- Heirloom
- Very hot
- 95 (estimated) days to maturity (from transplant)
- 100,000–350,000 SHU
- Red
Scotch Bonnet
Scotch Bonnet Red · Red Scotch Bonnet
Heirloom very hot pepper from Jamaica. Sellers describe hot, fruity heat with a smoky undertone. Ready in about 95 days from transplant.
Single source · Updated Oct 14, 2026 · Values marked like this (estimated) are estimates.
Buy seeds from $3.39At a glance
- Heat
- Very hot 100,000–350,000 SHU
- Pod
- Flattened globe 0–1 oz (8–15 g) (estimated)
Short, bonnet-shaped wrinkled pods about 38 mm long, shorter than a habanero, ripening green to red.
- Species
- Capsicum chinense
- Days to harvest
- 95 days (estimated) from transplant · Mid-late
- Plant height
- 2–3 ft (61–91 cm) Medium height
- Spacing
- 18 × 24 in (46 × 61 cm)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Position
- Handles open positions
- Growing sites
- Greenhouse · Open ground
- Container growing
- Not suited to pots
- Difficulty
- Challenging (estimated) 4/5
- Skin
-
- Red
- Green
Heat
Scoville heat units
Very hot
Scotch Bonnet Scoville heat units: 100,000–350,000 SHU
Habanero territory and above: Orange Habanero, Caribbean Red, and Bhut Jolokia an order of magnitude past them. Handle with gloves, taste before committing a whole pod to a dish.
Flavor
“Sellers describe hot, fruity heat with a smoky undertone.”
Growing calendar
95 (estimated) days from transplant Mid-late
Timing shown for temperate climates; sow indoors 6–8 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
- Sauce & paste
- Drying
- Hot climate
Origin
Scotch Bonnet is the Caribbean cousin of the habanero, a Capsicum chinense with short, bonnet-shaped pods. True Leaf Market describes it as native to Africa and naturalized through the Caribbean, and calls it a Jamaican variety; Pepper Joe's also gives Jamaica as its origin. This record follows the red strain, which ripens from green to red. Tomato Growers Supply calls it very similar to habanero but with fruit not quite as long. Heat figures differ by source and even within one page: True Leaf Market lists 100,000 to 350,000 Scoville heat units in its description and 100,000 to 300,000 in its heat level, and Pepper Joe's gives 100,000 to 350,000. Days to maturity differ too: 90 to 100 from transplant at True Leaf Market, 90 to 120 at Pepper Joe's, 120 at Tomato Growers Supply. Orange and yellow strains are sold under the same name.
Sources
Where to buy seeds
Prices rechecked daily- True Leaf MarketSeeds
500 Mg Packet
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$3.39Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Tomato Growers Supply CompanySeeds
Pack (30 seeds)
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$3.75Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Pepper Joe'sSeeds
10+ Seeds
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$4.25Checked Oct 16, 2026 - Pepper Joe'sLive plant
1 Seedling
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$9.49Checked Oct 16, 2026
Links may earn us a commission at no cost to you. Prices checked Oct 16, 2026.
Questions
How do you grow a Scotch Bonnet plant?
A Scotch Bonnet plant grows 2–3 ft (61–91 cm) tall. Space plants 18 in (46 cm) apart in rows 24 in (61 cm) apart. Start seed indoors 6–8 weeks before your last frost; it germinates in 7–10 days. It needs full sun.
How long does Scotch Bonnet take to mature?
Scotch Bonnet is ready in about 95 days from transplant.
How hot is Scotch Bonnet?
Scotch Bonnet sits in the very hot range, about 100,000–350,000 Scoville heat units. Figures vary between seed sellers, so treat them as a band rather than a measurement.
Can Scotch Bonnet be grown in a container?
Scotch Bonnet is better suited to open ground or a greenhouse bed than a container.
Is Scotch Bonnet resistant to disease?
No disease resistance is documented for Scotch Bonnet.
