A Welsh fruit farmer tried to create a new visually appealing variety of chili peppers with the aim of presenting it at the famous annual Chelsea Flower Show and possibly winning the Plant of the Year title. It turned out, however, that instead of a pretty plant, he grew the sharpest chili pepper in the world.
Welshman Mike Smith of Denbighshire was delighted to hear that he had created an unusually hot chili variety. He was surprised when scientists informed him that his pepper, called Dragon’s Breath, was sharper than the American record holder.
The chili cultivar was intended by Smith to be just a pretty plant, not a searing beast. Meanwhile, it turned out that its sharpness reaches 2,48 million units on the Scoville scale, which means that it is ahead of the hottest chili pepper to date, the American variety called Carolina Reaper, having 2,2 million units.
The 53-year-old farmer explains that he has never tried to create a spicy variety of any plant and that he does not even like spicy food
One meter bush was recently exhibited at the Royal Horticultural Society’s exhibition hall in London, where it will compete for the title of Plant of the Year.
The pepper was created in collaboration with scientists from the University of Nottingham Trent, who are convinced that the oil from this variety of chili is so strong that it can be used for medical purposes, as an alternative to anesthetics for people who are allergic to synthetic preparations.
“I took it on the tip of my tongue, it immediately started to burn,” says Smith, describing a tasting attempt in which he discovered that the pepper he had grown was extremely hot. – I spat it out after 10 seconds, but it kept burning and burning more and more.
Experts warn that swallowing record hot peppers can be fatal from anaphylactic shock.
– It was pure coincidence, but I am very happy. It’s a very nice plant, says Smith, who has been presenting the specimens he has grown at horticultural exhibitions for eight years.
The Dragon’s Breath paralyzes the tongue and airways. It is a hot pepper so hot that one drop of its oil can be felt in 2,48 million drops of water.
By comparison, the sharpness of pepper spray used by the US military to dazzle and confuse an enemy is “only” 2 million on the Scoville scale.
The Welsh breeder has applied to the Guinness Book of Records committee for the recognition of Dragon’s Breath as the hottest chili pepper in the world.
Smith, owner of Tom Smith’s Plants, a gardening company he founded in memory of his father, is convinced that Dad would be delighted with the proposal he has made for this year’s Chelsea Flower Show.