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Rocoto Advice.

Hotrod64

Hotrod64

G'day fellow chilli-heads, i'm looking for some advice on my 1st time grown Rocoto (grown in 7 Gal/26Ltr pot) as it has just plain refused to give me any pods, i'm getting desperate as if it doesnt hurry up and produce it will be too late in the season for them to mature. Everything else grown around it is starting to pod up nice, my 3 over wintered reapers are doing well, my Thai's and Rooster Spur is doing well and my Sugar Rush Peach is starting to take off . All are in the same potting mix and have the same feed, = Osmocote for Veg ...then when they started to flower a fortnightly supplement feed of Potash and a half strenght feed of Powerfeed with a monthly spray of Epsoms. I even planted a few Sunflowers around it to attrack more pollinating insects and still nothing.
Also...are  they fussy with PH. ?
 
Any advice greatly appreciated,
cheers.
 
 
First 3 are of the Rocoto
 
rocot1.jpg

bang1.jpg

bang3.jpg

 
Others
reaper1.jpg

thai.jpg

sugar1.jpg
 
Are you in Adelaide? I think you should be able to grow those all year long in South Australia. Your autumn should be prime for pubescens.

My advice would be to grow 4 or 5 different varieties and see which ones handle your climate the best. That seems to be the best thing to do from my experience. If your other plants are responding well to your feeding program,then it has to be an environmental issue bothering your pubes. Good luck!
 
Hotrod, your plants, including the Rocoto, look picture perfect. I find that my Rocotos, in Southern Australia, put out their best pods in winter which confirms exactly what CAPCOM said. I had three plants get to four years old, and seven feet tall, so there's no question that they do well in Victoria. 
 
Here are some of last winters Rocotos.
20150909_191608.jpg

 
Including this 55 gram beast.
20150909_192243.jpg

 
I do currently have pods on my Rocotos, and Mini Rocoto. All are still green except for two which have turned red over the last week. I'd give them more time and keep them outdoors (avoiding frost obviously) all winter. If all else fails, maybe I can send you some of my Rocotos. 
 
 
SR.
 
How are the SA winters compared to Victoria? I know they get some frost but there is a buffer in the city. I probably jumped to a conclusion about the SA autumn and winter due to it's location in comparison to Melbs.
 
If you think the problem is pollination, give your plants a decent shake once a day, to help them drop the pollen.  I had a similar problem the first year I grew, but with most of my pepper plants, because they were in an area that didn't get much wind and there apparently not many bees flew by that way either :)
 
You can also search the forum for other ways to pollinate them (q-tip, vibrating toothbrush, etc.)
 
Mike
 
CAPCOM said:
They tend to be fussy sometimes with heat and too much direct sun. In their natural environment they grow in the higher altitudes where it tends to be a little bit chillier( no pun intended). If it is on the hot side of the season where you are it may start popping with a temp shift.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply and advice CAPCOM. Thants great news....sounds like there is hope in getting some Pods yet, our Autumn starts next week so hopefully Temps will start to fall.
Cheers.
 
Trippa said:
What is your temperature and humidity conditions like??? They like a slightly different climate then the other 2 species you have there
Click to expand...
Hey Trippa thanks for the reply and advice. Mate this summer has been an absolute stinka with the humidity the worst i have ever known,some days i had trouble breathing !! we arent "supposed" to get humidity like that down our way? My Mrs lived up in Cairns for a number of years and she reckons on some days it was worse than there!
Cheers.
 
Pr0digal_son said:
Are you in Adelaide? I think you should be able to grow those all year long in South Australia. Your autumn should be prime for pubescens.

My advice would be to grow 4 or 5 different varieties and see which ones handle your climate the best. That seems to be the best thing to do from my experience. If your other plants are responding well to your feeding program,then it has to be an environmental issue bothering your pubes. Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply and advice PS. Mate i'm out North of Adelaide near "Two Well's"...as it's out on the plains we get higher day time Temps than Adelaide and colder nigh time Temp than Adelaide, so it is slightely different. Will be our Autumn soon so i'm looking forward to seeing some pods form.
Cheers.
 
Shorerider said:
 
Hotrod, your plants, including the Rocoto, look picture perfect. I find that my Rocotos, in Southern Australia, put out their best pods in winter which confirms exactly what CAPCOM said. I had three plants get to four years old, and seven feet tall, so there's no question that they do well in Victoria. 
 
Here are some of last winters Rocotos.
20150909_191608.jpg

 
Including this 55 gram beast.
20150909_192243.jpg

 
I do currently have pods on my Rocotos, and Mini Rocoto. All are still green except for two which have turned red over the last week. I'd give them more time and keep them outdoors (avoiding frost obviously) all winter. If all else fails, maybe I can send you some of my Rocotos. 
 
 
SR.
 
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply and advice SR, yes mate ..thanks to everyones great advice definitely sounds like an enviromental/weather issue to me , Temps should start to drop soon so i'll keep my fingers crossed. My mouth is wateing looking at those Pods, what would you aliken them too?...also... when you over-wintered them did you transplant them into smaller pots and trim the root-ball back?
Thanks for your offer of some pods,..hopefully i wont have to take you up on it...lol
Cheers
 
Pr0digal_son said:
How are the SA winters compared to Victoria? I know they get some frost but there is a buffer in the city. I probably jumped to a conclusion about the SA autumn and winter due to it's location in comparison to Melbs.
Click to expand...
 
Mate I'm out on the plains so Autumn/Winter frosts are a big issue out my way.
Cheers
 
drathag said:
We don't get too much frost in a given year, I don't think we get the kind of frost that kills things at all really. I overwintered some plants a few years ago without bringing them in at all and they did fine. Not overly familiar with Victoria's winters but I think it gets cooler there.
 
Just found this, which seems like useful info. http://www.bom.gov.au/jsp/ncc/climate_averages/frost/index.jsp
Click to expand...
Last season I over wintered all my plants in the back of an old Panel Van...lol  all survived.
 
mlittle74 said:
If you think the problem is pollination, give your plants a decent shake once a day, to help them drop the pollen.  I had a similar problem the first year I grew, but with most of my pepper plants, because they were in an area that didn't get much wind and there apparently not many bees flew by that way either :)
 
You can also search the forum for other ways to pollinate them (q-tip, vibrating toothbrush, etc.)
 
Mike
Click to expand...
Hey Mike thanks for your reply and advice mate. I did think my prob was Pollination but I periodically shake my  plants when in flower anyway, along with companion planting some Sunflowers to attract more pollinating insects i was starting to think there was another issue. If all the other plants/variaties around it are doing well... then it has to be the high Temp and humidity.
Cheers mate.
 
Hotrod64 said:
Hey Mike thanks for your reply and advice mate. I did think my prob was Pollination but I periodically shake my  plants when in flower anyway, along with companion planting some Sunflowers to attract more pollinating insects i was starting to think there was another issue. If all the other plants/variaties around it are doing well... then it has to be the high Temp and humidity.
Cheers mate.
Click to expand...
 
Hey mate, I notice its in a dark coloured pot. The soil in them gets a LOT hotter a lot faster than in lighter coloured pots. I spray painted some of my pots a gloss white and they reflect the majority of the heat so the roots don't cook while still letting my plants sit in full sun. If temps are high, perhaps the roots are getting a bit too hot and dropping flowers as a result of stress?
 
Hotrod64 said:
Hey Mike thanks for your reply and advice mate. I did think my prob was Pollination but I periodically shake my  plants when in flower anyway, along with companion planting some Sunflowers to attract more pollinating insects i was starting to think there was another issue. If all the other plants/variaties around it are doing well... then it has to be the high Temp and humidity.
Cheers mate.
Click to expand...
 
Last year, we had extremely hot temperatures in South Carolina and my Trinidad Scorpions took forever to start fruit, so it sounds like you're zeroing in on it.  It was unbelievable how many peppers started after the temps went down.  Most of them were ripe by the end of the season which was a bonus.
 
Mike 
 
Hotrod64 said:
Thanks for your reply and advice SR, yes mate ..thanks to everyones great advice definitely sounds like an enviromental/weather issue to me , Temps should start to drop soon so i'll keep my fingers crossed. My mouth is wateing looking at those Pods, what would you aliken them too?...also... when you over-wintered them did you transplant them into smaller pots and trim the root-ball back?
Thanks for your offer of some pods,..hopefully i wont have to take you up on it...lol
Cheers
Click to expand...
 
Here are my monsters before they got axed to make way for a new bed.
20160102_112543.jpg

 
They stayed in this bed for the full four years, and were never overwintered. This position outlooks north, we only get 2-3 frosts a year when temperatures drop just below freezing. They look a little ragged at the end of winter, but prune them back a little, and they will always bounce back strong as ever. 
 
I believe I sent you some Serrano pods last year if I remember correctly, Rocoto are a very similar tasting thick walled juicy pod.
 
SR.
 
Pr0digal_son said:
Are you in Adelaide? I think you should be able to grow those all year long in South Australia. Your autumn should be prime for pubescens.

My advice would be to grow 4 or 5 different varieties and see which ones handle your climate the best. That seems to be the best thing to do from my experience. If your other plants are responding well to your feeding program,then it has to be an environmental issue bothering your pubes. Good luck!
Click to expand...
I agree with this 100%. Grow multiple varieties to see what works best. I've had rocoto plants produce hundreds of pods in a year, but other rocoto varieties produce no pods, in the same conditions. Also, I give my rocotos a 50/50 direct sunlight to shade/filtered sunlight during the Summer.

Grow a bunch of Pubescens varieties to see what works in your environment. If they don't produce kick them to the curb, but the ones that do produce OW them, or save seeds for the next year. I try new varieties every year, and also grow varieties that I know will work in my environment. Typically I get rocoto yields like this biweekly-weekly in the late Summer/Fall:

 
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