Datil is the named Florida pepper on this hub. Everything below is from UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions (Datil Peppers), with Hot Peppers and Penn State used only where they name the same heat class.

What IFAS names

UF/IFAS Datil Peppers names the plant Capsicum chinense, an annual that grows 1½ to 5½ feet tall, with fruits ½ to 4 inches long. Fruits start green and turn orange when mature. Heat is given as 100,000 to 300,000 Scoville units, similar in range to habanero and Scotch bonnet. The page says datil enthusiasts set it apart by a sweet, fruity tang coupled with that heat. That is their wording, not a tasting note from this page.

The Hot Peppers page, on the same IFAS site, describes datil as long grown in Northeast Florida, with very hot, small blunt fruits that ripen to a bright yellow-orange, compared to habanero. We report both fruit-color sentences rather than blending them into one house description.

Where IFAS places it

Datil Peppers says the fruit is especially popular in the St. Augustine area, where it has been grown since the 1700s. The Hot Peppers page says datil peppers were popularized by St. Augustine's Minorcan community in the 1700s and are still associated with their culture. Those are IFAS sentences.

The same Datil Peppers page is the one that matters for a Central Florida garden: while common in Northeast Florida, datil can be grown throughout the state from seed or transplant.

Planting and care, as the page states it

IFAS calls datil a summer-garden option because it will continue to grow as temperatures heat up. It prefers 60% to 70% shade and well-drained soil. Raised beds or a pot are named as options. Plant after the last frost in spring in February or March. In three to five months, plants begin producing; harvest season on that page "normally runs from July through November." That is their public window, not a pick day here.

Hot peppers are called relatively drought-tolerant, with regular water to stay productive. Common pests named: aphids and pepper weevils (egg at the base of the fruit; larvae cause peppers to drop). Wear gloves when harvesting and handling. Place the plant away from walkways, patios, and areas easy for children and pets to reach. Hot peppers irritate skin and eyes.

Worked example. Datil is not a full-sun copy of cayenne. UF/IFAS Hot Peppers says hot peppers need full sun. UF/IFAS Datil Peppers says datil prefers 60 to 70% shade. If a Central Florida bed already follows the Hot Peppers sun rule for jalapeño or cayenne, do not drop a datil into that same full-sun hole on a guess. Follow the datil page. See the Central Florida guide for the two-rule comparison, and heat and sun for the statewide heat sentence.

Heat class next to habanero

Datil: 100,000 to 300,000 Scoville units (Datil Peppers). Habanero: 100,000 to 350,000 on Ask IFAS TR010, Ask IFAS HS732, and Penn State. The ranges overlap; they are not the same fruit. HS732 lists habanero as Capsicum chinense. The same species IFAS gives datil. Species overlap is not a license to swap care notes.

Sources

Updated 2026-08-31. Back to varieties.