Cayenne Lilac Chilli

Capsicum annuum (nightshade)

Also known as: Lilac Cayenne, Purple Cayenne

A striking ornamental twist on the classic cayenne, with lush purple-veined foliage and lavender-white flowers that make it as much a feature plant as a productive chilli. Slender, tapering pods follow the familiar cayenne shape but ripen through a dramatic sequence — green, to a deep, dusky purple, to a final fiery red — with a flavour slightly sweeter than the standard cayenne. Highly productive and just as useful for drying and grinding as any other cayenne, but with the added bonus of genuine visual interest in the garden or on the patio. Medium-hot heat of around 30,000–50,000 Scoville Heat Units.

Days to harvest 75–85 days
Fruit size 10–20cm, slender, tapering
Sowing depth 5mm
Germination 10–21 days at 24–29°C
Spacing 35–45cm apart
Aspect Full sun, well-drained soil
Frost tolerance Frost sensitive — needs reliably warm nights

Growing notes

Choose a full-sun spot with good airflow. As productive and easy-going as a standard cayenne, with the bonus of ornamental foliage and flowers worth showing off.

Soil preparation: Fertile, well-drained soil with plenty of compost worked in.

Support: Light staking recommended once the bush is carrying a full load of long pods.

Watering & feeding: Water consistently — avoid letting the plant dry out or sit waterlogged. Feed with a liquid fertiliser high in potassium once flowering begins.

Harvest: Pick once pods reach full length and colour up to encourage continued fruiting. Purple-stage pods have a more grassy, vegetal flavour; full red ripeness brings out the best sweetness and heat. Cut rather than pull to avoid damaging the plant.

Timing: Expect first harvest around 75–85 days after transplanting, with continued cropping through the warm months.

Key features

  • Open-pollinated heirloom, a purple-podded cayenne selection
  • Medium-hot heat — 30,000–50,000 Scoville Heat Units
  • Striking purple-veined foliage and lavender-white flowers
  • Pods ripen green, to purple, to red
  • Slightly sweeter flavour than standard cayenne
  • Excellent fresh, dried, or ground into powder

Short season tips

Best started indoors on heat mats — this variety needs 24–29°C soil to germinate reliably. Sow 8–10 weeks before the last frost or purchase as 6–8-week-old seedlings. Transplant into the garden only once soil temperature has reliably warmed to at least 15–16°C. Avoid disturbing roots when transplanting — chillies resent being moved and stall easily. A longer growing season pays off here, as continued heat and sun keeps both colour and pods coming.

  • Spring
  • Summer

Tender perennial — most often grown as an annual

  • Basil (particularly good for capsicums and chillies) Marigolds Onion Carrots
  • Other nightshades (tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes) Fennel

A colourful selection of the classic cayenne type, prized for generations by home gardeners for bringing genuine ornamental value to the vegetable patch without sacrificing the reliable heat and flavour cayenne is known for. Like all cayennes, it traces back to Capsicum annuum varieties long cultivated and traded from Central and South America.