Variety field guide
What to expect from Hungarian Hot Wax Pepper Seeds
Hungarian Hot Wax pepper seeds produce red hot chile pepper fruit about 8.0 × 2.0 in (203 × 51 mm) on bushy plants reaching 25–30 in; maturity is 70-79 Days.
Read the complete product descriptionTraits, flavor, garden use, variety notes, and the full catalog record
Hungarian Hot Wax pepper seeds grow into bushy plants reaching 25–30 in, bearing red fruit about 8.0 × 2.0 in (203 × 51 mm). Heat category: Hot. It is especially suited to pickling, frying, stuffing, roasting, fresh use, and seed saving. Maturity is 70-79 Days.
About Hungarian Hot Wax
Hungarian Hot Wax is a hot chile pepper grown as Capsicum annuum L. Plants have a bushy habit and reach 25–30 in; support is listed as no added support. The principal mature or market color is Red, with fruit described as about 8.0 × 2.0 in (203 × 51 mm). Reproductive classification: Open-Pollinated (OP). Maturity: 70-79 Days. Names associated with this variety include Hungarian Hot Wax Pepper, Pepper Seeds - Hot - Hungarian Hot Wax Peppers.
- Scientific name:Capsicum annuum L.
- Life cycle:Annual
- Planting season:Spring
- Growth habit:Bush
- Plant height:25–30 in
- Sunlight:Full sun
- Seed depth:1/4 in
- Germination:7–14 Days at 75–90 °F
- Spacing:18 in between plants; 24 in between rows
- Soil:Loamy; pH 6.0–6.5
- Water:Moderate
- Support:No-Support
- Reproductive type:Open-Pollinated (OP)
- Fruit:Red; About 8.0 × 2.0 in (203 × 51 mm)
- Heat:Hot; 5,000-10,000 SHU
History and seedkeeping context
Hungarian Yellow Wax Hot is recorded as an open-pollinated heirloom under related names including Hungarian Wax Hot and Hungarian Long Wax. A 1992 cultivar description documents a yellow-to-crimson color progression, medium-thick walls, strong upright habit, long tapered fruit, and a broad 58-to-85-day maturity span. Wax describes the smooth, pale appearance of the immature fruit, not a wax coating.
Related names are preserved as aliases, but the page does not merge every Hungarian wax-type pepper into one cultivar. The available sources do not establish a named person’s tribal identity. Published cultivar descriptions report approximately 58 to 85 days, with timing influenced by climate and by whether fruit are harvested yellow or allowed to mature crimson.
That span crosses three catalog ranges, so no single structured value is forced.
Fruit, flavor, and kitchen use
Harvest pale yellow pods for pickling, frying, stuffing, sandwiches, relishes, and fresh hot-pepper use. Orange and crimson fruit are riper and useful for sauces, roasting, and seed saving. Medium-hot wax-pepper character; exact pungency varies with plant and growing conditions. Pungency varies with genetics, temperature, water stress, fruit position, and ripeness; any heat figure is a range, not a promise for every pod. Hungarian Hot Wax is especially useful for pickling, frying, stuffing, roasting, fresh use, and seed saving. Flavor and eating quality are described as medium-hot wax-pepper character; exact pungency varies with plant and growing conditions. Pungency varies with genetics, temperature, water stress, fruit position, and ripeness; any heat figure is a range, not a promise for every pod. Heat classification: Hot; listed range: 5,000-10,000 SHU. Pungency can shift with genetics, weather, water stress, and ripeness.
How to grow Hungarian Hot Wax
Start Hungarian Hot Wax indoors about 8 to 10 weeks before the last expected frost. Sow 1/4 in deep in a warm, evenly moist seed-starting mix; expect 7–14 Days near 75–90 °F. Provide strong light as soon as seedlings emerge, pot up before roots become crowded, and harden plants gradually before transplanting after nights are reliably warm.
Plant in full sun with loamy soil near pH 6.0–6.5. Space plants 18 in apart and rows 24 in apart. Maintain moderate moisture, mulch after the soil warms, and avoid excessive nitrogen. No added support is normally needed. Mature height is 25–30 in.
Season care
• Warmth matters most during germination; keep Hungarian Hot Wax seed warm without leaving the medium saturated. • Harden seedlings gradually and wait for warm nights before transplanting, because cold soil and wind can stall peppers for weeks. • No added support is normally needed; keep moisture even while fruit is setting. • Harvest at the color stage suited to the recipe, but leave fruit fully mature on selected plants when saving seed. • Use 70-79 Days as a planning range rather than a guaranteed calendar date; weather and transplant stress can shift first harvest.
Harvest and maturity
70-79 Days from transplant to first representative harvest; the same value is used in every description. Peppers can often be used at an immature green or transitional color, but fully ripe color is required for mature seed.
Saving seed
Peppers are largely self-pollinating but insect movement can produce crosses. To save Hungarian Hot Wax true to type, grow several healthy representative plants, isolate them from compatible pepper varieties or use blossom bags or cages, and remove clear off-types before flowering. Allow selected fruit to reach full biological color, handle hot fruit with gloves, remove the seed, dry it in a thin labeled layer until fully hard and dry, then store it cool, dark, and dry. Keep the harvest year, source, isolation method, and selection notes with the lot.
Common questions
When is Hungarian Hot Wax ready?
Plan around 70-79 Days. The listed range is a planning guide, and weather, transplant stress, and harvest stage can shift the actual date.
How long does germination take?
Expect 7–14 Days near 75–90 °F. Cooler media, excess water, old seed, or uneven moisture can delay emergence.
How large does it grow?
Expect about 25–30 in. Growth habit: Bush. Support: No-Support.
How is it used?
Pickling, frying, stuffing, roasting, fresh use, and seed saving
Can I save seed?
Peppers are largely self-pollinating but insect movement can produce crosses.





