Hot chillies to grow

Discover six steps to hotter chillies.

A chilli's heat is measured on the Scoville scale, a test created in 1912, in which the more water needed to dilute a chilli solution before a human taster can no longer detect the chilli determines the number of Scovilles. Today, testing is done by machines, but the measure is the same. A score of around 3,000 Scovilles is deemed hot, with record-breaking chillies topping the million mark.

The very hottest varieties are slow growing and need heat and humidity, so are best grown indoors.

Here are eight super-hot chillies to grow.

Chilli 'Bhut Jolokia'

Distinctive, wrinkled chillies, these are tricky to grow and germinate, but pre-soaking seeds in chilli plant food helps. Or grow early from plugs.

Heat: 1,001,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Hard

Chilli 'Chocolate Habanero'

Originally from Jamaica, these are one of the hottest of the habanero types and pack a serious punch. Ripens to brown.

Heat: 425,000 - 600,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Hard

Chilli 'Paper Lantern'

Tall, good-looking plants that are quicker to grow from seed than other habaneros, making them more productive croppers. Ripens to red.

Heat: 350,000 - 450,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Medium

Chilli 'Scotch Bonnet'

Short, bushy plants producing squat little fruit. 'Scotch Bonnet' are slow-growing so get ahead and grow from plugs. Various colours are available.

Heat: 200,000 - 350,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: hard

Chilli 'Habanero'

All 'Habanero' chillies like a humid environment so grow in a warm greenhouse, kitchen or even bathroom. Different colours are available.

Heat: 100,000 - 350,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Hard

Chilli 'Apache'

A reliable grower and cropper, producing dwarf, compact plants ideal for growing in pots. Quick to fruit, so can be sown from seed.

Heat: 70,000 - 80,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Easy

Chilli 'Pot Black'

Small plants with striking purple flowers and black fruits that turn to red as they ripen. Perfect for pots.

Heat: 45,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Easy

Chilli 'Numex Twilight'

Pretty plants that do well in pots and produce masses of rainbow-coloured fruit that turn from purple to yellow, then orange and red.

Heat: 30,000 - 50,000 Scovilles

Ease of growing: Easy