VegetablePepper
Sweet Banana Pepper
Sweet Pepper
Sweet Banana Pepper is a bright, cheerful variety that earned an AAS (All-America Selections) award in 1941 for good reason. These open-pollinated peppers produce slender, pointed fruits that mature from light yellow to vivid red, reaching about 4 to 7 inches long with thick, crunchy walls. Ready to harvest in just 70 to 79 days from transplant, this heat and drought-tolerant cultivar thrives in zones 4 through 13 and grows as a compact upright plant reaching 18 to 24 inches tall, making it surprisingly well-suited to containers, raised beds, and garden plots alike.
Photo © True Leaf Market(https://www.trueleafmarket.com/products/pepper-sweet-banana-seeds)
Growing Conditions
USDA Zone
4-13
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Soil
Well-drained, Fertile Loam With Organic Matter
Preferred Temp70-85°F
Growth Stats
24 in
Height
PeriodAnnual
TypeBush
Spacing
12-18 inches apart
Plant Profile
Sunlight
Full Sun
Water
Moderate
Zones
4-13
Size
24in H x ?in W
Growth
Annual
Care
High
Hover over chart points for details
Highlights
The defining charm of Sweet Banana Pepper lies in its dual personality: it starts life as a sweet, mild yellow pepper (0 to 500 Scoville Heat Units) perfect for fresh eating, then ripens to a deeper red for those who prefer more color on the plate. The fruit's thick walls and crisp texture make it exceptional for snacking straight from the plant or slicing into salads and pizzas. Gardeners especially appreciate its drought tolerance and heat resilience, which means it performs reliably even when summer turns harsh, and its compact growth habit rewards container gardeners with generous yields from minimal space.
Common Uses
Sweet Banana Peppers excel on the fresh market and in the kitchen. Their mild, sweet flavor and satisfying crunch make them natural choices for raw salads and pizzas, where their appearance and texture shine. They are equally at home fried or sautéed, a preparation that softens their walls and deepens their flavor. The thick-walled fruits also hold up beautifully to pickling, a traditional preservation method that has kept this variety relevant in home kitchens and small-scale farms for decades.
Growing Timeline
First Bloom
Mid-spring
First Harvest
Mid-summer
Last Harvest
Late Summer
Care Instructions
Start Indoors
Start seeds indoors 8 to 10 weeks before your last spring frost, sowing them in warm soil maintained between 70 and 85°F. Keep the soil consistently moist but not waterlogged. Germination typically occurs within 7 to 14 days.
Transplant Outdoors
Transplant seedlings outdoors after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed to at least 60°F. Harden off seedlings by gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions over 7 to 10 days before planting. Space plants 18 inches apart in rows 36 inches apart.
Harvesting
Begin harvesting Sweet Banana Peppers around 70 to 79 days after transplanting, when the fruits reach 4 to 7 inches in length. Peppers are most tender and sweet when harvested at the light yellow stage, but you can leave them on the plant longer if you prefer the riper red color and slightly deeper flavor. Cut or gently twist peppers from the stem rather than pulling, which can stress the plant. Plants continue producing throughout the season until frost arrives.
Growing Calendar
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Companion Planting
Pests & Diseases
Ecology & Traits
Edible
Soil pH Range
6 – 6.8
Scientific Classification
Piper guineense Schumach. & Thonn.
Family
Piperaceae
Genus
Piper
History & Origin
“Sweet Banana Pepper's pedigree speaks to its reliability and broad appeal. It earned All-America Selections recognition in 1941, a distinction that identified it as a superior variety worthy of widespread adoption by home gardeners. This recognition came during an era when the seed industry was actively seeking varieties that combined excellent flavor, visual appeal, and consistent performance across diverse growing regions. The fact that it has remained in cultivation for over 80 years reflects its enduring value to generations of gardeners.”