Jalapeño Chilli

Capsicum annuum (nightshade)

Also known as: Jalapeño



A classic Mexican-heritage chilli grown for its thick-walled, blunt-tipped pods. Bright, grassy flavour when picked green, mellowing and sweetening as pods ripen to red. Reliable and heavy-cropping, equally at home in the ground or a large pot. Pick green for classic jalapeño flavour, or let mature to red and smoke for chipotle. Medium-hot heat of around 4,000–8,500 Scoville Heat Units.

Days to harvest 70-80 days
Fruit size Up to 8cm long, blunt-tipped
Sowing depth 5mm
Germination 7-21 days at 22-35°C
Spacing 50cm apart in rows 100cm apart
Aspect Full sun, well-drained soil
Frost tolerance Frost tender — grown as an annual in cool climates

Growing notes


Choose a full-sun spot sheltered from strong wind. Plants reach around 90cm tall and carry a heavy crop of fruit — staking or caging keeps branches from snapping once pods load up. Suits a large pot (30L+) as well as open ground.
Soil preparation: Work in aged compost before planting and keep soil evenly moist but never waterlogged — jalapeños sulk in wet feet. Aim for a pH between 6.0 and 6.8.
Support: Stake or cage at planting time, before the root ball is disturbed by driving in a stake later. Pick regularly once fruit sets — frequent picking pushes the plant to keep flowering.

Key features

  • Classic Mexican chilli
  • Medium-hot heat — 4,000–8,500 SHU
  • Great fresh, pickled, or smoked into chipotle
  • High-yielding and container-friendly
  • Open-pollinated heirloom type
  • Thick walls, easy to stuff or slice

Short season tips


Best started indoors on a heat mat — jalapeños need 22-35°C to germinate reliably. Sow 8-10 weeks before your last frost (or buy seedlings at this stage). Don't rush the transplant: wait until both soil and night temperatures have settled, ideally 16°C+ overnight, or plants will stall rather than grow. In cooler parts of NSW, keep young plants under cover until nights are reliably mild, and expect first harvest to run later than the 70-80 day estimate if the start was cold.

  • Spring
  • Summer

Perennial in frost-free areas; grown as an annual elsewhere

  • Basil • Marigold • Onions, garlic & chives • Carrots • Lettuce & spinach • Dill & nasturtium
  • Fennel • Brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, kale) • Other capsicum/chilli varieties if seed saving (cross-pollination) • Don't repeat in the same bed as tomato, eggplant, or potato each season — rotate to avoid shared soil-borne pests and disease


Named for Xalapa, capital of the Mexican state of Veracruz, where the variety has been cultivated for centuries. One of the most widely grown chillies in Mexico, traditionally smoke-dried to make chipotle. Now grown worldwide as the benchmark "medium heat" chilli.