CHAPTEK XI 
CAPSICUMS 
The capsicums or chilies used as a spice, either dried, 
pickled, or in the form of cayenne or red pepper, are the 
fruits of one or more species of the genus Capsicum, 
belonging to the order Solanaceae, and are originally 
natives of Central and South America, but now spread 
ail over the warmer parts of the world. A considerable 
number of species, about fifty, have been described 
and named, but only three or four are of importance 
as spices or condiments, and the separation of these 
into species is not easy, as they are very closely allied 
and the forms appear to hybridise readily. It is pos- 
sible that the three or four forms commonly recognised 
as separate species may be only cultivated forms of 
one original wild plant. 
The three important species are : (1) Capsicum 
minimum, Eoxb., bird pepper or bird's-eye pepper; (2) 
C. frutescens, L., chilies or capsicums; (3) C. grossum, 
wild bell pepper or bull-nose pepper ; and of these there 
are a considerable number of forms, differing in shape 
and colour, of the pods cultivated in gardens in Europe 
as well as in various parts of the tropics. 
1. Capsicum minimum, Eoxb. Bird pepper, bird's- 
eye pepper, bird’s -beak pepper, mad pepper, Guinea 
pepper. Syn. C. fastigiatum, Bl. 
A small, much -branched shrub, 2 or 3 ft. tall, 
branches spreading, dichotomous, slender, flexuous, four- 
angled, minutely puberulous. Leaves alternate, one 
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