Pepper Varieties

Pepper Varieties

I have compiled a list of pepper varieties I have grown or have seeds but have yet to plant. I split the varieties into two charts: hot and sweet peppers. I will add to these charts as I try new varieties and will also try to add the most common varieties whether I have grown them or not. In general, I do not grow the super-hot varieties, although that may change in the future.

In the chart, OP means open-pollinated or seeds that can be saved and will grow true (assuming no cross-pollination). F1 refers to hybrid seeds, which are crosses from two different varieties. These seeds are generally not saved because they are not likely to grow like the parent varieties, even if cross-pollination does not occur. As you can see from the chart I highly prefer open-pollinated varieties as I like to save seed (although I get a lot of cross-pollination because I do not separate my plants).

Unless otherwise noted, most varieties are Capsicum annuum, the most common pepper species. Please check out my blog post on the commonly cultivated pepper species for more information on each species.

Days to maturity are estimates and may vary depending on where the plants are grown and the weather during that growing season. Days to maturity are the number of days after transplant, add another 8-12 weeks (or more for super hots) if starting from seed.

Scoville numbers are in Scoville heat units (SHU) and can vary quite a bit from plant to plant or even from different peppers on the same plant. Environmental conditions such as temperature, water, soil, humidity, sun exposure, and pests can all alter the heat level. The stage of ripening can also change the heat level.

Peppers that have the NuMex designation are those that have been created or improved upon by New Mexico State University Chile Pepper Institute.

TMV is tobacco mosaic virus a plant virus that also infects peppers and tomatoes. AAS is an All-America Selections winner. AAS is a non-profit organization that tests how well plants grow.

I compiled these lists from various seed companies and other resources listed at the end of this post.

Hot Pepper Varieties

Variety	OP or F1	Days to Maturity	Scoville (SHU)	Notes
Aji Amarillo	OP	90-100	30-50K	C. baccatum
Aji Charapita	OP	90-120	30-50K	Tiny, yellow pepper from Peru; considered one of the most expensive peppers but the actual cost is closer to $10/oz; often dried and powdered; C. chinense
Alma Paprika	OP	70-80	2000-10K	Hungarian pepper; often dried for paprika
Anaheim	OP	80-90	500-4000
Beaver Dam	OP	80-90	500-1000	Brought from Hungary to Beaver Dam, WI
Big Jim, NuMex	OP	70-80	2500-4000	Large peppers
Biquinho Red	OP	75-90	500-1000	Brazilian pepper served pickled; aka Sweety Drop or Little Beak; seedy; C. chinense
Biquinho Yellow	OP	75-90	500-1000	See above
Black Hungarian	OP	75	2500-10K	Purple flowers; dark-colored fruit that turns red when ripe
Boldog Hungarian Spice Paprika	OP	71	0-100	Sometimes classified as a sweet pepper
Brazilian Starfish	OP	90-100	5000-30K	Large plant, long to mature, C. baccatum
Buena Mulata	OP	70-80	30K-50K	Cayenne-type but turns from purple to red; also ornamental
Bulgarian Carrot	OP	68-80	20K-30K
Carrot Bomb	OP	74	5000-30K	I found these to be very mild but heat may vary
Cayenne, Long Slim	OP	75	30K-50K	AKA Long Red Slim, Long Thin, or Long Red Narrow Cayenne
Cayenne, Orange	OP	80-90	30K-50K
Chile De Arbol	OP	70-80	15K-30K	Usually dried
Chiltepin Wild Chile	OP	90	50K-100K	Native to southwest US; often dried
Chinese Five Color	OP	80-90	5000-50K	Edible but better as an ornamental
Czech Black	OP	65	2000-5000	Black when immature, turns dark red when ripe
Fish	OP	80-90	5000-30K	Great in fish stew, also an ornamental plant
Fresno	OP	75-90	2500-10K
Guajillo	OP	75	2000-5000	Popular Mexican chili used in mole
Hatch	OP	75	1000-8000	Often roasted, used for enchilada sauce
Hot Lemon	OP	80	30K-50K	Burpee selection from Ecuador; looks similar to Lemon Drop Aji
Hungarian Hot Wax	OP	70-80	5000-10K
Jalapeno, Brown	OP	70-80	200-8000	Turns brown when mature; smoky flavor
Jalapeno, Early	OP	60-70	2500-8000	Good for cooler climates
Jalapeno, Lemon Spice	OP	60-70	2500-25K	A NuMex pepper
Jalapeno, Orange Spice	OP	70-80	2500-80K	A NuMex pepper
Jalapeno, Pumpkin Spice	OP	65	2500-22K	A NuMex pepper
Jalapeno, Tam	OP	90-100	1000-1500	I (and others) found some of these to be much hotter than 1500 SHU
Jalapeno, Zapotec	OP	70	5K-10K	Smoky, hotter than a regular jalapeno
Jigsaw	OP	90	2500-8000	Purple leaves, edible ornamental; not the super-hot jigsaw pepper, although they share a name
Jaluv An Attitude	OP	75	2500-8000	Early, jalapeno-type; produced ripe fruit earlier than my Early Jalapeno
Kalugeritsa	OP	85	2500-8000	Good jalapeno poppers; prone to edema; one of my favorites
Korean Dark Green	OP	80	1500-8000	Good for kimchi
Large Red Cherry	OP	80	3000-5000	Great pickled
Lemon Drop Aji	OP	100-110	15K-30K	Prolific; large plant; slow to ripen; from Peru; C. baccatum
Leutschauer Paprika	OP	80-100	1-500	Great for drying, smoking, and powdering into paprika
Mulato Isleno	OP	80-95	2500-3000	Similar to the Ancho Poblano pepper but different flavor and ripens to brown; aka Mulato Island pepper; usually dried and used as a powder or in a mole sauce
Nepalese Bell	OP	100	?	C. baccatum; aka Nepali; very litte information on these peppers
Numex Joe E. Parker	OP	70-85	500-4000	Anaheim-type pepper used for stuffing, roasting, or grilling
Pasilla Bajio	OP	70-80	250-4000	Smoky, used in mole and other Mexican dishes; ripens to brown
Pepperoncini	OP	70-80	100-500	Prolific; often pickled
Pepperoncini, Orange	OP	77	100-500	Burpee orange version of the pepperoncini
Poblano, Ancho	OP	75	1000-1500	Called poblano when fresh, ancho when dried; used in chile rellenos or dried and used as a powder
Rezha Macedonian	OP	80-90	1000-8000	Unique lines form on skin; often dried
Santa Fe Grande	OP	75	7000
Serrano, Tampiqueno	OP	70-80	8000-22K
Shishito	OP	60	50-200	Best blistered and sprinkled with salt; one out of 10 or 20 will be much hotter
Sinahuisa	OP	80+	15K-30K	Similar to a small serrano; from Sonora, Mexicao
Tobago Seasoning	OP	100	500	Looks and tastes like a habanero but much milder; aka Trinidad Seasoning pepper; traditionally used in jerk seasoning
Tobasco	OP	80	30K-70K	C. frutescens
Topik Hybrid Cherry	F1	100	2500	Good stuffed or pickled; resistant to Tobacco Mosaic Virus
Tunisian Baklouti	OP	80	1000-5000	Good for North African dishes such as couscous and Harissa
Zou-Pi	OP	?	5000-10K	AKA Shar-pei pepper due to its wrinkled shape

 

Sweet Pepper Varieties

Variety	OP or F1	Days to Maturity	Scoville (SHU)	Notes
Ace	F1	70	0	Early red bell pepper that does well in cooler climates
Aconcagua	OP	70-80	0	Large peppers up to 12 long
Ajvarski	OP	80	0	Traditionally used to make Ajvar sauce
Apple	OP	70-80	0-1000+	aka Apple Hungarian
Banana, Sweet	OP	90+	0-500	aka Hungarian Sweet Wax
Big Red Bell	OP	65	0
California Wonder	OP	70-80	0	Classic bell pepper; resistant to TMV
California Wonder, Golden	OP	60-70	0	aka Golden Cal Wonder
Cardinal	F1	75	0	Ripen from green to purple to red; resistant to TMV
Carmen	F1	80	0	A red Corno di Toro type; AAS winner
Chervena Chushka	OP	85	0	Originated in Bulgaria; traditionally used for roasting
Chocolate Beauty	OP	60-70	0	Very tasty when fully brown/ripe
Coral Bell	OP	75	0	Orange bell pepper
Corbaci	OP	70-80	1000	From Turkey; very prolific; often pickled, eaten fresh, roasted, or dried and powdered
Corno di Toro	OP	80-90	0-500	Italian Horn of the Bull pepper, great flavor, one of my favorites
Corno di Toro, Yellow	OP	70-80	0-500	Similar to the original red Corno di Toro
Cubanelle	OP	60-70	0-1000	aka Italian Frying pepper; commonly used in sofrito
Emerald Giant	OP	60-70	0	Large bell pepper
Etiuda Orange Bell	OP		0
Feher Ozon Paprika	OP	70-80	0-1000	Usually dried for paprika powder
Gilboa Orange	F1	66	0	Orange California Wonder-type bell pepper, bred in Israel but does well in northern climates
Hungary Round Pimento	OP	75	0-500	aka Round of Hungary
Jimmy Nardello Italian	OP	80-90	0	Italian heirloom; Ark of Taste pepper; one of my favorites, especially for frying
Jupiter	OP	65-75	0	Large red bell pepper
Keystone Giant Bell	OP	80	0	Large red bell pepper
King of the North	OP	60-70	0	Does better in cooler climates than many other peppers
Klari Baby Cheese	OP	65	0	Originated in Hungary; aka Golden Delicious Apple Pepper; typically pickled whole
Lesya	OP	75	0	Originated in Ukraine; may be the sweetest pepper; small, heart-shaped fruit
Lipstick	OP	70	0	Pimento-type
Lunch Box Orange	OP	80	0	Mini snacking pepper
Lunch Box Red	OP	75	0	Mini snacking pepper; smaller than the orange or yellow
Lunch Box Yellow	OP	83	0	Mini snacking pepper
Marconi, Giant	OP	70-80	0	AAS winner in 2001; resistant to TMV and Potato Y virus; often grilled or roasted
Melrose	OP	75	0	Italian frying pepper
Murasaki Purple	OP	75	0	Black-purple fruit with purple foliage; originated in Japan
Odessa Market	OP	87	0	Originated in Ukraine; often eaten raw or roasted, saut ed, or grilled
Orange Bell	OP	75	0
Ozark Giant	OP	75	0	Red bell pepper
Paradicsom Alaku Saraga Szentes	OP	75-80	0	Originated in Hungary; small, yellow, flat, ribbed; aka pumpkin pepper
Pimento L	OP	95	0-100	Heart-shaped fruits
Pimento Sheepnose	OP	70-80	0	Originated in Ohio
Pippin's Golden Honey	OP	80	0	Edible and ornamental; Ripens from green to purple to yellow and finally orange
Purple Beauty	OP	70-79	0	Turn from green to purple to red when fully ripe; I did not like the flavor when purple, a very unripe green pepper taste
Sunbright	OP	70+	0	Bright yellow bell pepper
Takii's New Ace	F1	60	0	Red bell pepper; good northern climate variety
Txorixero	OP	75	0	A frying pepper from the Basque people; pronounced cho-dee-share-dow ; often dried or used for paprika; aka Gernika
Violet Sparkle	OP	75	0	Purple ripens to red
Yellow Monster	OP	60-70	0	Yellow bell pepper that can get very large
Yolo Wonder Bell	OP	60-70	0	Improved California Wonder; more resistant to TMV; designed for New Mexico s hot, dry climate

 

 

References and Resources

1. Annie's Heirloom Seeds. Peppers. https://www.anniesheirloomseeds.com/categories/Peppers/
2. Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. Pepper Seeds. https://www.rareseeds.com/store/plants-seeds/vegetable-seeds/pepper-seeds
3. Fedco Seeds. Peppers. https://fedcoseeds.com/seeds/peppers
4. Johnny’s Selected Seeds. Peppers. https://www.johnnyseeds.com/vegetables/peppers/
5. MIgardener. Peppers. https://migardener.com/collections/peppers
6. New Mexico State University Chile Pepper Institute. NMSU Cultivars. https://cpi.nmsu.edu/chile-info/nmsu-cultivars.html
7. Pepper Joe’s. https://pepperjoe.com/
8. Seed Savers Exchange. Pepper. https://shop.seedsavers.org/vegetables/pepper
9. Victory Gardeners. Peppers. https://victorygardeners.com/