This is one of our hottest green chiles and when it hits your tongue, pain signals rush to your brain. Then your brain releases endorphins that cause a mild euphoria, so you feel better and want more green chile! Pods are small at 5” long and are screaming hot. Plants grow to 30“ tall. Grown near Hatch, NM and sold as Lumbre X-Hot. Capsicum annuum (85 days) Heirloom – Open-Pollinated

Heat Level: X Hot Scoville: 10,000

In early spring, start seeds indoors 8 weeks prior to warm nightly temperatures. Place the seeds in sterile media and cover 1/4” deep. Provide 85°F bottom heat, bright light and keep moist at all times. Seeds will germinate in 7 – 21 days. Transplant seedlings into pots and grow until there are 6 true leaves on the plant. Plant them directly into rich soil, 30” apart or into large 5 gallon containers. Harvest chiles when they are green. If left on the plant a couple more weeks, the chiles will turn red at full maturity.

*Technically, to call any of these chiles “Hatch Chiles,” they must be grown in the Hatch region of New Mexico. But we still think they taste great when grown all over the world, plus fresh homegrown chile is always extra-delicious and it’s often hard to get New Mexican chile around the world! So this is way you can grow a little bit of New Mexico in your garden, no matter where you live.