Thanks for the kudos guys! Now that I think about it, that second pic of the 7 pot primo kind of reminds me of one of those "face huggers" from the Alien movies, haha.
As for the root pouches my chinense plants are all in 5 gallons, and my thai chile plants are in 3 gallons. I am sold on those things for sure. My plants are doing better than when I put them in 5 gallon buckets, and I'll probably overwinter the primo and brain strain in the pouches after I cut back the branches this fall.
Basically, I finally have a system that works after 5 years of tinkering! Fill the root pouches with Pro mix or Sunshine mix, the recommended dose of Espoma's Tomato Tone fertilizer, several heaping handfuls of worm castings, and done. I supplement with a mild mix of Cal-mag and fish emulsion every 3 weeks or so, and damn if my plants aren't just pushing those pods out like crazy. Just got to keep them watered regularly, because those root pouches dry up pretty quickly, and with the heat wave we had the past couple of weeks, that means a solid watering per day.
Aw, what the hell, I'll post the rest of the pics I took:
Orange Thai up front in first row, Foodarama Scotch Bonnet second row in front (thanks Capitone), Aji Limon second row in back, Bhut Jolokia red third row up front, Brain Strain in back.
Khun Rabhi's Hybrid up front in first row (thanks kamo33), 7 Pot Primo second row in front, Douglah x probably Caribbean Red Habanero second row in back (no thanks to pollinating insects, haha), and finally, third row is a random C. chinense found at a market that I smuggled back from the Galapagos over New Years. This plant is very interesting for many reasons, and it didn't skip a beat during the last heat wave. I think its genetics are used to sweltering, humid heat.
Closeup of Khun Rabhi's Hybrid Thai chile plants. Crazy heat and very prolific, with a cool history behind them.
Closeup of Orange Thai I got from Seed Savers Exchange. All the recommendations from other board members were spot on. These Thai chiles taste great, are easy to grow, and have great heat to them. I'll be growing these every year from now on...
