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2019 Hay Bale Pepper Patch

I've been a member for a while but never posted a grow log. My usual garden is too boring for that. I use 20-30 pots and overwinter my mama plants in a hillbilly winter shelter. Our ground here isn't good for in soil gardening and I've not been enthused enough to undertake the work and expense to build raised beds.
 
Now I have my peppers working the way I want and have the need for a much larger grow to supply a project. The main peppers I'll grow will be reaper, douglah and fatalii. For a couple of years I'll do hay bale gardens and heap tons of organic trash into the area. I have monumental amounts of pine straw, oak leaves and bonfire ash every year to dump in the walkways. I think this will do a world of good to make this new garden area mo'betta for eventual in ground growing.
 
I closed off a 38x38 patch in the NE field that gets full sun. This is the area I chose. The big painted guy is my fertilizer supplier.
 
The little painted guy is my running buddy and load inspector.
 
 
 

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DWB said:
I wrapped my first tulle/field fence isolation cage today. I used hot glue for this one so we'll see how it holds up in the big storm that's allegedly coming tonight.
 
I learned something on this first one. Don't glue it all up and then try to slip in place over the wire. Methinks that's about like trying to put a condom on a cholla cactus. When I do another, I'll glue the top shut then glue the side seam shut while in place on the cage.
 
OivVAle.jpg

 
I found a bunch of baby maters on the A Grappoli D'Inverno plants.
 
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I like the isolation idea!
 
Speaking of the maters, mine usually run March 1st to mid June in the dirt, then off with their heads, because enough is enough... :shh:
 
 
It don't look quite as stetto with all the row covers and frost pots gone.
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These beans will make a nice shade cover over tomato row if I encourage it. Anybody think a beanstalk ceiling can offer enough cooling to make the maters happier in the hubs of hell heat of the summer?
 
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DWB said:
These beans will make a nice shade cover over tomato row if I encourage it. Anybody think a beanstalk ceiling can offer enough cooling to make the maters happier in the hubs of hell heat of the summer?
 
Diminishing the mid-day heat is only half the problem down here.
 
If those beans can do something about the hot, humid nights, then you're on to something.
 
bpiela said:
I love this isolation netting thing you got going.  I am thinking it is possible I can use it to protect my plants from the pepper maggot flies.  Did you make those cages yourself?  What type of caging did you use?  How high?
 
Thanks for the info.
 

The cages are 47" tall high tensile field fence. Two bad things about that is you gotta buy a 330' roll and you have to use bolt cutters to cut it. But it lasts forever.
 
For the first bunch of cages, I used this. Because I wasn't paying attention when I dragged the roll outta the woods.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/bekaert-gaucho-high-tensile-field-fence-14-ga-47-in-x-330-ft?cm_vc=-10005
 
For the rest I'll use this because of the much heavier gauge.
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/red-brand-woven-field-fence-330-ft-l-x-47-in-h?cm_vc=-10005
 
stettoman said:
Oh wait, I get it..."row covers and frost pots".
 
:rolleyes:  :neutral:  :snooty:  :eh:  :think:  :doh:  :hmm:  :stop:  :shame:
 
Ok, ok, I mean...
 
:clap:  :D  :point:  :drunk:  :lol:  :dance:  :P  :party:
 
Please allow me to elaborate. I live in the sticks. At least 25 miles from any of many small towns and all small cities. My junky ass garden was looking kinda ghetto compared to how it should look and what I envisioned. It looks better now. Ya gotta admit, this thing was looking kinda ghetto even for being so deep in the sticks.
 
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I can understand that feeling Dee, though it really doesn't look bad, at least from my perspective. But I do totally get that, and I really found it hard essentially starting over and looking at some of the fantastic gardens here on THP, as well the way I do things which has to be as cheap as possible for the foreseeable future, leaves me with that ghetto stetto feel.
 
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