How to Grow Naga Bengle Chillies from Seed
A British-selected naga, lab-tested at up to 923,000 Scoville units, with a distinctive bubblegum note behind the heat.
Sea Spring Seeds in West Dorset, the people behind the Dorset Naga, found Naga Bengle growing as a single odd plant in a commercial Bhut Jolokia crop and selected it from there. Unusually for this end of the heat scale, its figure is real: dried fruit sent to Warwick University for HPLC analysis tested between 732,000 and 923,000 Scoville units.
What growers actually talk about is the flavour. There is a distinct bubblegum note behind the heat, sweet and faintly artificial in the best way, and it is why people come back to this one instead of a Reaper.
Species
Capsicum chinense
Heat
732,000 to 923,000 SHU (lab tested)
Sow
January to February
Harvest
September to November
Best Grown
Greenhouse or polytunnel
Difficulty
Full growing method
Naga Bengle is grown like every other Capsicum chinense. Our species guide covers sowing temperatures, potting on, feeding, pollination, overwintering and problems step by step.
Read the Capsicum chinense guide →About this Variety
The fruit
Wrinkled pods about 6cm long, ripening green to orange to red.
The flavour
Sweet bubblegum notes behind serious heat.
Stake it
Plants run tall and top-heavy and will go over without a cane.
Growing note
Sow in January in a heated propagator. It sulks on indoor windowsills where the air is too dry.
Superhot handling
At nearly a million Scoville, gloves are not optional. Wear eye protection when processing, and keep fruit, seed and plants away from children and pets.
Sowing & Harvest Calendar
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🌱 Sow, heated | ||||||||||||
| 🪴 Final pots | ||||||||||||
| 🌶️ Harvest |
Variety Specifications
A British naga with bubblegum flavour
Sow in January, stake it well under glass, and pick lab-proven superhots through autumn.
Shop Naga Bengle Seeds →