Little bit of info...
The original plant that my grandmother, then all her kids, then my dad, then me and then all of those that me and my dad have given seed and plants too, was growing on my Grandmother's Brother's Farm in Anthony, NM. As a kid I remember going to both of her Bro's farms in the summer to help weed the fields. Old fashioned way.....walk the furrow with a SHARP garden hoe and weed em. (Many a rattlesnake meet up with the sharp garden hoe) I remember the plant being more like a VERY large bush almost a tree with a very thick 4-5 inch trunk. That thing was an old Tepin. Course there were plants growing all over the place, it the ditches, next to the house, in and amongst the salt cedars and even out in the field mixed in with the cotton or chile or onion, whatever they wre growing.
Over the years, my grandmother and her sisters took seeds or shoots and planted them in their yards here in El Paso and I can't think of any family member that doesn't have on in their yard. Even my neighbors all have one courtesy of the birds that feast on the pods and then "deposit" a seed packet in their yards. That's a big reason why these plants are found against rock wall, fences, houses, and under trees. That's where the bird was perched when it dropped the seed. I have two plants in the backyard that were planted by a bird and they are up against our rockwall.
As kids, we got a big kick out of getting the new nieces and nephews that were coming up to eat a berry. Us older ones, would take a berry, pop in in our mouths and pretend to chew it. The younger, gullible cousins would copy us and actually BITE into it.............BAWAAAAAAAHHHHHHAAA! We would laugh our arses off. By this time all our folks considered it a right of passage and we didn't get any heat for tricking em.
I think this will be the year my son or daughter will be tempted. I'm not going to trick them, but I have so many plants, it's just a matter of time that temptation gets the better of them.
Tepins are very versatile. One mature tepin plant will produce more peppers than you will know what to do with. I don't mind sharing with the birds. I mostly pick and dry the pods, then grind them into powder and store in the fridge. From there, I use the powder in salsa (my mom in the Queen of Tepin salsa and NO, she will not share her recipe, not even with me!
). You can also use the powder as a seasoning like salt and pepper on meats, fish, or soups, stews, and CHILI! I also like a crushed green pod or two in a red beer, bloody mary, or even just in a REALLY cold beer. The icy cold and heat are intense.
You can also pick them while they are green and toss them in a bottle of vinegar and have em with your meals. I like to take green ones and toss em in soy sauce. I pop each pod open first so the soy can get inside. I prefer garlic infused Red Wine Vinegar to the plain. Same thing pop the pod or poke a hole in it with a toothpick so the vinegar can get in.
Once the pods are out, you can actually pick them while they are green and sun dry them in a window and they will turn red as they dry. You don't need to wait for them to turn red on the plant.
My house faces East so I think that's a big reason why my maters and peppers do better in the front yard. They get the nice mild morning and early noon sun. The plants in the back get the later hot afternoon sun, but not really all of it, as they are shaded by some trees. Tepins are easy to grow. Their early and wild roots and nature makes them a very hearty plant. Just give em some space to spread out and they will take off. My plants are still going by October, even, into November. They start off slow, then take off mid summer to late summer. When they begin to dry out, I simply cut them down to about 3-4 inches from the ground and leave alone all winter. They have always come back in the spring. They can also be used as a hedge since they grow so big and so fast and since they come back each year.
There are ditches and canals in NM where people go to pick the pods. The ditches are lined with some huge old plants. Lots of history and tradition in those little pods. I know that they do best in the Southwest, from Texas, AZ, NM, and into CA and of course Mexico. I have heard they don't do as well further up where the winters are hard and will kill it off if it's in the ground. A qt. baggie half ways full of Tepin powder will last a long time and is worth it's weight in gold. It takes A LOT of pods to get that much powder.
Bob