Plant Library

Group/Class:  Hot Habanero

Description:

A heat loving variety that is the fiery go to for hot pepper lovers; great for containers or gardens; produces small fruit that mature to bright red peppers; extremely hot and fruity perfect for hot sauces, pickling and drying

Edible Qualities

Scotch Bonnet Red Hot Pepper is an annual vegetable plant that is typically grown for its edible qualities, although it does have ornamental merits as well. It produces small green peppers (which are technically 'berries') which are typically harvested when mature. The fruit will often fade to red over time. The peppers have a fiery taste and a crisp texture.

The peppers are most often used in the following ways:

• Fresh Eating
• Cooking
• Drying
• Seasoning
• Sauces

Planting & Growing

Scotch Bonnet Red Hot Pepper will grow to be about 30 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 24 inches apart. Because of its vigorous growth habit, it may require staking or supplemental support. This vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop.

This plant can be integrated into a landscape or flower garden by creative gardeners, but is usually grown in a designated vegetable garden. It should only be grown in full sunlight. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America, and it is considered by many to be an heirloom variety.

Scotch Bonnet Red Hot Pepper is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.