shade Bhuts, hot weather and shadecloth

[simon]

As mentioned in another thread, I have been growing Bhuts, along with Habaneros and some other younger plants. The Bhuts and Habs are of production age.

The Habs have been going along nicely with good yields. The Bhuts on the other hand, appear to struggle with the heat - and maybe wont really produce much at all until the sting starts to go out of summer.

However, I have decided to try the shadecloth approach to see if it helps at all (I doubt it coz I have some Bhuts in the shade almost all day and they haven't produced anything either, so...).

First of all, these are the temps we have been experiencing here in Perth this summer...

Here are photos of the setup. This area of the yard is in almost full sun for most of the day.

as you can see, some of the plants have become a bit one-sided due to spending the last few months up against a wall. Hope to fix eventually.

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[richphitzwell]

In my climate I can grow yr round but I have noticed that habs are fine in full sun while my bhuts prefer either morning to noon or noon to evening full sun but not morning to evening. your temps are about the same as mine though and you guys are a little closer about 500km to the equator than I am so your sun i probably a little more but not much than mine.

Personally I didnt find heat to be the issue but the intensity of the light. So the question is what soil are you using, what fert are you using? Ive heard that is a key issue with some people not producing.

 

[simon]

Personally I didnt find heat to be the issue but the intensity of the light. So the question is what soil are you using, what fert are you using? Ive heard that is a key issue with some people not producing.

Interesting. Well, I think we have done all we can do wrt light intensity. I guess I had better put some work into the soil business next. Using "Baileys Premium Potting Mix" from the hardware store. I will knuckle down and do some research. I noticed there is a thread pinned at the top of one of the boards dealing with this issue.

 

[Mezo]

Well i was in Perth the last five years growing everything, all in pots (rental place) big pots mean big plats & as for water in Perth? in summertime drown them AM and PM when its 40+

I used to drag my chilis around the garden (in there pots) some like the full sun & others only wanted half a days worth, the buet of plastic plant pots.

My potting mix of choice was 'Organix' from Bunnigs, big range of produce but get thte right one & your plants will love you, i cheated a bit with Organix fish emulshion when i could afford it & a little toomato booster just as they are fruiting.

This is the only pic i could find of the bag i used for years.

Mezo.

 

[simon]

Mezo, were you growing Bhut's? They are my problem child at the moment. Scorps are showing potential to be a problem as well - but Bhuts are definitely at the top of the list as we speak.

 

[Mezo]

Mezo, were you growing Bhut's? They are my problem child at the moment. Scorps are showing potential to be a problem as well - but Bhuts are definitely at the top of the list as we speak.

Nope none of the superhots im afraid, this is the first time ive grown the hot ones & now im living on the east coast, so very defferent to WA`s long hot dry summer, here its west, its hot & humid with a typical Aussie storm thrown in for entertainment.

I am growing Bhuts right now for the first time, i wish i had grown them back in Perth for a comparison, im like a big kid sitting here watching & comparing, one thing i did notice was bugs, never saw a bug in WA & here on the border ranges (temerate/sub tropical) there are loads of bugs, its the moisture that breeds them here.


Mezo.

 

[simon]

Talking about bugs - last year I was overrun with aphids. This year - none (touch wood). But we did kick off summer with a tonne of ladybirds - so maybe they got into the aphids before they could get started.

 

[Pablo_h]

Yeah, got to keep chinense in some sort of shade from the Perth sun. Even my annuums in the ground which are podding heaps, like a bit of relief from the intense sunlight.
I had most flowers and a few pods on choc scorps, choc bhuts, bonda ma jacques, scotch bonnet etc, all drop off during the 40C days, flowers are only starting up again, but most of them look like they'll drop.
Though when was the last time is rained in Perth? That's when my plants last had water! Had to water 4 of them today (I only water each potted/bucketed plant as it needs it individually, ie wilted even before it warms up/gets direct sunlight)

Smallest youngest late sowed plants in 100mm pots took a bashing today, most of them laying horizontal and wilted to nothing, one seedling carked it, the rest bounced back.
I did have all these plants under a tree a few weeks ago during the bigening of the heat and up to the recent 40C days, so not much direct sunlight after 10am, but moved them under a perspex lazer light sheet verandah as they were growing too slowly. But even then, they only get direct sunlight (still diffused by old semi opaque lazer light sheeting, between 12-3pm - worst time of the day I know, but they need more light and so many trees here, so that's the only place/time they'll get more than 2 hrs direct light. And they do wilt more and drop flowers more now at that!

Our sun is too intense, especially for chinense with their large leaves, most people here do use shadecloth or natural shading. But then again, I water only once per week, and hardly ever fertilize either, there's whatever ferts that was in the potting mix, 1/2 cup of blood and bone, and a handful of rooster booster or dynamic lifter pellets. I have tried some other liquid stuff (seasol, nitrosol, focus, go go juice, but only each once to see if there's any improvements, so it's a once a month thing me adding something else)

 

[simon]

But then again, I water only once per week, and hardly ever fertilize either, there's whatever ferts that was in the potting mix, 1/2 cup of blood and bone, and a handful of rooster booster or dynamic lifter pellets. I have tried some other liquid stuff (seasol, nitrosol, focus, go go juice, but only each once to see if there's any improvements, so it's a once a month thing me adding something else)

Water once per week! Crikey. Mine look like death warmed up after a day without water in this temperature.

It will be interesting to see if the shadecloth has any beneficial effect. I have noticed that they are starting to grow more new flowers - but we have just had a good run of sub 30 days (4 in a row to be exact according to the BoM website) so that may be the cause. Will be interesting to watch...

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[richphitzwell]

First off your plant looks great. Second, im a noob so keep that in mind. I have 6 plants all are trying to flower right now but we are still in winter. They were in pots and now in the ground since november. Last season one never flowered, a couple hardly flowered and a couple over fruited. Same location, same everything. This year it looks like they will all fruit and fruit a bit, fingers crossed.

Anywho with that said my ratio of pot size to plant size was a bit more than you have. Too me your pot looks a bit small which may be why the watering less than daily is a problem for you. The bigger the pot the less drastic root temps will be. Like the other poster stated though, I water about once a week as well only when the soil starts to dry out, more often when hot and dry and less so when cooler.

Nonetheless, bhuts are known to be temperamental with anything. Not really hard to grow but if you sneeze they drop their flowers. In my experience with the plants that fruited temps above 85f (29c)and they flowered like mad. Under 50 and they drop like mad. Our average summers are around 85-110ish f so about the same as you.


I wish you luck man!

 

[Mezo]

You could set up an irrigation system on the shade cloth, spraying a fine mist & one of them big fans that sits on the floor directing it through you chili plants, i know water costs money & so does the electric for the fan, but if you had it on a timer to come on say lunchtime through till 6pm?

All depends how flashier a setup you like, part of doing this as a hobby is experimenting with different setups & each place has its own unique climate, i think the broader leafed chili`s suffer in Perth but the smaller leafed type seems to thrive in that intense sun.

I was like a Bhut Jolokia, i wilted away when it was 40+ especially working in a roof space (sparky) where the temps were up at around the 60°C mark.

Mezo.

 

[simon]

Yep. It would be nice if someone came and set that up for us

Have been thinking automation but want to get the conditions right first and can set up something then once i know what works. Early indications are that the shadecloth is going okay. We will see what happens over the next few weeks.

 

[Mezo]

Well thats the downside of Perth i guess, it gets to hot & if your not there to care for your plants its so easy to loose them all.
You could set up a real cheap system with a tap timer connected to a sprinler head fixed up under the shade cloth.

The only reason i mentioned a fan was Perth is famous for them still (no wind) scorching hot days, plants would love some air movement (even warm air moving) all helps.

Mezo.

 

[simon]

Have considered the tap/sprinkler system Mezo and it may need to be called upon yet.

Mate , hasnt been so still here lately. In fact wind burn is probably my biggest source of damage so far this year. Just one more reason for flowers to drop.

That's farmin!

 

[simon]

OK, weather first because I think it tells the story...

and as you can see, flowers have started developing now that the sting has gone out of the weather...
This is a Trinidad Scorpion Butch T

Bhut Jolokia

Scorp and Bhut

Wild and woolly Bhut's (and the scorp from above stuck in the back corner). These things are going to be massively hacked back to the bare bones once I can work out whether or not they are going to produce any pods.

This is another Scorp in another part of the yard. Lots of flowers developing on this one

Same Scorp in amongst some Cayennes and a "Hot Tomato" (which planted and grew itself in very sandy soil!)

So all in all its amazing what a difference the temp can make by the look of things.

 

[simon]

Took the shade cloth off a couple of weeks ago. Here are the temps...

The Bhuts, while developing flower nodes, have not managed to go into bloom. They just fall off.

On the other hand, the Scorps, which were sharing the space with the Bhuts are kicking on nicely now...

 

[simon]

The Bhuts were becoming a space hogging, unproductive nuisance - so I put them all up against a south facing wall, cut them back and now they are out of the way. If they produce anything, it will be a bonus.

Now I can put my greenhouse up and move the seedlings in. The weather is starting to get wintry (although Saturday's forecast is 27!)