A Learning Curve - Physics' 2014 Glog

So, gardening has become a new obssession of mine.  Wife and I did our first last year which consisted of Tomatos, Cucumbers, Green Beans, Squach, and Peppers.  I started researching about gardenting (mostly youtube) and stumbled across videos of chili heads testing these rare varieties of peppers.  I already liked a bit of spice in my food and had made some hot sauces of sorts, so this year I wanted to try some of these "rare" varieties.  So here I am starting my garden for 2014 and am adding a large variety of peppers to my grow. 
 
My last garden mostly consisted of getting plants from lowes and transferring them into some garden beds that I had made.  This year I'm getting an early start and starting from seed.  I'm quite new to gardening and I figure the best way to get critisism about my process is to start a Glog and let everyone watch & comment on what I'm doing. 
 
I'll start with the new garden beds that I made.
 

 
The large one is going to be peppers only.  It's 10' x 5' and I plan to plant 15 plants in it.  The soil that I've loaded into it might not be optimal, but it worked really well last year.  My parents have a horse farm, and I loaded up a bunch of decomposed manuer and dumped it in.  The manuer is a combination of shavings, horse poop/pee, and straw.  I'm not sure the advantages/disadvantages of using this as the base of my soil, so If anyone has advice, I'm all ears.  I will sprinkle a few bags of garden soil on top too, and have entertained the idea of mixing in sand.  I also didn't use any fertilizers last year, and plan to change that.  I'm pretty sure this "soil" is pretty dense in some types of nutrients, so not sure what would best compliment it.
 
P.S.  I'm really digging this website by the way.  Seems like a good site and I'm looking forward to being a part of this community.

 

[queequeg152]

Sunlight is much more intense than the florescent bulbs. If the plants aren't used to it, you will burn their leaves leaving them in the sun too long. You have to introduce them gradually to it over a couple/few weeks.

 
i know what you are saying, but it is not true in my experiance.
i have a PLL lamp, 250+ watts, no different from a t5 really. they go straight from that outside, without batting an eye.
i also have a t8 i use, with the aide of a small fan, the plants grow into contact with the bulbs. these go out into September and march sunlight without a problem.
 
unless you have some anemic spindly plants, from a poor CFL array or t12's...or what ever, they wont bat an eye.  by all means tho watch them if you like.
be careful with the plastic domes tho, sun has like 1000x more infrared than your t5's they could easily bake to death under a dome.
 
this is march. not august, you have to keep that in mind. were still like 3 months from equinox btw.
where is virginia anyway? like 35 lat?

 

[Jeff H]

this is march. not august, you have to keep that in mind. were still like 3 months from solstice btw.
 

FIFY

 

[queequeg152]

FIFY

fair enough lol, dont know chit about astronomy tbh.
 
but i was taught the equinoxes were related to the seaons? like as related to the earths precession/tilt.
is what i said about the summer equinox seeing the most solar irradiance true?

 

[Sm1nts2escape]

I really like your raised beds and the pepper list. Good luck!

 

[Physics202]

Looking great man!

In regards to the soil, how long has the manure decomposed? Got to make sure it isn't hot. Also, I'd consider adding some pine bark to the mix... Provides great drainage and may soften the fertilizer density a little. Perlite has a similar effect.

BBQ log looks decadent. I can feel my arteries clogging!

Happy growin!

 
The manure is a mix of some fairly fresh and some fairly old.  By old I mean 6months - 1 year, and by fresh I mean 2-3 months maybe?  When you say "Got to make sure it isn't hot"  Do you mean actual temperature from the manure breaking down?  I was thinking about perlite, but seems pricey.  Pine bark is mulch?  that I would mix into the manure?
 
That particular bit of BBQ is a serious heart stopper... I feel a need to do some serious exercise by the time I finish the fattie.
So, I'm 2 weeks in from when I sowed my seeds, and I am a little disappointed with my sprout rate.  This is my first attempt to grow from seed, and am new to the whole thing, so I guarantee I am being impatient, but still concerned a little.
 
I set up 72 peat moss plugs with 1 seed each.  So far only 7 have sprouted.  They are jiffy pellets and they are in the little plastic dome, and also sitting on a heat mat.  I haven't measured the temperature of the soil or anything.  I've re moistened the pellets twice since initial soak/expand process.  My process for remoistening is to just put a couple cups of warm water into the bin, let soak for a min, then drain off any excess.  I did not pre-soak any of my seeds.
 
Also I've gathered that different varieties of peppers by nature have different germination periods.  C. Chinese vs C. Annum.  I tried looking up more info about the differences of the species, but didn't find a whole lot. 
 
I'm resisting the urge to reseed some, but because I'm new to this I can't help but doubt my process thus far...  Did I keep them moist optimally?  Are the at a good temperature?  Did I sow the seeds too deep?  So much doubt....

 

[Physics202]

Finally another hook popped up.  This one is a Chinese Giant (sweet).  Here's some picks of how my sprouts are so far.
 

 
The new guy

 
Photo Bomb

 
Unfortunately I think some mold just popped up in a couple of my cups.  I've made a more detailed post about it in the growing forum:
 
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/45866-does-this-look-like-mold-and-what-do-i-do/

 

[Devv]

I could have sworn I was in here the other day, but I guess not.
 
Really nice work on the raised beds! I made one this winter and it's not near as nice looking.
 
That bacon sausage dish looks really good!
 
I hear ya about germing, it always seems to take too long. I've learned staring at them and checking them 5 times a day doesn't help.
Are you germing in the solo cups? When I do so I put plastic wrap over the top to hold the moisture. I just got a hook on a seed planted Feb 14th yesterday, so anything from a few days on is possible.
 
I read above about hardening the plants, I'm a fan of gradual introduction.
 
Good luck this season!

 

[Jeff H]

Little sprouts looking good.

 

[Physics202]

3 weeks into my grow.  I've only had 11/72 sprouts pop up.  I made a post trying to narrow down possible things that might be wrong.
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/45981-germination-troubles/
 
I just started a new batch of seeds that are currently soaking for 24hours, and will sow them up tomorrow evening.  I'm excited about some MOAs that a forum member sent me(Thanks again Denniz).  Scotch Bonnets and Fatalii's are what I want to grow the most, so I'm really hoping they pop up.  The plants that have already sprouted seem to be doing quite well.  First sets of true leaves are popping up on almost all of them.  My focus is to make sure not to over water and just let them do their thing.  I plan to hit them with a mild dose of fish emulsion soon, which I'm hoping will be safe.  Here's some pics
 
Jay's Peach GS

 
White Hab
Which are surprisingly small...

 
Banana

 
Chinese Giant

 
Ivory Bell

 
Jalora
Which I think is looking really good.

 
And Biker Billy Jalapeno

 
 
I left lots of room to throw in extra soil thinking there would be legginess for some odd reason, but the T5's seem to be doing the trick, so I'll top off the soil for the next ones.  Question... If a pepper plant does get leggy, and you cover that stalk up with some soil, will roots grow out of it like they do with tomatoes?  I've heard both yes and no.

 

[Jeff H]

 
 
  Question... If a pepper plant does get leggy, and you cover that stalk up with some soil, will roots grow out of it like they do with tomatoes?  I've heard both yes and no.

 

Yes, but peppers take forever to grow roots so don't be surprised if you don't see roots growing out of the stem for several weeks or more. When a lot of us transplant the little babies, we like to plant them all they way up to the cots. It gets the roots deep in the pot which is a good thing.

 

 

 

[Physics202]

Quick update
 
New batch of seeds have been sprouting much better than last batch.  I held back on watering this time and have monitored temperature which has seemingly made a big difference.  I went on vacation to new orleans for 5 days, so I was a little nervous about leaving everything , but all seemed well when I returned.  Here are some pics of what I have so far.
 
Seems flikr is acting up.  Might be the remote desktop connection I'm on.  Anyways, here are some links to pictures...
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/118910035@N05/13815232473/in/photostream/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/118910035@N05/13815211955/in/photostream/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/118910035@N05/13815218435/in/photostream/
 
Many of those are quite young, but my first batch has plenty of leaves growing.  In the first picture though, there are a couple plants with leaves curling up.  They are both the same variety (jay's peach ghost scorpion).  I keep the soil more dry than wet, and have fertilized once with half strength fish emulsion.  Initially I was thinking I over watered them, but I reasearched a bit and saw maybe magnesium deficiency.  These plants have been out in natural sun a lot more lately, and the curl is going away.  Thinking about getting some Epsom salt to spray.
 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/118910035@N05/13815183425/in/photostream/
 
Found a place in New Orleans called pepper palace which was AWESOME.  They had like 50 of thier own sauces/salsas and had samples of everything.  I didn't bring any back because of the whole liquids on airplanes, but I might grab something from their website.  The choc hab sauce was surprisingly good.  I believe it has chocolate in it.  It's crazy though that every store had bottles of hot sauces down there.  Nothing like it is here in VA.

 

[RocketMan]

Man, I like the look of those beds too. I'll be building a bunch for next year so I'll keep those plans in mind. One question though, were the 4x4's long enough to bury some length for stability? In the plans I've looked at some do and some don't, just curious if you did.

Nice assortment of peppers and heat levels. Your going to love those MOAs and if you know anyone who is from Jamaica and they see those peppers, just smile and offer them a few.

You picked the perfect place to post up as a new grower. I started growing a couple of years ago and received great advice and made a lot of wonderful new friends.

Following

 

[Jeff H]

 
Found a place in New Orleans called pepper palace which was AWESOME.  They had like 50 of thier own sauces/salsas and had samples of everything.  I didn't bring any back because of the whole liquids on airplanes, but I might grab something from their website.  The choc hab sauce was surprisingly good.  I believe it has chocolate in it.  It's crazy though that every store had bottles of hot sauces down there.  Nothing like it is here in VA.

 
Plants look great.
 
Pepper Palace is a small chain. Check their website for all their locations, no need to go all teh way to New Orleans for their hot sauces, the one in MD might not be too far from you depending on where you are in VA. There is also several in TN. I've personally been to the one in Gatlinburg.

 

[filmost]

If you are familiar with square foot gardening give it a peek. Technically in at true 10' x 5' you could get 50 plants.
 
This was a 4' x 4' with 16 plants.
 

 
Welcome and great start, best of luck.
 
I was born where you live, Riverside hospital.

 
Holy smokes! How deep is that and what did you grow them in?!

 

[Physics202]

Man, I like the look of those beds too. I'll be building a bunch for next year so I'll keep those plans in mind. One question though, were the 4x4's long enough to bury some length for stability? In the plans I've looked at some do and some don't, just curious if you did.

 

 
I cut the 4x4's to be just the height of the bed.  I thought about making them long and extending into the groud for stability, but I knew that I was going to be digging some of the bed into the groud anyways.  Also the top ledge section adds a good bit of stregth to the bed and help keep it from bulging out.

First platns have been planted!  I had planned to wait till May, but I got eager and the forcast looked good.  Pics!  :
 
Untitled by physics202, on Flickr
I am still waiting to put out some of my smaller plants, but they have all been soaking up some sunlight, and should be good to go soon.  Planning to fill this up with 18 plants, and no duplicates.
 
 
I also built my cucumber trellis and got those planted out.
Untitled by physics202, on Flickr
 
 
And of course no work shall go unrewarded.
Untitled by physics202, on Flickr
 
 
I'll get some individual pics soon with the real camera and post my finalized list.

 

[Physics202]

Update Time
 
I'll start with my final grow list:
 
Fatalli
Choc Fatalli
Choc Hab
White Hab
Fresno
Biker Billy Jalapeno
Jaloro Jalapeno Hybrid
Savannah 7-Pot
Carolina Reaper
Chinese Giant
Golden Marconi
Choc Bell
Cayenne
MoA Scotch Bonnet  (King Denniz)
Scotch Bonnet
Jay's Peach Ghost Scorpion
Bananna
Orange Hab X Scotch Bonnet  (King Denniz)
 
I finally broke out the nice camera and took some pictures of them all, but unfortunatly I can't find the plot where I wrote down which plant is where... I'm assuming it will be obvious when the flowers bud.. I will also add that I really don't know squat about how to use a nice camera.  It's my wifes cannon Eos Rebel T3i.
 
IMG_1047 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1046 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1022 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1023 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1024 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1025 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1026 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1027 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1028 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1029 by physics202, on Flickr
 
Bump Please

 

[Seacowboy]

Bump for another Virgininian.

 

[Physics202]

IMG_1031 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1032 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1034 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1035 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1036 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1038 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1040 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1041 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1045 by physics202, on Flickr
 
 
Plants seem to be growing like crazy since they've been planted outside.  Only concern I have at the moment is the holes found on some of the plants.  I'm assuming it's from bugs / critters of some sort.  I took some pictures of all the bugs I found hanging out on the plants.  I'll post them with one more bump. 

 

[Runescape]

Bump, they're looking awesome, dude. 

 

[Physics202]

Here's some pics of the bugs I saw on the plants the day I took this picture.  I also have a ton of slugs in the area, although I haven't seen any this season.
 
IMG_1033 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1037 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1039 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1042 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1043 by physics202, on Flickr
 
IMG_1044 by physics202, on Flickr
 
I'm not sure which is doing the damage.  I think I'm going to spray a general pesticide.  I'm not particularly concerned with being organic, so I'm open to anything.  Some plants show holes, some seem to be untouched. 
 
 
Here's some no pepper pics
 
Tomatos (Indigo [King Denniz], Hillbilly Leaf, Tapps, and Roma)
IMG_1048 by physics202, on Flickr
 
Cucumbers (Lemon and a common type that I forget the name of)
IMG_1050 by physics202, on Flickr
 
Green Beans 
IMG_1049 by physics202, on Flickr
 
Thanks for checking out my GLOG