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AJs 2010 Season Start

AlabamaJack

AlabamaJack

eXtreme
no seeds planted today but I got my germinator dug out and my work areas cleaned off...

germinator with lights off.....

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germinator with lights on....

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got the thermostat hooked back up on the germinator, plugged all lights, thermostat, and lights for heat in and what a surprize...all lights worked and the thermostat still does too...

I built this germinator in November or December 2007 and have used it for two years...it is the cats meow...I can start four 72 cell flats in each chamber for a total of 576 seeds...I will start 8 trays every two weeks until the middle of march...

I gave each chamber of the germinator a good soaking with pyrethrin spray and am leaving it closed up until in the morning when I start planting...

after the trays have been in the germinator for two weeks, they will go in my grow box...not shown because it is full of stuff from last year...then after two weeks in the grow box, they will go to my grow area after transplant to 3" square containers...my grow area will accomodate 360 or so 3" containers in 20 count trays.....after they have been in the grow area for 6 weeks, it will be time to start hardening off the plants at which time they will switch from the sunlit yard to the shaded patio until they are sold or transplanted to 5 gallon containers for my own use....I should end up with about 1000 or 1100 plants for sale and keep about 350 for myself....

this is going to be one heck of a season I hope....

good luck all in this coming grow season.......
 
You'll be the king this year too. I'm planning on keeping 20-25 chileplants this year:) Or - maybe more... I will be moving to a bigger place with more room on april 1st... Never thought of that...

But Holy Spaghetti Monster, that's like 1400 plants! Good thing you don't have a day job!
 
I bet I build something like that for next season myself. If you dont mind, what kinda thermostat? What are you using for heat?
 
I am using a remote bulb thermostat...was about 130 bucks...and I only use light for heat

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just found this...this is a picture of my complete grow area in the garage

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when all lights are cranked up like this, I am pushing 2686 watts and it costs me about 30 cents an hour to run them...so you see my electric bill really increases during Feb/March...about 6 bucks a day for electricity....
 
Looks like you've put a lot of effort into it, and the results speak for themselves.
AJ, you're not a pepper grower.
You're a freakin force of nature, my friend.
Can't wait to be wowed by your garden again.
 
Nice grow room. So, when it reaches 85f in there it shuts the lights off and when it falls back to 82f it turns the lights back on?
 
thanks SD...just putting to practice what works well for me...

MJD...you got it...and i'm not talking ambient temperature in the germinator...the remote bulb goes into the soil of one of the cells of the seed starting tray so the soil temp is 85F
 
I apologize for all the questions but I am a master question asker. By "remote bulb" you mean the tempature probe of the thermostat?
 
AJ.

As always, I'm envious - except for some very long season plants and a few toms I want to experiment with in the next few months, I know I cannot sow seeds. Not that I wouldn't like to - I wish. But I saw what happened last year and I lost a couple hundred plants because they just got too dang big.

So what varieties of peppers or other plants are you planning on selling? IIRC, some of the peppers you liked extremely well, shoppers didn't care for.

Great luck, guy. May it be a most excellent growing season!

Mike
 
thanks all...as I have said before, it is a labor of love for me...

Mjdtexan said:
I apologize for all the questions but I am a master question asker. By "remote bulb" you mean the tempature probe of the thermostat?
Click to expand...

yup...it has a probe (thermocouple) on the end of about a 10' lead wire that goes to the thermostat...

wordwiz said:
So what varieties of peppers or other plants are you planning on selling? IIRC, some of the peppers you liked extremely well, shoppers didn't care for. Mike
Click to expand...

I will still have about 60 or 70 Bhuts for sale...I sold about 40 last year...bunch of scorpions and 7 pot, super cayenne II hybrids, few super chili, few anaheim types maybe NuMex Sandias, some poblanos, bunch of serranos and jalapenos but most people won't pay the price I want for them...heck when you can buy a jap seedling at wally world for .99....you know what I mean...I will have billy bikers and a standard serrano...scotch bonnets...caribbean reds...fataliis....banana peppers (hungarian wax)...trinidad congos...pretty good seller last year...all I had to do was say large habanero type and people would buy...the chocolates are pretty good...

problem is Mike, I have explain to each person what these peppers are and very, very few know what a Bhut Jolokia is....much less a Trinidad Scorpion or 7 Pot....I enjoy talking to the people about the peppers anyway so I have fun...

millworkman said:
Are you not using the tent this year?
Click to expand...

that POS cover lasted one year...I am very disappointed with the quality and really pissed at myself for wasting that 700 dollars...I probably will take the raggedy ass cover down and put shade cloth up for this summer...at least I will have some shade in my yard....
 
Good luck AJ. I am sure you are going to have another banner year.
One question, how large are your plants, and in what size containers when you sell them?
 
AlabamaJack said:
that POS cover lasted one year...I am very disappointed with the quality and really pissed at myself for wasting that 700 dollars...I probably will take the raggedy ass cover down and put shade cloth up for this summer...at least I will have some shade in my yard....
Click to expand...

AJ,

Check this out. I have it on my GH and it seems to be holding up quite well. Not only that, but it is a lot cheaper!

Mike
 
In the picture of the garage, is that a bed on the left? Or is it just a blue tarp to cover something else? I can see it now, AJ out in the garage "No honey I cant come in tonight, the peppers are lonely and want me to read them a bedtime story" LOL J/K AJ, its all good.
 
Good luck, AJ! Gonna be a great season for ya, and I can't wait to see your progress.

Maybe some more YouTube updates this season?
 
It begins! Today in Texan history it SHALL be remembered that this is where AJ started to block out the sun with pepper plants!
 
WOW...that is one fantastically, splendiforously, magnificus and scientifical profesional setup AJ, how many different varieties are you planning on growing this year
 
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