Genus

Capsicum

The Capsicum genus in the Plotwright catalog - 2 species: Garden pepper, Habanero pepper. Open any for hardiness, native range, wildlife value, and growing guidance.
Filters
Garden pepper (Capsicum annuum) growing as a single staked plant in a mulched vegetable bed, showing the compact upright herbaceous habit with broad ovate leaves and developing green fruits.
Capsicum annuum
Garden pepper
A warm-season vegetable producing sweet bell, hot cayenne, jalapeño, paprika, and ornamental cultivars all from a single species - capsaicin content varies dramatically across cultivars while the plant itself remains uniform in habit (compact mounded warm-season annual). NC State documents capsaicin-immune birds as opportunistic fruit consumers; self-pollinating with optional cross-pollination from bees increases fruit set.
Vegetable
Full sun
Moderate water
Zones Annual; NC State profile lists 4a-11b context
Edible
Container
Habanero pepper (Capsicum chinense) grown as a whole bushy potted plant, showing the upright habit with green foliage and ripening orange lantern-shaped fruits throughout the canopy.
Capsicum chinense
Habanero pepper
A tropical, frost-tender pepper grown for some of the hottest fruits in the kitchen garden - this single species includes the habanero, Scotch bonnet, ghost (bhut jolokia), and Carolina Reaper. Native to the Americas (the Amazon basin and the Caribbean), Capsicum chinense is a true perennial only in frost-free zones 10-11; across nearly all of North America it is grown as a heat-loving warm-season annual. It needs a long, hot season to ripen its lantern-shaped fruits, and the capsaicin in those fruits is potent enough to burn skin and eyes, so it rewards a sunny spot and careful handling.
Vegetable
Full sun
Moderate water
Zones 10a-11b
Climate: narrow
Edible
Container