Lilac Bell pepper plant with lavender-purple fruit

How to Grow Lilac Bell Pepper From Seed

Updated July 2026

Lilac Bell is a stunning sweet bell pepper prized for its glossy lavender-purple fruit, which ripens to red if left on the plant. It has zero heat and the same crisp, mild, grassy flavor as a green bell, just wrapped in an eye-catching color. Blocky and thick-walled, it makes any garden and salad plate stand out. Here is how to grow it and keep that purple color at its best.

This is the quick guide to Lilac Bell. For the full step-by-step on starting seeds, transplanting, feeding, and troubleshooting peppers, see our complete guide to growing peppers from seed.

Quick start

Start seeds indoors about 8 weeks before your last frost, kept warm at 75 to 85F. Harden the plants off, then transplant them out 18 to 24 inches apart once nights stay above 55F. Give full sun, steady water, and a stake or cage for support. Pick peppers lavender-purple from about 70 days, or leave them on the plant to ripen red and sweeter.

Best tip

Lilac Bell is a striking sweet bell whose lavender-purple color is at its most vivid in cool conditions and full sun. Start seeds indoors early and set plants out only after nights stay above 55F. The purple skin is a temporary stage: for the best color harvest while the fruit is still lavender, or let peppers hang and ripen to red for a sweeter flavor. A little afternoon shade in very hot regions helps blossoms set.

At a glance

Botanical nameCapsicum annuum
Plant typeWarm-season annual
USDA zones3 to 12 (grown as an annual)
SunFull sun (6 to 8+ hours)
Days to maturity~70 days lavender; ~85 red
Height24 to 30 inches
Spacing18 to 24 inches apart
WaterRegular and deep; keep evenly moist

Uses

Lilac Bell brings unexpected color to the plate with the same crisp, sweet, thick-walled crunch as a green bell. Slice the lavender-purple fruit raw into salads and crudite platters where the color really shows, or let it ripen red for extra sweetness in roasting and stuffing. With zero heat and a mild, grassy flavor, it is a fun, family-friendly bell that makes a garden stand out.

Frequently asked questions

How long does Lilac Bell take to mature?

Expect about 70 days from transplant to harvest the peppers while they are lavender-purple, and roughly 80 to 85 days if you let them ripen to red, which brings out more sweetness.

Is Lilac Bell a sweet or hot pepper?

Lilac Bell is a sweet bell pepper with no heat at all, 0 on the Scoville scale. It has the same mild, crisp, grassy flavor as a green bell, just wrapped in a striking lavender-purple skin.

Why does the purple color turn red?

The lavender-purple stage is a temporary immature color. If you leave the fruit on the plant it will continue to ripen through to red and get sweeter. For the eye-catching purple look, pick the peppers while they are still lavender.

How should I use Lilac Bell peppers?

Enjoy them raw to show off the color, sliced into salads and onto crudite platters. They are also great sauteed, roasted, or stuffed. Note that the purple color softens with cooking, so use them fresh when you want the lavender look to stand out.

Ready to grow your own? Lilac Bell seeds give you gorgeous lavender-purple sweet bells that ripen red, a real showstopper in the garden. For the full step-by-step, see our complete pepper growing guide linked at the top of this page.

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