[00:00.100]This is the VOA Special English
[00:03.190]Agriculture Report.
[00:05.190]Some people say
[00:06.930]eating hot chili peppers
[00:09.370]can help you breathe easier
[00:11.960]if you have a cold.
[00:13.800]Others believe that chilies
[00:16.490]give you more energy.
[00:18.630]All we know is that people
[00:21.630]have been growing chilies
[00:23.330]for centuries.
[00:25.220]And there are plenty
[00:26.810]of different kinds
[00:27.760]of chili peppers to choose from,
[00:30.760]along with different levels of heat.
[00:34.170]Want to spice up your meals
[00:36.850]with homegrown chilies?
[00:38.940]They need a warm climate.
[00:41.330]If you plant the seeds outside
[00:44.530]when the weather is cool,
[00:46.420]place a glass over them.
[00:48.870]That will add warmth
[00:51.370]from the sun and
[00:53.990]protect them from wind.
[00:56.450]You can also start the seeds
[00:59.300]in your home or a greenhouse.
[01:02.950]If you plant chili peppers
[01:05.790]inside, fill an eight-centimeter
[01:09.240]pot with soil.
[01:10.680]The pot should have holes
[01:13.370]in the bottom
[01:14.520]so water can run out.
[01:17.080]Tap the sides of the pot
[01:19.820]to settle the soil.
[01:21.510]Drop several seeds
[01:23.950]over the surface of the pot
[01:26.190]and cover with a thin layer
[01:28.840]of vermiculite.
[01:30.680]Vermiculite is a material
[01:33.120]that can hold air,
[01:34.960]water and nutrients.
[01:37.910]Then cover the top of the pot
[01:40.990]with a see-through plastic bag.
[01:43.830]Hold the bag in place
[01:46.120]with a rubber band.
[01:47.760]Place the pot in a warm area.
[01:50.750]When the chilies start growing,
[01:54.040]take off the bag.
[01:55.430]When the plants have reached
[01:57.920]about two centimeters high,
[02:00.060]place each one carefully
[02:02.260]in its own eight-centimeter pot.
[02:05.400]When the roots show
[02:07.590]through the holes
[02:08.830]in the bottom of the pot,
[02:10.930]transplant each seedling
[02:13.120]into a twelve-centimeter pot.
[02:16.500]When the plants are
[02:18.650]twenty centimeters high,
[02:20.640]tie the plants to a stick placed
[02:23.630]in the pot to support them.
[02:26.070]When the chili peppers
[02:28.260]are thirty centimeters high,
[02:30.830]pinch the tops off
[02:32.520]with your fingers.
[02:33.760]That should get
[02:35.720]new branches to grow.
[02:37.510]When the first flowers show,
[02:40.360]give the plants
[02:42.100]some potash fertilizer.
[02:44.100]When the weather is warm,
[02:46.490]put them into five-liter pots
[02:49.680]and place them outside.
[02:51.630]Make sure they get
[02:53.980]a good amount of light and water.
[02:56.960]Some people like mild chilies,
[03:00.620]others like plenty of heat.
[03:03.550]Some like to harvest the plants
[03:06.010]when the chilies are green.
[03:07.810]Others like their chilies red.
[03:10.650]Either way can give color
[03:13.490]and taste to many different foods.
[03:17.230]And that's the VOA Special English
[03:21.360]Agriculture Report,
[03:23.330]written by Jerilyn Watson.