Grow List

This section of the website is where you can find photos of individual chilli pepper varieties, along with information about each one. The lists below contain just some of the varieties I've grown since 2012, which was the year when I first started saving photos of the chilli plants. All new varieties that turn out to be true to type will be added to the page at or towards the end of each growing season.

I don't rate the pungency of the chilli varieties using Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Instead, I rate them as being heat-free, mild, medium, hot, very hot, extremely hot or super hot. Genetics are obviously the predominant factor that determines the heat level of any chilli variety, but even the pungency of chillies of the same variety can vary significantly between plants. Factors such as soil type, environment, nutrient deficiency and attack from predatory insects can all cause stress to the plants, resulting in the plants producing higher capsaicin levels. Pungency is also subjective, and what one person perceives as hot another could perceive as nuclear. In terms of Scoville Heat Units, I'd rank each of the seven categories as follows:

Heat-Free: 0 SHU
Mild: 50–5,000 SHU
Medium: 5,000–50,000 SHU
Hot: 50,000–100,000 SHU
Very Hot: 100,000–250,000 SHU
Extremely Hot: 250,000–600,000 SHU
Super Hot: 600,000+ SHU

I've placed the starting point for superhot varieties at 600,000 SHU. The reason for this is because some of the hotter Habaneros, such as Caribbean Red Habanero and Chocolate Habanero, have supposedly been measured at 577,000 SHU, according to some internet sources. Although this would put them a notch below superhot, I would never consider any of the Habaneros to be superhot varieties. I consider superhot varieties to be a distinct group of chillies with their own heat profile, which I'd describe as being much sharper and more aggressive than that of even the hottest Habanero. Therefore, I've drawn a line between the potential ending point for the hottest Habaneros and the average starting point for some of the tamer superhot varieties.

I don't claim to be the best chilli grower in the world, and nor do I claim that my plants are better than anyone else's. I don't live in a sunny part of the world where it's warm for most of the year. Most chilli varieties don't grow very well outside in the garden where I live because our weather is unpredictable at best. Capsicum pubescens varieties grow perfectly well outside in the garden from around mid-April to late October or early November, and so too do some wild species. However, most of my chilli plants are grown indoors in windows and in a small porch. Some may also be grown outside in a small walk-in plastic greenhouse. Considering where they are grown my plants do as well as can be expected, and for the most part I'm always very happy with the results. However, if I were to grow them in a good quality greenhouse, something which I don't have the privilege of owning, they'd always do much better. Chilli plants will always grow much better in a good quality greenhouse than they will indoors because in a greenhouse setting they get more humidity and better light levels.

Some chilli varieties have an alphanumerical label instead of a name (for example, CAP 1445). The following initialisms or abbreviations denote the gene bank from which those varieties originally came from. Additional information on such varieties can sometimes be found in the corresponding gene bank database, and links to all three gene banks are provided on the links page.

CGN - This is the classification system from the gene bank at the Centre for Genetic Resources, based in Wageningen, The Netherlands.
PI - This stands for plant introduction and is a classification system from the gene bank at the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in the USA. It is the US Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency and operates the Germplasm Resource Information Network (GRIN), which is based in Beltsville, Maryland.
CAP - This stands for Capsicum and is the classification system for Capsicums at the IPK Leibniz Institute, based in Gatersleben, Germany.

The information provided on the following pages is correct to the best of my knowledge. However, if you come across something that is incorrect or you have additional information that you'd like me to add then please feel free to get in touch and let me know.

Number of varieties: 86

Capsicum annuum

Capsicum annuum (ANN-you-um) is the most widely cultivated species in the world, and some well known pod types include: Serrano, Jalapeño, Cayenne, Bell, Wax, Poblano and Cherry. The piquancy of the chillies can range from 0 to about 100,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

Capsicum baccatum

Capsicum baccatum (bah-COT-tum) is the most widely grown species in South America, and some well known varieties include: Aji Lemon, Brazilian Star Fish, Aji Crystal, Aji Amarillo, Aji Omnicolour and Bishop's Crown. The piquancy of the chillies can range from 0 to about 75,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

Capsicum chinense

Capsicum chinense (chi-NEN-see) is the most widely grown species in the Caribbean, and the world's hottest chillies are all members of this species. Some well known types and varieties include: Aji Limo, Habanero, Scotch Bonnet, Fatalii, Dorset Naga, Carolina Reaper and Trinidad 7-Pot. The piquancy of the chillies can range from 0 to over 2,000,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

Capsicum frutescens

Capsicum frutescens (fru-TES-enz) is one of the lesser known species and contains few pod shapes, colours and sizes than C. annuum, C. baccatum and C. chinense. Some well known varieties include: Malagueta, Tabasco, Aji Guaguao, Siling Labuyo, Aji Criollo, Madre de Rios and Bradley's Bahamian. The piquancy of the chillies can range from 60,000 to about 150,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

Capsicum pubescens

Capsicum pubescens (pew-BES-enz) is a species found primarily in Central and South America, and unlike the other four domesticated Capsicum species it has no wild form. Peppers belonging to this species are known regionally by different names, such as Rocoto, Manzano, Manzana and Locoto. The piquancy of the peppers can range from 30,000 to about 100,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU).

Wild Varieties

All wild chilli varieties are listed here. Some may also be listed above if they belong to the C. annuum, C. baccatum, C. frutescens or C. chinense species.

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