• Blog your pepper progress. The first image in your first post will be used to represent your Glog.

PIC 1's...Pepper Graphic...2014

Time to get this Grow off the ground...
 
 
 
 
 

 
Well sort of...at least the indoor part of it.  Here's the current look at some of my outdoor containers. We've had higher than normal snow amounts since December. A couple of hard frosts to boot. That may kill alot of the spring White Fly that have been dominant the last 2 seasons.
 
A Couple Shots from the Most Recent Seasons
 
 
 

 
I've started out my seeds for many years in Dec/Jan, and no doubt will provide nice plants with rewarding harvests.
But when you have to start indoors under lights it comes with a cost of time, material and utilities. With some thought I've finally come to (my senses)  a conclusion. As of Febuary 1st I have roughly 14 weeks to plant out. I'm confident that I can raise healthy plants indoors in that span. So this year will be the test...who knows maybe next season will be a March startup.......a march to the finish !
 

 
This was my largest harvest last season, late August, 40+ lbs......a few hrs and many beers worth of picking.  
The harvests after this were a few bushels here and there down to the 5 bucket pulls once a week come late September.
 
Enough of the Old and in With the New...
 
Lights...Action......Camera !
 
 

 
Speaking of lights...my current and permanent grow area has been moved down to the sub basement. I gave up a spare bedroom which has been converted into a guest room........ :rolleyes:
I currently have alittle over half the room and lighting setups that I had last year.  I'm planning to use every bit of it.
When running over 4k of power you need to have enough "juice"  to supply the lights safely. Inaddition to the circuits I had in the past for the basement grow I've added 2 additional 20a dedicated runs. Also for those who don't, having a smoke detector within perimeter and a fire extinguisher nearby would be a good idea, especially when running HPS units.
 
 
 
I'm still in the process of mounting some lights, and unless they're being hard wired its a good idea to keep the power cables off the floor
 

 
Here's a photo of the plant framing before the shelving is put into place. The deminsions are 54" wide and 12' long.
There's 3 tiers....top has 7 six bulb high bay T8 fixtures, middle tier (shown) has 10 four bulb close spaced T8's with a 6 bulb T8 at each end. The bottom has currently 4 six bulb T8's with a few more being added. The sides have 70% Aluminet shade cloth with can be rolled up unto a pvc pipe and secured to the ceiling. The cloth can let air circulation through by the means of a fan(s). The ends of the framing have foiled faced styro insulated panels.
 
 
 
Here we have cups ready to go, each cup may have anywhere between 2 and 20 seeds depending on the variety.
I'm starting out alittle different with the seed soak this season. In the past I've used Potassium Nitrate (Salt Petre) for part of the soak. I'm out of it and its too late to order....what I'm doing instead is a 2 hr soak with 10% Hydrogen Peroxide/ water mix.......drain out then a 24hr soak with a brew of Chamomile Tea (4 tea bags to a gallon of distilled) plus one drop of Superthrive to the gallon. I haven't used the tea before but have heard excellent results in regards to damping off prevention or seed fungal issues.
 
 
 
The mediums for the indoor grow.....Hoffmans for the seed starter. For the potting up I'm using a mix of Happy Frog, Ocean Forest and Pro-Mix. These will get equally mixed into thirds. My usual Fafards MetroMix is not in stock. These will give great results as I've used them in the past.
 
a few more shots later after dinner...........did some body say Octopus in Red Sauce.....yum
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Funny you should mention sowing in February instead of January... I've been thinking about how I could do the same thing since December and January provide the least sun for my solar panels and running lights downstairs for the plants gets a bit expensive. How warm will you be keeping the space where you start your seeds?
 
Good luck with your 2014 grow!
 
thanks for the comments...
 

 
The first swimmers in the pool......These seeds spent 2 days in the tea under the flouros. Ambient temperature under the lights is 73 deg.
Once drained and trayed in the seed starting medium I'll then dunk another round for a few more trays. This will be an ongoing process through the first week.
 

 
The Hoffmans seed starting medium gets pre  soaked the night before in 5 gal buckets. As some up you may remember I use a chop stick to apply the planting hole 1/4" deep. The seed when placed in sits about an 1/8" from the top. I like to keep the hole centered rather than scattering a few seeds about in the cell. When it comes time to transplant I'm able to pry and pull from the stem and remove the seedling with the rootball intact. Nobody want to have the stem in the corner and the rootball on the otherside....that certainly leads to root damage. A damaged root system to a small plug that size usually never recovers to max potential.
 

 
Not actually an "Operation".............."No need to remive the funny bone"..........ha  
 Just dropping the 1st seed in the tray. I'm use to using tweezers, sutures, and occasional roach clip. .............har har
You can easily drop the seeds in with your fingers, but, I never have one sticking to the tweezers as they can with the fingers ...they just drop in the hole.
 

 
I have 8 trays loaded up resting on two 4ft heating mats covered with thick towels. no thermostst used but only timers set at 1 hr on/one hr off for 24hr cycles. The temp of the mats combined with the overheads lights should be sufficent for the germination. The ambient temperature away from the grow are is 64 deg............Oh, and as usually my bud Sunny is hanging around grow. He has a real treat when the germination mats are on.
 

 
Ah.........first born....."It's an Indian"...........not the wild kind but the "Bhut Jolokia"......or as we use to call it , the "Ghost Pepper". Does anyone refer it to that anymore? The odd thing about this is the hook is from the 3rd tray seeded, only 4 days ago. These seeds were from a 2011 stock from the U.K. None of the 1st two trays have any yet after 6 days.......I know, I know..........tomorrow's a new day and quit looking 2 to 3 times daily....ha
 
i'm out of grow area shots, so I'll share a meal...what a deal.
 
 
 
Here's a couple Hawaiian Yellowfin Tuna portions that I blackened , part for a superbowl appetizer and the rest for a weeknight salad. I used my blackening rub alon with PaulG's "Naga Bee" powder.
 

 
For the salad I grilled some tri-color Asparagus, Endive, Jalapeno's, Asian Chili's, Manzano, Shallots, Scallions  and Cherry Tomato Medley...veg marinade consisted of dry herbs Olive Oil and Coconut Vinegar
 

 
It pays to keep the knives sharpened at all time, especially to glaze a thin slice of fish or meat. It's the dull knife that can turn on you and cause an injury
 

 
Here's the plating with Wasabi and Siracha Crema's....and an island brew
 
Thanks for checking this glog out. Hopefully next update my trays will have the leaves to show.

buddy said:
 
Thanks buddy !
capsidadburn said:
Looks like serious business this season Greg!
 
Hope you have a great one!
Thanks Mike.....likewise
 
Devv said:
Wow Greg!
 
Industrial to say the least!
 
Can't wait to see how things turn out, but I already know based upon what I've seen in the past.
 
Good luck this season! And here's hoping the weather breaks soon!
 
Industrial.........I like that. Just trying to only do it the right way the 1st time...............I'm not one for maintaince, but love the new projects !
 
I'm hoping for a strong season, this will be a busy summer and I'll have less time to spend with the plants, but there's always a game plan and a second option.
 
We need a warm Spring with moisture.
 
that tuna has my mouth watering. absolutely beautiful. care to share your mix for blackening rub?
 
your grow looks truly professional. cheers to a stellar 2014.
 
stickman said:
Funny you should mention sowing in February instead of January... I've been thinking about how I could do the same thing since December and January provide the least sun for my solar panels and running lights downstairs for the plants gets a bit expensive. How warm will you be keeping the space where you start your seeds?
 
Good luck with your 2014 grow!
 
 
Hey Rick, .....starting early has it's cost both in labor and on paper. My problem becomes the lack of room. A couple years back I had 80 plants in 2 gal trade containers with another 200...5.25" pots, plus the tomato starts and others. It was only April and I had large plants that tied up my time usually both weekend days....where I could have used that time to do some construction side jobs. Big plants tend to be back breaking indoors when having to move them about. This year will be a test run for future grows.
 
We're having an extremely cold winter. My sub basement is running around 64 deg. Its nice and warm under the lights which are on 24/7. Only a few are running over the seed trays. The rest will get fired up as I transplant. If it wasn't for the germination mats some seeds would rot before sprouting. I did plant extra seeds right off the bat just in case. I'd rather not replace any duds along the way.
Thanks for your input, you always have me thinking of an approiate answer.
filmost said:
What exactly is superthrive and what does it do for the seeds?
 
 
Looks like Super Hots just answered your question. I originally bought this product years back from a local nursery. It was purchased to give my garden an edge. My home was part of a "Garden Club" walk...not for peppers but for flowers. The owner at the nursery swore by the stuff......so I researched the product through other channels of growing and only heard good things about it. It's not a fertilizer but a vitamin/mineral boost. Although I never did a comparison between two plants, I have noticed general all around growth within the garden 
Portuge said:
Absolutely one of the best glogs to follow... Greg you always come prepared and ready to rock, best of luck buddy...
 
 
Thanks James.......can't wait to get the 1st ripe pods
JoeFish said:
That's an awesome setup I am amazed.  I will be following.
 
 
Thanks man, 
 
Since my last comment , I put my tablet down to have dinner with the family and I come back to this mouth watering dish that you made Greg... Simply amazing, keep up the good work..
 
romy6 said:
The master has started his grow. It is now officially the 2014 pepper growing season in the states  :party:
 
 
Jamie's in the house.............hey this is just like old times.......with 10x as many glogs to shovel through......... :lol:
 
Have fun with your season,
 
Gary sent me some NagaBrain seeds that I'm anxious to check out. I'll post photos of the pods when they appear.
Sm1nts2escape said:
Your cat is going to go blind lol. Sweet setup man!
:rofl: ...I hope not...... :cry:
Thanks, the setup should get me through until early May when the plants get moved outdoors.
brownb4 said:
that tuna has my mouth watering. absolutely beautiful. care to share your mix for blackening rub?
 
your grow looks truly professional. cheers to a stellar 2014.
 
 
Thanks...Tuna is one of my favorites 
The Blackening Seasoning is pretty basic.........the mix gets blended in the magic bullet or spice grinder to break down any seeds.
 
2 tsp Sweet Paprika
2 tsp Black Peppercorn
1 tsp White Peppercorn
1 tsp Cayenne Powder
1 tsp Habanero Powder
2 tsp Raw Brown Sugar
2 tsp Granulated Garlic
2 tsp Onion Powder
1 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
2 tsp of Thyme, Oregano and Sage...dried flakes 
1 tsp Mustard Powder
1 tsp Celery Seed
 
Pulverize or grind to a powder
 
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