Pepper (Vegetable)

Pepper (Vegetable) — Bell pepper is a cultivar group of the species Capsicum annuum. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in different colors, including red, yellow, green and orange. Bell peppers contain a recessive gene that prevents capsaicin from being produced, so they lack the spiciness that many other varieties of peppers have. Bell peppers are sometimes grouped with less pungent pepper varieties as “sweet peppers”.

Bell peppers are a great source of vitamin C. Green bell peppers have twice the vitamin C of citrus fruits by weight, and red bell peppers have three times what the green bell varieties have.

The garden pepper, Capsicum annum, is available in several varieties. Shown is Pepper plant, with several sweet, bell-shaped green peppers, as well as one pepper that has turned a ripe red; a flower; two elongated hot peppers in different stages of ripeness; and a cherry pepper.