stc3248's 2014 small wild grow

Thanks for posting the seasoned salt process, I've been wanting to make some. Tried grinding some powder last weekend but couldn't find my Darth Vader mask, died after one run through the coffee grinder. Dang that stuff can be rough!
 
How does one get involved in the growdowns?

Great step by step. Will be useful this winter I think when I use all those pods I am counting before they hatch. Can't wait to check up on bonchi progress!
 
Strange that you feel like wiring takes a long time. Green branches bend really quick in my experience, though they will bend back or curve in strange ways if you let them. I kind of like the wonkiness so it doesn't bother me.
 
I've never "properly" wired a tree though, not a chile anyway. To do that you start at the trunk and move up. Normally I just make hooks that hold branches down. I have never tried to mod branches with bark though.

Powder looks great!

Nice looking powder, just about exactly how I do mine when I don't do pure powder.
 
Now I haven't been following all the bonchi posts all over the place, but I have a couple questions.  What are they, and why do it?

Devv said:

Thanks for posting the seasoned salt process, I've been wanting to make some. Tried grinding some powder last weekend but couldn't find my Darth Vader mask, died after one run through the coffee grinder. Dang that stuff can be rough!
 
How does one get involved in the growdowns?

Click to expand...

I PMd you about the growdown Scott...as far as masks...my weapons of choice are either a paper mask or a damp bandanna...careful with either though...reuse and get burned!!!
 
 

maximumcapsicum said:

Great step by step. Will be useful this winter I think when I use all those pods I am counting before they hatch. Can't wait to check up on bonchi progress!
 
Strange that you feel like wiring takes a long time. Green branches bend really quick in my experience, though they will bend back or curve in strange ways if you let them. I kind of like the wonkiness so it doesn't bother me.
 
I've never "properly" wired a tree though, not a chile anyway. To do that you start at the trunk and move up. Normally I just make hooks that hold branches down. I have never tried to mod branches with bark though.

Click to expand...

I have wired and its not the process that takes long, its getting them to set. They bend really easy, but unless you leave them on until the branch turns woody...they just slowly spring back once you cut the wire off. I tried to find my wire today, but no dice. I may dabble a little with it once I find it.
 
 

jedisushi06 said:

Powder looks great!

Click to expand...

Thank you Obi Wan!
 
 

HillBilly Jeff said:

Nice looking powder, just about exactly how I do mine when I don't do pure powder.
 
Now I haven't been following all the bonchi posts all over the place, but I have a couple questions.  What are they, and why do it?

Click to expand...

Hey Jeff! Thanks! As far as the Bonchis go...they're all overwinter plants from last season. Some are ornamental and others are larger plants that I have cut way back. As far as the why??? I dunno...they kinda look cool once they're all greened up and looking like mini trees...mainly because Mama doesn't seem to mind them as much as the 65 10 gallon containers that have surrounded my pool for the past couple seasons. They look perdy...so she'll let me keep them. The good thing is if I keep them alive I can always stick them back in the ground if I catch her not looking and they'll go back to the full size plants they once were quickly. Not for everyone...I get it, but since I don't have my usual 3 or 4 flats of seeds to tend to I gotta do something!!!
 
Check out these from Fatalii.net...

 

This is what I am shooting for...we shall see.
Image from here: http://www.fataliiphoto.net/index.php/misc/BTAQ6v6CIAMpi7V
 
As far as mine go...I keep cutting and potting.

Newest project...my Charapita Yellow. This trunk is as big at the base as the Manzano!!!
 

In it's new home...think that's it for Bonchis for a bit. At least until I can score some more pots.
 
Other than that...I had a moment of weakness today...


 
So current seeds planted include...
C. Tovarii 0/4
C. Galapagoense 0/4
C. Eximium 0/4
Huge Rocopica (C. Pubescens X C. Cardenasii) 0/4
C. Chacoense var. Exile 0/4
CGN 19198 (C. Sp.) 0/4
Cap 1530 (C. Cardenasii) 0/4
 
All seeds from John (Pr0digal_son) and if you read this John...I know you mentioned the Tovarii being tough, but any additional info about germ times/rates for these species would be helpful. I been digging around on here, but there is limited info on these dudes. So excited to grow these out...but some of them may take 4 years to produce pods???? WTF??? Hahaha...all the more reason for overwinter projects!

Looks good Shane. I had a feeling you wouldn't be sticking strictly to the rules on how many plants to have. I won't tell.
 
A couple of my o/w plants in the flood table could probably double as bonchi plants, but keeping them so trimmed and neat takes a ton of effort. 

Dude!!! You're a friggin machine! So this is year round growing huh? Very cool.

Glad to see you're doing more wilds. The ones I had germinate fast and had the best germ rate was the CGN 19198, or mainly both eximium.

I'm really looking forward to see how the rocopica does for you. Steven sent me some seeds to try out and I accidentally fried the seeds along with most of my pube seeds in the jiffy tray... oh well, that's the first one on my list for next year .

Hope you have a better and more awesome year than last year, here's to 2014 .

-Walt

Bonchi's are going to look fantastic in no time. 
 
Wonder what kind of nutes fatalii uses on his bonchis. Mine won't keep their flowers.

Absolutely loving the bonchi work! I hope they all work out for you!
 
Really enjoyed the powder/blend tutorial as well. Going to have to give it a shot once some pods show up!!
 
Keep the awesome material coming! 

Don't worry bro, your secret is safe here
 
Shane, I guess we're alike, you just can't sit still I see. To me that's good!
 
I couldn't handle suburban life, got to be out doing something. I would run out real quick if I lived in town, I couldn't do the woodworking, and if I did they would call the law on me for making noise...
 
Keep being you!

Hey, Shane, you have been busy,my friend!  
I'll just +1 everyone's comments since they
have pretty much said it all.  Reading your grow
log always gives me plenty to think about!

Indeed . . . thought provoking as Paul noted, Shane.
 
Need to hit fatalii.net to study what you've studied (brilliant stuff)!!
 
And nice tutorial on the powder blend!
 
You didn't send me a PM about the next Growdown, Shane, my luv, my darlin.' I vote for Bishops Crown!  How deep a hole would you dig for that? BL was  .
 
Later, sweetie!

Stuck in Vegas without the kids...darn the luck! On my phone so no quotes...just some answers.

MaxCaps: fatalii has a link to his Bonchi growing guide at the bottom of each photo. He covers his nutes in there. $$$ pricey...I use the blue powder...we'll see how that works!

Annie...Jamie is gonna head the Growdown again...so PM him with your thoughts! For a bishop's crown...the hole would be 5' across and 6' deep. Loose and loamy to the bottom with peat, worm castings, manure, compost and perlite throughout. Make the soil progressively richer as it gets deeper and toward the edges. Two reasons for that, it will pull the roots down and out, and it will take a little longer for the roots to get there so it will have time to cool down. Last...and one thing I didn't share last year is I had 4 soaker rings at different depths. 6", 2', 3' and 4' each with a shutoff valve at the surface. Top two on at first...after 1 month I switched to middle two...another month I switched to bottom two and started using my nute system...after that all 4 on the rest if the time. That system would grow a bishops well up over 10' with no trouble and potentially much better depending on how well you did with the initial soil prep. One more thing...I was using worm/compost tea to deep soak that hole from well before plant out to add beneficials and get the soil active. I ain't playing in the growdown this year...so hopefully someone who reads this will win it!

Thanks errybody! Wish me luck at the tables!

Thanks for the info and enjoy Vegas, it's fun place to visit!

stc3248 said:

Annie...Jamie is gonna head the Growdown again...so PM him with your thoughts! For a bishop's crown...the hole would be 5' across and 6' deep. Loose and loamy to the bottom with peat, worm castings, manure, compost and perlite throughout. Make the soil progressively richer as it gets deeper and toward the edges. Two reasons for that, it will pull the roots down and out, and it will take a little longer for the roots to get there so it will have time to cool down. Last...and one thing I didn't share last year is I had 4 soaker rings at different depths. 6", 2', 3' and 4' each with a shutoff valve at the surface. Top two on at first...after 1 month I switched to middle two...another month I switched to bottom two and started using my nute system...after that all 4 on the rest if the time. That system would grow a bishops well up over 10' with no trouble and potentially much better depending on how well you did with the initial soil prep. One more thing...I was using worm/compost tea to deep soak that hole from well before plant out to add beneficial and get the soil active. I ain't playing in the growdown this year...so hopefully someone who reads this will win it!

Thanks errybody! Wish me luck at the tables!

Click to expand...

 
 
Holy crap Shane. I had no idea you put that much effort into that growdown. You deserved to win with that kind of effort. Any estimate as to the pounds of pods you pulled off that plant?

Shane I am digging the bonchis. Always jealous of people who can stick with a project and do it right. I tend to look for shortcuts. You have my sympathy being stuck in Vegas without the family. Don't know how you're passing the time. Ha!

Devv said:

Thanks for the info and enjoy Vegas, it's fun place to visit!

Click to expand...

You're welcome Scott! Hope you win it! Vegas wasn't as kind as it has been the past 4 times we've been...we left a couple hundred down...but got a bunch of comps out of the deal. Had a blast!
 
 

Jeff H said:

 
 
Holy crap Shane. I had no idea you put that much effort into that growdown. You deserved to win with that kind of effort. Any estimate as to the pounds of pods you pulled off that plant?

Click to expand...

Yeah...I went all in on that damn plant...and it won by about an inch or so to John (Pr0digal_son)...our strategies looked very similar, but would be interested to know what all prep and feeding he did as well. I have no idea...but I could probably pull a 5 gallon bucket full right now...just have no place for them so they're drying on the vine. If I had to guess...well over 10,000 pods pulled off that one plant. I never did get it completely clean of ripe pods. I pulled for over an hour one day and I could have pulled for another.
 
 

patrick said:

Shane I am digging the bonchis. Always jealous of people who can stick with a project and do it right. I tend to look for shortcuts. You have my sympathy being stuck in Vegas without the family. Don't know how you're passing the time. Ha!

Click to expand...

Patrick...I am jealous of them folks too!!! I am great at the start...and for the initial fun...then interest fades as I find other crap that I need to do. The cool thing about Bonchis is even if they get a little out of control...as long as I get in there and trim them back again they'll look really good for a month or so after. We'll see, I will have much more time for the little things this season without having to care for so many plants. Oh...we found ways to pass that time in Vegas!!!
 
 
OK...so a little mid week update. As you can probably tell, I am back at work and won't be home again until Friday. I spoke with mama and there is no sign of life in the germ tray yet, but it's still cooking right along at 80 degrees. Reviewing some other folks germ rates and times I am hoping to see the first sprouts in the next couple days on some of them, but others probably another week or two at best. We shall see. 
 
I do have "other" plants not covered earlier.    They're up here at work with me. I had 5...but am down to two (maybe 3)after I went on leave for a couple weeks and the small ones dried out. I watered them and one came back, and another is still green, but it ain't doing anything yet. The large plant was from a fallen pepper head named Shawn (pepperproblem). We lost him last spring. Nigel and Shawn's sister redistributed a bunch of his plants. I helped move a few flats of the hundreds of starts he had up here to Denniz and kept just one for myself. It was labeled M7...Nigel though it may be a Moruga...but I though that would have been MS??? I though maybe Madballz 7...well the plant reached maturity just in time for the cooler weather so all the pods are kinda wonky and muted, but they're really freaking HOT. I still have no idea what it is??? I am hopeful that once the weather warms up and I either pot it up to a larger container or put it in the ground. Well enough of the story time...a couple phone pics!!!
 

The lone survivor from my two week abandonment...Bubblegum 7. She looks perdy ugly now...but y'all just wait. 
 
Here is the "M7" from pepperproblem. She's struggling a little with the cool nights and aphids...but holding her own. I work in Seal Beach which is Zone 10b and considered "frost free." We do get the very occasional light frost, but she's a bit elevated and has so far come through pretty well. Warmer weather will come around very soon here. That container is around 7# I will probably get her into an 18 or 20 gallon once it is a bit warmer.
 

Some of the cool weather pods...I think once it's warmer she'll help us figure out her identity and show us some truer looking pods.
 

Maybe sooner rather than later! She's covered up in new buds forming for the first time in about a month and a half.
 
Hope you guys are having fun with your sprouts...or down under plants!!!
Happy almost "hump" day!
Shane

Nice update.  At 80 degrees, your germ trays will be up and running in no time and you're right, that BBG7 will be kicking it soon.  The M7 already looks "lofty".

Like the update. The lone survivor will be lush with new growth in no time. The M7 too.
 
Obviously, you've got a ton of chances to eat the Birgits Locoto with how many pods you have pulled. How does it taste? Heat? Never had that one before.

whats the M7?