Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners is a citizen science program





''Buena Mulata' Pepper' Peppers
 
Sub-Category: Hot
Sub-Category 2:
Description: Beautiful, spicy, and flavorful cayenne pepper that starts purple and then passes through salmon and orange on the way to turning a gorgeous red. The tall striking plants are laden with 4-5 inch fruits, which are tasty at all stages, but we prefer the added sweetness of the fully red fruit. Buena Mulata Pepper was the name on the baby food jar next to the name "Pippin" in the bottom of the deep freezer in William Woys Weaver's grandmother's basement, a decade after his plant-loving grandfather's untimely death. If you've heard of the Fish Pepper, this story probably sounds familiar. There were many other seeds besides those of the beautiful, delicious, and now widely-available Fish Pepper in that frozen trove, and many that passed through Horace Pippin's hands, including this Buena Mulata. Horace Pippin is now a well-known artist who beautifully depicted everyday life, landscapes, religion, WWI, and themes of the injustices of slavery and segregation. In the 1940s, he traded seeds from his friends in the Black catering communities of Philly and Baltimore in exchange for bee sting therapy for WWI arm injury from William Woys Weaver's grandfather H. Ralph Weaver's hives. Seeds stay viable longer in the freezer; our heirlooms only survive if someone removes them from storage and places them in soil; and stories only live when they are told.
Days To Maturity: 75-80
Seed Sources: True Love Seeds - updated in 2025

 
Rating Summary
 
Overall: (4.4 Stars)Overall
Taste: (4.0 Stars)Taste
Yield: (4.5 Stars)Yield
Ease/Reliability: (4.4 Stars)Ease/Reliability
 
Reviews
 
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Number of Reviews: 16

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Reviewed on 12/18/2025 by Ashley Helmholdt - An intermediate gardener

Overall Overall
Taste Taste
Yield Yield
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Tompkins, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days
Soil Texture: Not Sure
Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

This review submitted on behalf of CCE Cortland
 

Reviewed on 12/04/2025 by Heatherny - An intermediate gardener

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Dutchess, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

only had a few peppers on the plants. the peppers were extremely hot
 

Reviewed on 12/04/2025 by Otsego Master Gardeners1 - An intermediate gardener

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Otsego, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 123 - 143 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: Less than 6 hours per day

Beautiful purple color. Very hot. Grew best in container
 

Reviewed on 12/03/2025 by Cutler Botanic Garden - An experienced gardener

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Broome, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40')
Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day

Low yield
 

Reviewed on 12/02/2025 by Albany County MGs - An experienced gardener

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Albany, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 123 - 143 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet
Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day

Very attractive plant, colorful peppers at different stages. Good yield.
 

Reviewed on 12/02/2025 by MGWayne - An experienced gardener

Overall Overall
Taste
Yield Yield
Ease/Reliability Ease

Wayne, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day

These peppers were very prolific and gorgeous. We neither tasted nor cooked them.
 

Reviewed on 11/26/2025 by Orleans County MGs - An intermediate gardener

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Orleans, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

This was an excellent pepper variety! Easy to grow, nice and compact, beautiful prolific peppers that start purple and change to a deep red. Delicious flavor - especially when red and ripe.
 

Reviewed on 10/30/2025 by CCE Nassau County NY - An experienced gardener

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Nassau, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 183 - 203 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day

A very attractive and productive cayenne pepper that turns from purple to red. Though it can be eaten at the purple stage, the flavor is much better once it turns red. No issues with disease or insects. Great pepper for drying. Very hot.
 

Reviewed on 10/29/2025 by CCE Orange County - An intermediate gardener

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Orange, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40')
Sun Exposure: More than 8 hours per day

Highly productive. Made a great hot sauce. A favorite among hot pepper lovers!
 

Reviewed on 10/10/2025 by Cafolla - A novice gardener

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Monroe, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days
Soil Texture: Not Sure
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

7/28 - one red - hot!! nice taste. good degree of hot. pretty looking
 

Reviewed on 10/10/2025 by Gasieiwcz - An experienced gardener

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Wyoming, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 123 - 143 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

Plants did better in poor soil conditions. Large plant with low yields in better soils. Well acclimated to grow in poor soil and still obtain high yields. small pepper great for drying and makes good cayenne style hot sauce
 

Reviewed on 09/29/2025 by Tompkins MGs - An experienced gardener

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Tompkins, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Clay
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

Strong plants started producing very pretty peppers early and produced a lot. The purple peppers were beautiful, but hotter than some testers liked. The change in color to red made them even more attractive.
 

Reviewed on 09/24/2025 by CCE Rockland - An experienced gardener

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Rockland, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 163 - 183 days
Soil Texture: Clay
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

This was an easy plant to grow with a good yield of peppers. Really attractive when the peppers are purple. Tried them at all colors and found them to be flavorful with a hot but not excessively hot taste.
 

Reviewed on 09/19/2025 by Jessica Luse - An experienced gardener

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Saratoga, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Not Sure
Garden Size: Medium - 400 square feet to 1,600 square feet
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

very spicy peppers, really great additions to stir-fry, soups, hot sauces, tomato sauces, etc.
 

Reviewed on 08/25/2025 by Schenectady CCE - An experienced gardener

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Taste Taste
Yield Yield
Ease/Reliability Ease

Schenectady, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Loam
Garden Size: Large - More than 1,600 square feet (40' x 40')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

Great yield and good heat as described. Be sure to wait until they turn from purple to red for maximum flavor.
 

Reviewed on 08/25/2025 by CCE Chemung JS - An experienced gardener

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Taste Taste
Yield Yield
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Chemung, New York, United States
Frost Free Season: 143 - 163 days
Soil Texture: Not Sure
Garden Size: Small - Less than 400 square feet (20' x 20')
Sun Exposure: 6 to 8 hours per day

Colorful and very hot.
 




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