Baccatum Pepper Tree

Capsicum baccatum

“More cold-hardy than you think. Perennial in Zone 8. Tree-sized by year three.”

Baccatum is the most cold-tolerant of the cultivated pepper species — more temperate than annuum, more forgiving than chinense. In Zone 8 and warmer it overwinters in the ground, building a woody trunk over multiple seasons and reaching 6–8 feet. In colder zones, bring it inside for winter — baccatums tolerate indoor conditions far better than other peppers and bounce back hard each spring. Some growers in Zone 6 have kept the same plant for a decade this way. If you've been treating peppers as annuals, you've been leaving years of production on the table. Our partners at Austin Peppers know every variety worth growing.