Dorset Naga® (Capsicum chinense), with a heat level averaging over a million Scoville Heat Units (ranging from 800,0000 t0 1,600,000 SHU), belongs to the group of chillies collectively known as “Superhots”, which are the hottest chillies in the world. Its scorching heat is combined with a distinctive fruity aroma, making it a truly exceptional chilli.
Dorset Naga® was developed at Sea Spring Seeds by us, Michael and Joy Michaud. We started with ten plants of a Bangladeshi landrace chilli called naga morich; the original stock came from an Asian shop in Bournemouth. There was a lot of variability in the plants, and it took us around 10 years to develop a Distinctive, Uniform and Stable (DUS) population, that was adapted to growing well in British conditions. In 2005 we wanted to know how hot it was, so collected one ripe fruit from each plant in our Dorset Naga crop (about 240 plants), dried them down and sent them to the US for testing. At the time, the Guiness World Record for the hottest chilli was the Red Savina at 577,000 SHU; the Dorset Naga results came back at nearly 1,000,000 SHU – almost double! It was a surprise, we knew Dorset Naga was exceptionally hot, but had no idea it was that hot.
To be absolutely sure of the result we had it tested in another lab, which colloborated the results.
In March 2006 we told The Bridport News, our local newspaper about our new chilli. The story was printed on 31st March, and overnight the story went worldwide viral. The problem was that this was now the 1st April, and many people thought it was a hoax!
We submitted the variety to the EU Community Plant Variety Office (CVPO) in France, where it was subjected to three years of independent trials. In 2009 Dorset Naga was recognised as a new and distinct variety, and we were awarded Plant Variety Protection (or Plant Breeders’ Rights) for Dorset Naga®.
The Plant Breeders’ Rights (PBR) for Dorset Naga® means that seed of the variety cannot be produced commercially or sold without permission from us.
Buy your Dorset Naga® online:
Seed: click here
Plants: www.seaspringplants.co.uk
- Plug plants: orders accepted from October; plants sent out the following spring (end of April/May)
- Mature plants in 1 litre pots: from June to September (when stock available)
We also sell Dorset Naga® seeds and plants at all the shows we attend (click here to see which shows we are attending).
