The heat is on. Dragon's Breath pepper plants are one of the hottest of these fruits available. How hot is Dragon's Breath pepper? The heat has beaten the famously known Carolina Reaper and should be used with caution. The plant is easy to grow where long seasons are available or you can start them early indoors.
About Dragon's Breath Pepper Plants
There are chili eating contests that pit taste buds and pain thresholds against contestants. So far, the Dragon's Breath chili has not yet been introduced to any of these contests. Probably for good reason too. This pepper is so hot it beat the previous Guinness winner by nearly a million Scoville units.
Mike Smith (owner of Tom Smith's Plants) developed this cultivar, in conjunction with the University of Nottingham. According to the growers, eating one of these peppers can immediately close the airway, burn the mouth and throat, and possibly cause anaphylactic shock.
In short, it could cause death. Apparently, Dragon's Breath chili peppers were developed as a natural topical analgesic alternative for patients allergic to standard preparations. Some in the pepper world believe the whole thing is a hoax and question whether seeds available are actually of the variety.
How Hot is Dragon's Breath Pepper?
The extreme heat of this chili deems it unwise to consume the fruit. If the reports are true, one bite has the ability to kill the diner. Scoville heat units measure the spice of a pepper. The Scoville heat units for Dragon's Breath is 2.48 million.
To compare, pepper spray clocks in at 1.6 million heat units. That means Dragon's Breath peppers have the potential to cause severe burns and eating an entire pepper could even kill a person. Nonetheless, if you can source seeds, you can try growing this pepper plant. Just be careful how you use the fruit.
The red fruits are a bit malformed and tiny, but the plant is pretty enough to grow just for its looks, though maybe not in homes with young children around.
Growing Dragon's Breath Pepper
Provided you can source the seeds, Dragon's Breath grows like any other hot pepper. It needs well-draining soil, full sun, and average moisture.
Add bone meal to the soil prior to planting to provide calcium and other nutrients. If you aren't in a long growing season, start plants indoors at least six weeks before planting out.
When seedlings are 2 inches (5 cm.) tall, begin fertilizing with a half strength of diluted liquid plant food. Transplant when plants are 8 inches (20 cm.) tall. Harden off young plants before planting in ground.
The plants take approximately 90 days to fruit in temperatures of 70 to 90 degrees F. (20-32 C.).
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