• Blog your pepper progress. The first image in your first post will be used to represent your Glog.

Devv-2017-Having a good time in the dirt

Another season has come and gone. Time to start a new one!
 
Although I did already a few weeks ago :shh: . After last years dismal (late) start I jumped in a bit early to insure I could have viable plants come dirt day. I can always cut them back, if I need to. I have to compile a list yet, but I'm growing the full spectrum. Sweets, to supers, based upon what we will actually use. Most of my list is to make LB happy; I'm really glad to see her infuse peppers in more and more dishes. Can't beat that when the wife takes interest ;)
 
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Not the best pic; but the shelf is being sketchy, and I don't need all the babies bouncing off the floor.
 
Good luck to all this season :party:
 
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Bhuter said:
Nice pull, Scott! I see some great colors in there, but that white one has my attention. Every white variety that I've grown always turns out yellow-ish. That's a nice bright white! Stunning!
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Thanks Adam!
 
Happy to pull just anything in mid summer here ;) The heat has been crazy, 8 days of 100° plus, 1 month of 97° and over, all day long. Saturday is supposed to be off the charts!
 
The white pepper is a White Bhut. It's a great pepper. I'll have seeds later on if you're interested...
 
 
Devv said:
 
Thanks Adam!
 
Happy to pull just anything in mid summer here ;) The heat has been crazy, 8 days of 100° plus, 1 month of 97° and over, all day long. Saturday is supposed to be off the charts!
 
The white pepper is a White Bhut. It's a great pepper. I'll have seeds later on if you're interested...
 
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Man, I don't know how you handle the heat. I'd be inside with A/C at all times...well, until garden surveying. That's basically what I do now. I'm spoiled and need to be dry. Lol.

How interesting that that pod is a White Bhut. I grew a couple of those in 2015 along with a White Fatalii and both varieties were a yellow-ish white. Seeds came from Judy for both. They weren't bad at all. A clean Chinese flavor with a hint of lemon. (Actually, the smell reminded me of Lemon Skunk Cannabis). Were your seeds from Judy?
 
Nice array of colors & varieties Scott...I  give you a lot of credit for how well you deal with the weather there,
Does the heat cause a significant decrease i the amount of pods,or does the amount pick up in September,as
you have such a long growing season?
I went to Houston & a few other places a while back..it was July & over 100* ..we  were glad to be anywhere with AC,
but we had a great time nonetheless...the best Mexican food I ever  tasted. ;)
 
 
 
 
 
 
Bhuter said:
Man, I don't know how you handle the heat. I'd be inside with A/C at all times...well, until garden surveying. That's basically what I do now. I'm spoiled and need to be dry. Lol.

How interesting that that pod is a White Bhut. I grew a couple of those in 2015 along with a White Fatalii and both varieties were a yellow-ish white. Seeds came from Judy for both. They weren't bad at all. A clean Chinese flavor with a hint of lemon. (Actually, the smell reminded me of Lemon Skunk Cannabis). Were your seeds from Judy?
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Hi Adam,
 
Been here since 1978, arrived from Long Island, NY. Going there next week!
 
When I first got here I thought I was going to die from the heat! Actually, I worked as an auto tech from 1978 to 1999 here, and few before in NY. The shop would hit 117° in the heat of the summer and I did drivability as a specialty. That involved working over 230° engines off and on all day. You just get used to it. Nowadays at a few months from 59, I can still do a sun-up to around 1 or 2 PM outside doing physical work. After that I say beer time ;) It's a matter of conditioning. On work days I'm home around 3PM and always do and hour to an hour and a half outside before settling down in the AC. I drink a lot of water!
 
I got the White Bhut seeds from Ramon (Walkgood) back during the 2013 grow. I'm really pleased that after all these years they still grow true. I'd call it luck.
 
 
wiriwiri said:
Nice array of colors & varieties Scott...I  give you a lot of credit for how well you deal with the weather there,
Does the heat cause a significant decrease i the amount of pods,or does the amount pick up in September,as
you have such a long growing season?
I went to Houston & a few other places a while back..it was July & over 100* ..we  were glad to be anywhere with AC,
but we had a great time nonetheless...the best Mexican food I ever  tasted. ;)
 
 
 
 
 
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Thanks Sandy ;)
 
Growing in the heat is a challenge, I'm still trying to nail down the pepper grow. Anything pepper wise set in the dirt before April 1st, just sits there. Then by June, pod sizes shrink, and any pod setting is a blessing. The temps ramp up too quickly. Tomatoes go in March 1st and are done by mid to late June as a reference. I can do a fall tomato crop if I want to. Most that live North of us in the cooler states have those 3 to 6 cold months that are rough. Here it's Late May-June through September 15th. Then the other 8-9 months are just really nice weather. We do get some cold fronts that usually last 3-4 days, the colder ones may have a freeze at night (28°) and a high of 40°. Last year just a few. We can get really cold here, but really rare. I saw 15° as a high on 12-24-1989, never have seen it that cold since. No snow here, but once in a while an ice storm.
 
Come September we plant all the cool weather plants, and the peppers kick back in until a freeze. Last season we were into mid January before they were shut down by the weather.
 
We lived in the Houston area for 8 years before moving West. It's not as humid here, and of course less rain. But we like the place we have out here, nice and private ;)
 
Mexican food, I love it! So many variations of the same dish and most are just killer. We have 2 we really like, 1 here in Devine and 1 in San Antonio. I posted the recipe for the hot sauce they make in Devine in the last 2 weeks. The SA place has won awards in the Margarita contests they hold in SA. Hint, they use old time lemonade and brown sugar in their Margarita's ;)
 
 
stickman said:
Glad to hear the drip irrigation worked out for you while you were away on vacation Scott... it's a good feeling to be "off the leash" and able to take off for a while if needed. ;)  BOC pods are looking great! If they're anything like the ones I grew a few years ago, they're gonna hurt. I liked the flavor though... great for powder or sauces. Cheers!
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The new water system did well; I just hope it continues to work for several years. We're back out again to visit LB's side of the family on the 4th, so it needs to work ;)
 
I was really surprised at how well the plants did being it hit 100° every day we were gone, and..it continues. 104.5° here at 5PM today. And no wilting in the garden. Of course no pod setting to speak of. But they hung this long. September should be sweet :dance:
 
 
Not much going on here. The plants are in survival mode. If I can keep them alive 5 more weeks we should be good ;) Then I have 120+ days until the average freeze.  LB suggested next year that I set plants out about now; instead of getting frustrated with the spring grow. I'll do a spring grow next year with a different twist and see how it runs. And decide after that.
 
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I actually over watered while I was away in MB. Some of the plants want to yellow up.
 
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I can't get over this Large Orange Thai plant. Not caring about the temps flowering like crazy and setting a load of pods.
 
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JA Hab has lots of flowers.
 
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We have A LOT of bees around here. So many that they can become a nuisance, but regardless I set up a watering station for them.
 
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I got my eye on you!
 
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Aji Oro, still pumping out (a few) flowers in triple digit heat.
 
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All the pubes have sunburned leaves but this one, so I left it in the garden..
 
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stettoman said:
Damn you, growing pineapple when you know that there are pineapple lovers in the Tundra praying for global warming to become real.

Mantis looks about right, ours are bright green. I envy your orange Thai, mine only has buds. My Aji Oro looks good too, if only a LOT smaller.

I can't even say I got you on dirt! Nice setup, mang!
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Hah!
 
We've been growing them for quite a while, and they do well in small pots.
 
That's the first Mantis I've seen with that coloration. Mostly green or brown, some get huge.
 
Thanks, the soil is finally getting there!
 
 
FreeportBum said:
Pineapples! how long to get fruit? i've read it can take a couple years. Your garden looks great, keep up the great work. Cheers 
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Thanks!
 
The Pineapples take 2 years to produce, once they do, they send out suckers. Once the suckers are about 10"s long grab and twist and pull, plant about 1.5"s deep, keep moist and you should have fruit in about a year. They are extremely cold sensitive, just like a house plant. It only freezes here about every three to five years, so I get brave and put a few in the dirt, cuz I get tired of hauling them in. Then it freezes. We lost 7 large mature plants last winter.
 
To start a new plant: Cut the part with the leaves on it leaving 1" of the top of the Pineapple below it. Set it upside down inside for 3 days, then plant it in a pot covering the bottom and leave the leaves above the soil. Keep it nice and wet and it will grow. We've never had one fail, and they're pretty resilient, aka hard to kill, as long as they don't freeze.
 
And the fruit, simply blows store bought ones away! They pick them green, we let them turn on the plant.
 
 
OCD Chilehead said:
Great looking plants. You really have it going on. Can't wait to see the twist on things next year. You are a great grower. It shows.

Orange Thai is a monster. Should get lots of pods from that one before years end.
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Thanks Chuck!
 
I should be loaded by fall ;)  This year was slow. I feel all the RCW I tilled in tied up the goodies the plants want.
 
Next year I want this:
 
A blast from the past ...2014:
 
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This was like every 4 days, back in 2014, before I added all the RCW. I should never have tilled it in, instead I should have left it on top....lesson learned!

 
 
Superhot Sim said:
+1 With Chuck, man you can grow [emoji6] , and now we see fresh pineapples lol
You could make a superb jam with the fruits and kiwi and your papa dreadie pods Scott.
Even in extreme heat your in cruise control buddy.
Good growing [emoji106] [emoji41]



Sent from my VFD 900 using Tapatalk
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Thanks Sim!
 
I've been stocking up the freezer with  the P. Dreadie's, such a wonderful pod! And they will be used properly for sure ;)
 
 
Bhuter said:
+2 You've got it going on, Scott! Everything looks terrific! I love the hydration station for the bees. And that Mantis is awesome! Large Orange Thai...what can I say? Is that one plant?! Lol. Love the pineapple, too. Great job, my friend. You are rockin!
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Thanks Adam!
 
Yes that's one plant. It's in the Hugel bed I made in the fall which liked to kill me LOL. It's 20x5 and 2' deep filled with wood. I put 6"s of garden soil on top, and about 1" of homemade biochar and another inch of finely ground, mature RCW composted with cow manure, which I collect from the pastures. I'm impressed with year one for sure! They say they get better every year ;)
 
To the right of the Hugel bed is the wannabe Terra Preta bed. About 17x5 with 5-6"s of homemade charcoal buried under 6-7"s of the garden soil. I have about 6-8 yards of leaves composting with a yard of cow manure, of which some will be added to it. I just love the dirt ;)
 
 
Devv said:
 
Thanks Chuck!
 
I should be loaded by fall ;)  This year was slow. I feel all the RCW I tilled in tied up the goodies the plants want.
 
Next year I want this:
 
A blast from the past ...2014:
 
1153.jpg

1155.jpg

 
This was like every 4 days, back in 2014, before I added all the RCW. I should never have tilled it in, instead I should have left it on top....lesson learned!
 
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I remember that year, Scott. That was a good year for me as well. Your garden that year influenced me so much. Seriously, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have went to ground. Next year it will be better. I'm sure of that!
 
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