Pumpkin Bonnet

Pumpkin Bonnet is a modern Capsicum chinense hybrid created by Kevin Bane in South Carolina from a Stuffing Scotch Bonnet and a large Cachucha, described as an Aji Dulce type, sent from Puerto Rico by Julio Lopez. In current specialist seed trade it appears both as Pumpkin Bonnet and Pumpkin Bonnet Red. Its identity centres on a very large bonnet-type stuffing chilli that keeps a distinct Scotch Bonnet flavour while carrying much thicker walls and a much larger, heavier fruit set than standard bonnet-shaped types.

The fruit is squat, deeply lobed, and pumpkin-like in shape, ripening red, with a broad flattened bonnet form that suits the name. Current descriptions call it gigantic, and growers specifically recommend thinning fruit if larger individual pods are wanted. The plant is described as low-growing but extremely productive, with pod loads heavy enough to break limbs under weight. It is used especially for stuffing and baking, and the breeder’s estimate places it at about 150,000 SHU, while the seeded core carries most of the burn.