Stetto's First Winter Grow ('16-'17)

PaulG · Apr 24, 2017

Those little starts are really growing, Eric!

stettoman · Apr 24, 2017

PaulG said:
Those little starts are really growing, Eric!

Thanks Paul, and yeah, they seem to be doing well in spite of me...

The sweeter peppers seem to grow faster than the hots. It'd be interesting to look into why.

Small reminder yesterday that dirt day is a month or more away; we had a half inch of snow. Gone now, but the message lingers....

The weakly photo update;

PaulG · Apr 24, 2017

A half-inch of snow? Balls! That's unreal. I thought we
had it bad with the never-ending rain and wind this season!

Your little babies are growing right along!

Devv · Apr 26, 2017

Plants are looking good Eric

Hope that yellow snow melts soon, and stays that way!

b3rnd · Apr 27, 2017

Looking good! Do I see some tomatoes in there?

stettoman · Apr 27, 2017

b3rnd said:
Looking good! Do I see some tomatoes in there?

Yessir! Amish paste, a bulky thick monster that grows like a chiapet. I've gotten to where I grow 5 tomato plants of the same sauce making type every year and go to the neighbors for varieties for salsas and salads.

The amish paste won a competition about ten seasons in the making. It seemed that it was the ONLY variety I grew every year with sundry others.

The neighborhood is comprised of commercial farmers, almost all of which keep small roadside stands where they or their kids sell all manner of vegetables--except for peppers beyond bell and banana and the odd jalapeno.....

stettoman · Apr 28, 2017

It got up to 50 today, full sun, no reason not to bring the babies up for their first taste.

Most look like they've spent their lives in a cave. Yes, they got the same Cal-Mag mist every two weeks, plus a bit of CSN17 in their water. Other than color most look mighty healthy. I hope the onset of real sunlight will invigorate the light ones.

It's kind of funny; I'm usually just now seeing the first hooks from an April 15 start.

Devv · Apr 28, 2017

Trucking right along Eric!

Keep it in high gear

stettoman · May 3, 2017

I've never hardened off plants so early! In fact a small number of them are going into new, larger homes and may well stay outside for the season a full month early!!

I potted up a couple of PaulG's aji amarillos, five gallons of dirt.

An aji mango that just won't get no bigger went into a two gallon pot.

There's a rust on new growth, no doubt the culprit in the stunting of the aji mango. Any suggestions? should I simply top it and hope for the best? It's my only mango, was really hoping for pods from this one...Those bugs are flies. The rust is ONLY on the underside of the leaves.

In any case, the season is thus far proving too good to be true.

stettoman · May 7, 2017

Having a damp-off party here. My bad, I should know better. Haven't lost any yet, but there are a few or more that don't look likely to make it through. I'm not even going to post pics of them, it's kind of...humiliating.

Even my aji lemon drop entry in the growdown. It's trying to hang in there, but most of the young pods have dropped already.

I leave my asparagus alone. It rewards me...

These are first-of-the-season spears, always the best of the season. I'll be grilling these tonight with a few pork chops....

Devv · May 8, 2017

Nice looking spears! We're on our 3rd season with ours and made another small bed about 1.5 months ago. Can't beat fresh produce

LB bakes them in a bit of olive oil covered with Parmesan.

Hope your plants kick back in Eric!

stettoman · May 10, 2017

Devv said:
Nice looking spears! We're on our 3rd season with ours and made another small bed about 1.5 months ago. Can't beat fresh produce
LB bakes them in a bit of olive oil covered with Parmesan.

Hope your plants kick back in Eric!

Heh, well Scott, I haven't killed them all, though only a few look like they're coming back. Amazingly there were two that didn't appear to be affected in any way by my overwatering jag, and both from seed received from mpicante. Flo, your Madballz and Borg 9 plants are the hardiest little plants I've ever tried to kill!

Anyway, today I'm trying to give some of these borderline plants a chance to advance to adulthood, in the foreground in 5 gallon polybags are rocoto Amarillo, Ben Piela's aji white lightning and Windchicken/Malarky's Papa Dreadie Select. Behind that are aji amarillos, a stunted and likely lost aji mango I got from Geonerd, and my former prize demanding aji lemon drop, which still, after a week in a 3 gallon pot, looks to be giving up.

I have sprayed CalMag sparingly every 10 days or so at sundown, there's not much response either way. The plants that are still in Solo cups have been pulled from their outer shell cups in order to facilitate better drying and more control over what little water I do give them. What will be...

I'm not sure why they refuse to green up, only the afore-mentioned Madballz and Borg 9 have done that.

But yeah, we're having the season of a lifetime on asparagus. It's in it's 5th year, and coming into it's own!

Geonerd · May 10, 2017

Those poor things look distressingly familiar.

I've once again managed to fert and sun burn a good portion of my plants. Some poorly rinsed coir may have contributed. You'd think that after three years of doing this, I'd get a clue.

I do have a few Amarillo in decent shape. If you loose yours, we could try a mail replenishment.

stettoman · May 11, 2017

Geonerd said:
Those poor things look distressingly familiar.

I've once again managed to fert and sun burn a good portion of my plants. Some poorly rinsed coir may have contributed. You'd think that after three years of doing this, I'd get a clue.

I do have a few Amarillo in decent shape. If you loose yours, we could try a mail replenishment.

I appreciate the offer Greg. Hawt sauce in a baggie is already huge. I'm definitely going to lose more than one Amarillo. Between over/under watering and a maine coon who seems to have a leaf chewing fetish or simply insufficient sunlight, I'm going to lose some. But a couple that podded up a little a couple months ago are actually starting to acquire color besides green. Whether it's stress related or simply time to ripen Idunno, but it's a darn welcome sight!

Note that the one in front is the mutant multi-pod I posted previously. The added appendages have dwindled.

stettoman · May 14, 2017

For better or worse and two weeks earlier than average last frost, Mother's Day is also Dirt Day this year. It's been 70s daily and 50s nightly and though my instincts tell me don't do it, I did it...

I think I'm saving the poor devils (some anyway) from the damping issue from previous. They weren't drying, all were yellowing and losing leaves, when I pulled them out of the pots and cups the damp was ridiculous. Roots weren't rotting or slimy yet, but not healthy white anymore,, so I knocked as much of the damp coir out of the root balls and settled them into their new black primordial dirt. Anuums have traditionally done really well in this stuff, so I have hope.

The white blossoms in the back corner are wild plums, makes a great jam! The yellow tinge in the grass is the result of dandelion plague.

...In for a dime, in for a dollar....I guess I'll go plant corn.

Geonerd · May 15, 2017

Here's hoping the transplant turns them around.

stettoman · May 16, 2017

Geonerd said:
Here's hoping the transplant turns them around.

I believe that I've committed the mortal sin of over fertilizing for some time; these plants are almost ALL stunted, and it dawns on me that nute lockout is the likely diagnosis...Those small plants have been that size for well over a month (planted 3/01/17), and I was spraying with Cal Mag and adding CNS17 to just about every watering. Overmothering, IOW.

This early plant out may well be the exact thing these guys needed, as the bulk of starter dirt was shaken out as I planted. They're getting their first dose of real, lightning ozone and natural nute infusing rain today, a third of an inch forecast.

stettoman · May 18, 2017

A testament to the tenacity of capsicum!

Aji mango has decided, against all my efforts to wreak nutritional havoc while in it's Solo cup, to arise and thrive! NODE ACTION!!

I have 36 pepper and 4 tomato plants out in the dirt, betting on the last frost having been the LAST frost, but alas! Down in the 30s tonight! I will cover and pray.

stettoman · May 19, 2017

The original goal of this grow was to find if I could do a winter start and actually keep an aji Amarillo alive to the point of harvesting ripe pods. In zone 3. Which, without my knowledge has been redesignated a fringe zone 4 :rolleyes:

...

I officially report success!!!

We're heading to CO in the morning to visit our salsa-making friends, so this is timely. I have to wonder what she'll do with ORANGE pods!

Malarky · May 19, 2017

stettoman said:
The original goal of this grow was to find if I could do a winter start and actually keep an aji Amarillo alive to the point of harvesting ripe pods. In zone 3. Which, without my knowledge has been redesignated a fringe zone 4 ...

I officially report success!!!

We're heading to CO in the morning to visit our salsa-making friends, so this is timely. I have to wonder what she'll do with ORANGE pods!

congrats Eric!
Have your Mystery Aji Amarillo's set any pods yet?