NEWS FLASH NEW DELHI THE HOTTEST CHILLI ON EARTH IS INDIAN, CLAIM 4 SCIENTISTS THEY SAY THE PEPPER CALLED TEZPUR AFTER THE AREA WHERE IT GROWS, HAS BEATEN THE PREVIOUS HOTTEST THE MEXICAN RED SAVINA HABANERO. THE SCIENTISTS CLAIM THE TEZPUR WAS RECORDED AT 855,000 SCOVILLE UNITS, WHILE THE MEXICAN CHILLI CONTAINED 557,000 UNITS.

THE CHILLI PLANT DESCRIBED THE PLANT ITSELF VARIES ENORMOUSLY IN SIZE AND HABIT. THE AVERAGE PLANT GROWS TO A HEIGHT OF 3 FEET, ALTHOUGH SOME TROPICAL ONES HAVE GROWN TO A HEIGHT OF 18 FEET. THE LEAVES ARE USUALLY EGGLIKE (OVATE) IN SHAPE. POLLINATION OCCURS BY WIND OR BY INSECTS WHICH CAN CAUSE CROSS POLLINATION TO OCCUR. THIS IS SOMETHING I TRY TO DO EVERY YEAR, GET MY PLANTS TO CROSS POLLINATE BY GROWING UPTO 4 DIFFERENT CHILLIES IN ONE POT. THEN GROWING THE FOLLOWING YEARS CROP FROM LAST YEARS SEEDS. THE COLOUR, SIZE AND SHAPE OF THE PODS DIFFER GREATLY. WITH FRUIT COLOURS OF GREEN, YELLOW, WHITE, PURPLE, RED, ORANGE, BROWN, AND BLACK. THEIR SHAPES MAY BE ROUND, CONIC, ELONGATED AND BELL-LIKE. MOST PLANTS HAVE CHILLIES READY FOR PICKING AFTER ABOUT 2 MONTHS AND CAN CONTINUE PRODUCING FOR A FURTHUR 3 MONTHS. THE PODS ARE BERRIES BUT HORTICULTURISTS TERM THEM AS FRUITS. HARVESTED GREEN, THE PODS ARE CALLED A VEGETABLE, HARVESTED MATURE THEY BECOME A SPICE.