Where can I get Habanada peppers or seeds in the Toronto area?

April 4, 2019 12:28 PM

OK, so this post on the blue has informed me that habanada peppers exist and I would like to try them. Any easy ways to do so in the Toronto area? I'm OK with just getting seeds and growing plants but would prefer to buy some of the peppers so that I could eat them to see if I liked them and then use the seeds to grow more if I do.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm to Home & Garden (9 answers total)

No guarantees, but my first instinct is St. Lawrence Market. Here are the produce vendor listings. The permanent storefronts inside the South Market (listed as Upper or Lower Level) have had some of the most interesting veg varieties I've seen around. I haven't been to the new markets yet, Farm Boy or Nations, though.
posted by wellred at 12:37 PM on April 4, 2019 [2 favorites]

Maybe I’m dumb, but can’t you just buy directly from Row 7? Incidentally, they are amazing and delicious.
posted by mr. remy at 12:46 PM on April 4, 2019 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Buying directly from them is an option and if I do that I'll probably order some of their other seeds as well to make the shipping a bit more worthwhile. But I would rather eat the pepper first if its available and also would like to avoid having to deal with customs - I don't think there's an issue with getting packets of seeds mailed from the US but adding a border crossing to anything is an extra chance for something to go wrong.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:08 PM on April 4, 2019

Baker Creek has habanada seeds and is offering free shipping. $3 gets you a pack of habanada seeds and a freebie pack of seeds (their choice), so not a bad deal!
posted by MonkeyToes at 3:16 PM on April 4, 2019 [1 favorite]

Chez Nous Farms in Stevensville (between Niagara Falls and Fort Erie) has them (among many other types of chilies).
posted by Ashwagandha at 5:22 PM on April 4, 2019 [2 favorites]

For $3 and free shipping you don't have much to lose, but in my experience the quality/reliability of Baker Creek seeds is all over the place.

Also the time for starting pepper plants in order to get reliable production in northern latitudes is quickly passing. If you can possibly find starts somewhere that would be better.
posted by sevenless at 8:16 AM on April 5, 2019 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I went on a long walk Saturday down to St. Lawrence Market, and while the walk was enjoyable I wasn't able to find any habanada peppers (or any interesting peppers really). I've ordered some seeds so I guess I'll find out in a couple of months how the peppers are.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 10:25 AM on April 8, 2019 [1 favorite]

WE NEED AN UPDATE!!!
posted by wenestvedt at 3:27 PM on May 16, 2019

Response by poster: I'm growing 3 plants from the seeds I got and gave the rest to friends to grow. The plants have just barely sprouted so it'll be some time before I have peppers to eat. Still on the lookout for peppers I can eat now though.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 6:28 AM on May 17, 2019 [1 favorite]