Jimmy Nardello Sweet Pepper

75 days — 'Jimmy Nardello' is a sweet Italian frying-type pepper whose plants are semi-compact, reach about twenty-four inches in height, and are very productive for their size. The fruit are typically early maturing, ripen to a deep red color, and average about nine inches in length.

Although their appearance hints at being a hot pepper, they are not; they are actually sweet and quite flavorful. Along with being superb for fresh eating, they can be fried alone or with sweet onions, and their thin walls allow them to freeze and dry well.

Named after their fourth son, Giuseppe and Angella Nardiello immigrated to the United States in 1887 from a village in the province of Potenza, in the Basilicata region of Southern Italy called Ruoti. Having grown it in their garden every year in Italy, they brought the seeds with them and continued the tradition in their new home in Naugatuck, Connecticut.

Although the "i" in Jimmy's surname was dropped, his commitment to the family's pepper was not. As the only one of his ten siblings who inherited his mother's passion for gardening and peppers, he continued the tradition throughout his lifetime. Before passing away in 1983, he shared the seeds with the Seeds Savers Exchange who became stewards of the legacy. Each packet contains 0.25 grams, which is approximately 30 seeds.