We’ve gone viral! (Okay, mildly.) Our recent video featuring Danise Coon demonstrating cross-pollination of chile has reached 1.3 million views in just six weeks!
The short video details the step-by-step process of crossing pepper varieties to create a hybrid. Researchers use this technique as part of their work to breed disease-resistant chile peppers (as well as to breed for other traits). As part of a larger USDA-NIFA funded project, “Agricultural Innovators,” Danise Coon of the NMSU Chile Pepper Institute hosted the IMRE team for a demo of this process, for a larger outreach product about cross-pollinating plants to create hybrids. We took the opportunity to document the steps on video and didn’t overthink it. Little did we expect that this would become our best performing reel or YouTube short to date!
This video fits with Extension’s goal to share knowledge from research science, in this case plant science, to help New Mexicans, including agricultural producers, home gardeners, and youth. Videos like these help illustrate the daily activities that make agricultural science interesting and appealing, encouraging student interest in these and related fields. The video was shared on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube Shorts and TikTok.
As well as its success on YouTube Shorts, the video was shared widely across social media. It became the fifth most-viewed video of all time on NM Extension Instagram, gathering likes from the state Department of Agriculture, FFA programs, farmers, seed companies, and more. We’ve noticed that whenever we include chile in our content, we generate enthusiasm, both from within New Mexico and beyond!
“How to hybridize chile” was originally developed as part of the project, “Innovators from Marginalized Communities: Interactive Labs Which Help Students See Themselves in Agricultural Careers,” supported by the Hispanic-Serving Institutions Education Grants Program, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 2021-77040-34879.
Written by Amy Smith Muise and Jeffrey Buras