Bullhorn Capsicums

Bull’s Horn (or Cow Horn) Capsicum is an old Italian heirloom variety of sweet capsicum that produces curved fruits up to 20cm long. The fruits can be harvested green or red after 70-90 days – and they are very prolific! They’re adaptable to most garden soils but prefers a well-drained, well-fed soil in a sunny position. While they are annuals in temperate climates they can be treated as perennial in the tropics.

Capsicums require warmth for germination, so if you’re planning on starting early then make sure you provide some warmth.

Here in Melbourne we’d be sowing the seeds 6mm deep into trays of a good seed raising mix in October. The germination rate is actually quite high – a friend at a local food swap swears that even after using the seeds from a bullhorn bought from a local market she managed to get over 85% of the seeds to germinate 10-14 days after planting.

Seeds from a bullhorn capsicum at a local food-swap

Plant out around 50cm apart when  the seedlings are a good 6-7cms or so tall, and you’ll find that in 10-12 weeks you’ll have more capsicum than you know what to do with! Although you can always do sauces, peperonata, ratatouille and many other dishes – you can even do sun-dried capsicum – yum!

Even the major supermarket chains are working out that these are gooooood