A Day Out at Edible Ornamentals @ Cherwood Nursery

[Ad- gifted experience] Dann and I are both big fans of food and do enjoy a good amount of spice. We often try spicy food, use hot sauces, and enjoy chili oils! With that in mind, neither of us had much knowledge on spicy chilis, peppers, and the lot. So we both were really excited to attend Edible Ornamentals‘ chili tasting for two, where we were able to tour Cherwood Nursery, taste a bunch of peppers, and learn a lot!

When we first arrived at Edible Ornamentals, we found that there were a bunch of people who came to this chili tasting course! We were brought into a small building to hear a presentation on how Cherwood Nursery came to be and how they ended up growing chilis. This is actually a family business, that grew out of custom plant orders. These chilis were grown for a specific client who no longer needed them, so instead of these plants going to waste, they became a chili farm that the family grew and harvested.

From there, Edible Ornamentals were able to grow more chilis, creating specific strains, so that clients could use them for their hot sauces and other products. This is a really interesting concept! Along with talking about growing chilis in bulk at farms, there was also a lot of conversation around growing chilis at home, forcing the chilis into being more spicy by restricting the water you give them, and the best sort of way to start your plants. A lot of the people who had attended this class actually were growing chilis at home, and had come for Edible Ornamentals advise on their own chilis – where as me and Dann just wanted to try spicy things and see some new plants, so we felt a little out of the loop on growing conversations!

After the presentation, we then got to tour the chili farms along with one of the growers. There are a ton of different chilis; some that are more citrus tasting, some that are better for cooking, and some that are better to eat raw. Seeing these different buildings of plants were really interesting, and we were able to touch and taste some of the peppers, which is always nice! They passed around freshly picked peppers to smell and see with our own eyes. After this tour, we went inside the cafe building, where you can order a variety of spicy and non-spicy food.

But we were here for the spice! Edible Ornamentals had set out a bunch of products to try, which are all made with their peppers grown on their farm. This was done from the most mild to the most spicy, with crackers to dip and milk nearby if anyone got too over their head. After we were all able to try these sauces, jams, and oils, we then got the option to try straight up chilis – again starting with the most mild and going to the most extreme in heat. You could tap out at any point, but Dann did try to eat them all, just to experience it. I stopped when the heat was uncomfortable, as I am not one to burn out my tongue.

Edible Ornamentals is a place full of different chilis and so much knowledge on chili growing and processing, that it’s a really interesting and unique date night. Especially for those that want to experience more spice or are looking to grow their own chili peppers at home. We had such a lovely time there, and ended up purchasing some of the jams and oils that we tried, which we have been using in our every-day cooking!

You can check out our other Days Out to see what else we’ve been up too!