medium.

This year we started some seeds in Jiffy Peat Pods and some in Promix HP seed starting mix. Germination was great in both. Jiffy Pods or Peat Pods are cheap and convenient but require a tad more monitoring to ensure they don’t dry out before transplanting. We like them because we always have a bunch on hand and can start seeds on a whim without much prep and without much mess. When it comes time to transplant your seedlings, you simply plant the whole pod.

Promix HP is a great seed-starting mix. It’s a high quality blend of peat moss and perlite that provides a super porous environment for your seeds to get going. This mix also includes mycorrhizae(google it Skippy, its complicated) which is like a vitamin IV for those pepper roots, giving them the best opportunity to thrive.

Some people soak their seeds in tea a day before planting them. Some people use hydrogen peroxide to improve germination rates. We don’t do any of that, Skippy. It all sounds fancy but the truth is if you start with good seeds from a reputable source then you don’t need all the extra shenanigans. Feel free to DM us on Instagram if we can answer any of your germination questions.