- Heirloom
- Medium
- 70 days to maturity (from transplant)
- 5,000–30,000 SHU (estimated)
- Orange
Bulgarian Carrot
Shipkas
Heirloom medium pepper from Bulgaria. Sharp clean heat with a distinctly fruity note behind it, firm enough to slice raw into a salad. Ready in about 70 days from transplant.
Single source · Updated Sep 19, 2026 · Values marked like this (estimated) are estimates.
At a glance
- Heat
- Medium 5,000–30,000 SHU (estimated)
- Pod
- Elongated 0–1 oz (10–20 g) (estimated)
Smooth carrot-shaped pods about 90 mm, held upright and bright orange when ripe, thin-walled.
- Species
- Capsicum annuum
- Days to harvest
- 70 days from transplant · Midseason
- Plant height
- 1½–2 ft (46–61 cm) Compact
- Spacing
- 18 × 24 in (46 × 61 cm)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Position
- Handles open positions
- Growing sites
- Greenhouse · Open ground · Container
- Container growing
- Balcony friendly min. 3 gal (15 L) pot (estimated)
- Difficulty
- Easy-moderate (estimated) 2/5
- Skin
-
- Orange
Heat
Scoville heat units
Medium
Bulgarian Carrot Scoville heat units: 5,000–30,000 SHU (estimated)
Noticeable heat. Mucho Nacho, the jumbo jalapeño, sits at the bottom of this band and Hungarian Yellow Wax near the middle. Hot enough to lead a salsa, mild enough to eat whole.
Flavor
“Sharp clean heat with a distinctly fruity note behind it, firm enough to slice raw into a salad.”
Growing calendar
70 days from transplant Midseason
Timing shown for temperate climates; sow indoors 7–9 weeks before your last frost date. Look up your last frost date by ZIP code →
Disease resistance
No documented disease resistances — protect this variety with good airflow and crop rotation.
Uses & tags
- Fresh & salads
- Canning
- Drying
- Sauce & paste
- Heirloom classic
- Novelty color
- Container star
- Short season
Origin
Bulgarian Carrot is named for exactly what it looks like: a smooth, bright orange, carrot-shaped pod about 90 mm long, held upright on a compact plant. It reached Western seed catalogues after 1989 through seed-saver networks, which is why it carries the alternative name Shipkas. The heat figures published by sellers vary widely — True Leaf Market gives 5,000 to 30,000 Scoville heat units, Sandia Seed a single figure of 12,000 — and True Leaf Market files it under medium heat, so treat it as middling rather than predictable. The flavour underneath is unusually fruity for a pepper this sharp.
Sources
Where to buy seeds
Prices rechecked daily- True Leaf MarketSeeds
250 Mg Packet
Check availability
$2.99Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Tomato Growers Supply CompanySeeds
Pack (30 seeds)
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$3.15Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Pepper Joe'sSeeds
10+ Seeds
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$3.25Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Sandia Seed CompanySeeds
10 seeds
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$3.99Checked Oct 16, 2026
Links may earn us a commission at no cost to you. Prices checked Oct 16, 2026.
All photos
Questions
How do you grow a Bulgarian Carrot plant?
A Bulgarian Carrot plant grows 1½–2 ft (46–61 cm) tall. Space plants 18 in (46 cm) apart in rows 24 in (61 cm) apart. Start seed indoors 7–9 weeks before your last frost; it germinates in 7–21 days. It needs full sun.
How long does Bulgarian Carrot take to mature?
Bulgarian Carrot is ready in about 70 days from transplant.
How hot is Bulgarian Carrot?
Bulgarian Carrot sits in the medium range, about 5,000–30,000 Scoville heat units. Figures vary between seed sellers, so treat them as a band rather than a measurement.
Can Bulgarian Carrot be grown in a container?
Yes — Bulgarian Carrot grows well in a container of at least 15 L (3 gal).
Is Bulgarian Carrot resistant to disease?
No disease resistance is documented for Bulgarian Carrot.
