Devv's 2014- Stick a fork in me, I'm done....

JJJessee · Jan 4, 2014

Pretty Mater. And everything else too for that matter.

stickman · Jan 5, 2014

Devv said:
Here's a few of the new family members..

sweet hungarian paprika
Kurtovska Kapija
Tobago Treasure
Brown Egg
I've never grown Oregano from seed, tiny, tiny seeds and plants!
Manzano, come on baby grow!

Alright Scott! Nice to see the Annuum and Manzano babies. I got some seeds for the Brown Egg from the developer of the BOC, so it looks like we'll both be growing it for the first time this season. Annie's spoken highly of the Tobago Treasure... if you have any extra seeds left over when you harvest it would you send some here please?

Now you've seen how easy it is to grow your own herbs there's no reason to put it off any longer.

Obviously you want to grow Basil and Cilantro too, but I'd recommend Summer Savory as well. It goes well in dishes containing Beans, eggs and cheese. I think Epizote grows wild out your way and makes a great addition to Mexican Black Bean soup, Quesadillas or sauces made with cream and roasted peppers.

Devv said:
Here's a few of the new family members..

sweet hungarian paprika
Kurtovska Kapija
Tobago Treasure
Brown Egg
I've never grown Oregano from seed, tiny, tiny seeds and plants!
Manzano, come on baby grow!

Alright Scott! Nice to see the Annuum and Manzano babies. I got some seeds for the Brown Egg from the developer of the BOC, so it looks like we'll both be growing it for the first time this season. Annie's spoken highly of the Tobago Treasure... if you have any extra seeds left over when you harvest it would you send some here please?

Now you've seen how easy it is to grow your own herbs there's no reason to put it off any longer.

Obviously you want to grow Basil and Cilantro too, but I'd recommend Summer Savory as well. It goes well in dishes containing Beans, eggs and cheese. I think Epizote grows wild out your way and makes a great addition to Mexican Black Bean soup, Quesadillas or sauces made with cream and roasted peppers.

Devv · Jan 5, 2014

JJJessee said:
Pretty Mater. And everything else too for that matter.

Thanks JJJ!

Stay warm these next few days!

stickman said:
Alright Scott! Nice to see the Annuum and Manzano babies. I got some seeds for the Brown Egg from the developer of the BOC, so it looks like we'll both be growing it for the first time this season. Annie's spoken highly of the Tobago Treasure... if you have any extra seeds left over when you harvest it would you send some here please?

Now you've seen how easy it is to grow your own herbs there's no reason to put it off any longer. Obviously you want to grow Basil and Cilantro too, but I'd recommend Summer Savory as well. It goes well in dishes containing Beans, eggs and cheese. I think Epizote grows wild out your way and makes a great addition to Mexican Black Bean soup, Quesadillas or sauces made with cream and roasted peppers.

Hi Rick!

Jason sent me seeds and I have enough to hopefully get you going, about 12, going out tomorrow. Your address still the same?
Got the 2 kinds of Basil growing, need to look in the Epizote. That's a new one to me.

Man I feel for 'yall these next few days; the weather is supposed to get way cold. They're talking 22° Tuesday morning, this means draining the outside lines and heating the well house. Glad it's a rare deal down here...

Stay warm!

ohmatic · Jan 5, 2014

lovely looking plants !

stickman · Jan 5, 2014

Devv said:
Thanks JJJ!

Stay warm these next few days!

Hi Rick!

Jason sent me seeds and I have enough to hopefully get you going, about 12, going out tomorrow. Your address still the same?
Got the 2 kinds of Basil growing, need to look in the Epizote. That's a new one to me.

Man I feel for 'yall these next few days; the weather is supposed to get way cold. They're talking 22° Tuesday morning, this means draining the outside lines and heating the well house. Glad it's a rare deal down here...

Stay warm!

I appreciate that bruddah! My addy is the same.

The wee hours of yesterday morning was the worst. It got down to -15 f.

It's 7 above 0 this morning and sunny, but I have to work until 8pm and it's supposed to turn to sleet and freezing rain early this evening. Not looking forward to the drive home from the next county. It's supposed to become rain tomorrow and then chill down to teens and twenties during the day and single digits for the overnight lows the rest of the week. Bet you miss this, eh? :liar

: I actually feel more for you folks down south... We know it's coming weeks in advance and can take our time getting ready for it. You've got to wait until the forecast tells you it's coming and usually only have a few days to a few hours warning. That's a real bummer with the well situation... I hope you don't have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it...

Have a good rest of the weekend!

maximumcapsicum · Jan 5, 2014

Fantastic looking plants Scott! The brown egg seedling is very neat. Good luck with the herbs as well!

How big will you let the mater get before topping it? Was that planted at the same time as the peppers?

Good luck with the cold! We are getting a little of that here too!

Devv · Jan 5, 2014

ohmatic said:
lovely looking plants !

Thanks!

stickman said:
I appreciate that bruddah! My addy is the same.

The wee hours of yesterday morning was the worst. It got down to -15 f.

It's 7 above 0 this morning and sunny, but I have to work until 8pm and it's supposed to turn to sleet and freezing rain early this evening. Not looking forward to the drive home from the next county. It's supposed to become rain tomorrow and then chill down to teens and twenties during the day and single digits for the overnight lows the rest of the week. Bet you miss this, eh? : I actually feel more for you folks down south... We know it's coming weeks in advance and can take our time getting ready for it. You've got to wait until the forecast tells you it's coming and usually only have a few days to a few hours warning. That's a real bummer with the well situation... I hope you don't have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it...

Have a good rest of the weekend!

Dang Rick!

That's serious ice storm conditions, I remember those days, trees would have tops knocked out. Be careful driving tonight. We get them once in a while but not like the ones up north, and at least the drivers up north have some common sense when conditions are bad. Here they can barely handle rain shower.

Yeah the well, we have to go to the bank for that kind of green or pay the penalties on IRA withdrawal. I did some math and overall the well is cheaper in the long run, about 8 bucks a month spent on pumps over the last 25 years, this expense will put it at $42.00 a month going backwards...Our utilities are super cheap. Year round electric runs $145-$175, and that's pulling from the well. I don't know what type of heat you have but in Long Island they use oil, not a cheap solution!
The old well works, but at 35 years I'm afraid the casing will collapse. It's a 6" casing that stands 4"s proud of the slab they poured when they installed it. It's so rotted it crumbles when pulled on with bare hands. How is it further down? Might be OK, but can't take that chance as no city water here unless we spend 40K, that was ten years ago. I made a "rig" this week, used 1/4" plate, welded a 5" dia 8" long piece of pipe that will go inside the 6" casing. Used more 1/4" stock to make a 7 or 8" round (mostly, did this with heat and hammer) 4 1/4" support. The weight will be on the "rig" and not the casing. Decided to wait and do this after new well has been completed. Old well will be for outside water until whatever happens..

Hope the seeds pop, so far I have one ans I'm sure more will show.

maximumcapsicum said:
Fantastic looking plants Scott! The brown egg seedling is very neat. Good luck with the herbs as well!

How big will you let the mater get before topping it? Was that planted at the same time as the peppers?

Good luck with the cold! We are getting a little of that here too!

Thanks Adam!

Seeds go out in the morning :party:

I've never topped them before, might have to but will wait and see. I usually pull leaves and bury deeper. The one I posted is planted all the way to the bottom of the 1 gal pot. I started them a little later, perhaps 30 days or so. You can also plant them at an angle, anything underground will become roots.

Stay warm!

stickman · Jan 6, 2014

Devv said:
Yeah the well, we have to go to the bank for that kind of green or pay the penalties on IRA withdrawal. I did some math and overall the well is cheaper in the long run, about 8 bucks a month spent on pumps over the last 25 years, this expense will put it at $42.00 a month going backwards...Our utilities are super cheap. Year round electric runs $145-$175, and that's pulling from the well. I don't know what type of heat you have but in Long Island they use oil, not a cheap solution!
The old well works, but at 35 years I'm afraid the casing will collapse. It's a 6" casing that stands 4"s proud of the slab they poured when they installed it. It's so rotted it crumbles when pulled on with bare hands. How is it further down? Might be OK, but can't take that chance as no city water here unless we spend 40K, that was ten years ago. I made a "rig" this week, used 1/4" plate, welded a 5" dia 8" long piece of pipe that will go inside the 6" casing. Used more 1/4" stock to make a 7 or 8" round (mostly, did this with heat and hammer) 4 1/4" support. The weight will be on the "rig" and not the casing. Decided to wait and do this after new well has been completed. Old well will be for outside water until whatever happens..

I take it the old well casing is steel pipe? What's your soil chemistry like? They don't rot anywhere near that quick here... I wonder if attaching a sacrificial anode would help? When they made hot water tanks out of steel the better ones included one (sacrificial anode) inside to protect the tank. If they were replaced at regular intervals the tanks would last indefinitely. I know this comes too late to save the old well casing but may make the next one last longer...

Devv · Jan 6, 2014

stickman said:
I take it the old well casing is steel pipe? What's your soil chemistry like? They don't rot anywhere near that quick here... I wonder if attaching a sacrificial anode would help? When they made hot water tanks out of steel the better ones included one (sacrificial anode) inside to protect the tank. If they were replaced at regular intervals the tanks would last indefinitely. I know this comes too late to save the old well casing but may make the next one last longer...

Yes, steel, sandy ~~soil~~ dirt and water alkaline. The anode would have helped some years back. But I'm OK, the locals tell me the old steel casing wells are good for 25 years, so I got 10 extra. The new one will be PVC casing, and out last me. One other concern is the water table during this drought. At least the new well will be in good water, the old one might still be, but I'll know for sure...besides it may serve another 10 years as a garden well after I put the patch in...

Yes it's cold here in South Tejas! High of 33° low in the AM of 22°, I say colder as we are 8° below forecast all day.

Been here since '78, it's been this cold one time before, actually it was colder. Anyone remember Christmas Eve. 1989? A high of 15° here that day. This has been the coldest year I can remember. They say global warming, I say the weather is cyclic, but that's my uneducated opinion based on my 55 years...LOL

Yesterday we broke open a 60 day ferment, 2 quarts, 1 with Reaper's and some garlic, and carrots. The other with JA Hab's, garlic, and carrots. Added some Bourbon, and Agave Nectar. cooked it up, blended it, and ran it through a sieve.

Here's the pot, now mingling in the fridge...

I haven't tasted it yet, not sure I like the lacto fragrance, but gonna give it a whirl. Anyone have any recommendations to make this come out tasty please advise.

A few shots of the grow station, wanted to do a better update but the house was cold (66°) and I had to start a fire and warm this place up...

I turned the lights off and pulled the shelves out.

Lower T5 shelf, some sit on the floor, uh planted too many?

The T8 shelf, the youngin's

The top shelf, it gets rotated with the bottom shelf every 12 hours..

The whole shootin' match with the lights on...

Dang, T5's are saaweet!

Stay warm friends!

HillBilly Jeff · Jan 6, 2014

Those are some nice looking plants. 15 degrees....how do you survive

Devv · Jan 6, 2014

HillBilly Jeff said:
Those are some nice looking plants. 15 degrees....how do you survive

Thanks and LOL!

If you lived here and were acclimated to our weather you would feel our pain

I surely feel yours being raised in NY, been there done that!

Stay warm!

Jeff H · Jan 6, 2014

I didn't know houses in TX actually had fireplaces.

Plants look great. Stay warm.

Vegas_Chili · Jan 6, 2014

Killer updates every time!

Too cold for Tejas weather, I'd be all rolled up like a burrito with a bunch of "ponchos".

That cold vortex thing doesn't look like it's hit this side of the country. It's been actually pretty warm, and if my plants would be a bit bigger I would be taking them out to soak up some sunshine

.

Be safe and stay warm.

-Walt

maximumcapsicum · Jan 6, 2014

Great setup Scott. How old are alot of the youngin's? I figured that would be about as big as many of mine will get before plant out

The ferment looks good. No idea how to ensure maximum tastiness, but would love to hear more info on the ferments.

Keep the pics coming!

stickman · Jan 7, 2014

Hi Scott,
Now that the flavors have had a little time to mingle in the 'fridge, how do you like the taste of your ferments? Inquiring minds want to know...

JJJessee · Jan 7, 2014

I was kinda put off by the ferment flavor at first, but it either moderates or the taster does. And thus far, I have only fermented pure pepper mash and added it to a fresh veggie recipe.

Yeah, those plants are way prettier than anything I set out last year. You done good!

-2° here. Might be close to a record.

capsidadburn · Jan 7, 2014

Ferment looks great Scott! After you taste it, think about it for a while and let the direction come to you.

Your grow is green and awesome too!

Mike

Devv · Jan 7, 2014

Jeff H said:
I didn't know houses in TX actually had fireplaces.

Plants look great. Stay warm.

Thanks Jeff!

Sure we have fireplaces, they sure do come in handy when we have this kind of winter, and really help with the heating costs.

We had 20° this AM and broke out of the colder weather some.

I know we don't get near as cold as those who live farther north, but it's cold for us!

Vegas_Chili said:
Killer updates every time!

Too cold for Tejas weather, I'd be all rolled up like a burrito with a bunch of "ponchos".

That cold vortex thing doesn't look like it's hit this side of the country. It's been actually pretty warm, and if my plants would be a bit bigger I would be taking them out to soak up some sunshine .

Be safe and stay warm.

-Walt

Thanks Walt!

Yeah, you guys lucked out, it came straight at us and then slipped east. From what I understand the north central and northeast are in for the the worst of it. Hopefully everyone stays safe and warm. Tomorrow the ladies get to go outside until Saturday night. That should please them

maximumcapsicum said:
Great setup Scott. How old are alot of the youngin's? I figured that would be about as big as many of mine will get before plant out

The ferment looks good. No idea how to ensure maximum tastiness, but would love to hear more info on the ferments.

Keep the pics coming!

Thanks Adam!

Most are a week or so with the older ones 3 weeks. I'm striving for 12" tall plants at dirt day. Normal pepper plant out is March 15th, after that the temps ramp up so quickly that the supers last year never set pods in the spring. So I want them "right there" at plant time.

First time with the ferments, so I'm experimenting

stickman said:
Hi Scott,
Now that the flavors have had a little time to mingle in the 'fridge, how do you like the taste of your ferments? Inquiring minds want to know...

I haven't tasted it yet...LOL I was gonna leave it until later this week, I know the acid content is up there so it should just get better...hoping it's killer!

JJJessee said:
I was kinda put off by the ferment flavor at first, but it either moderates or the taster does. And thus far, I have only fermented pure pepper mash and added it to a fresh veggie recipe.

Yeah, those plants are way prettier than anything I set out last year. You done good!

-2° here. Might be close to a record.

Thanks JJJ!

As I mentioned earlier, hoping they will hit the ground running this spring. Actually the chinense are ahead of schedule, guess some pruning will be needed OR warmer weather!

Will let everyone know once I taste the ferments, everyone raves about them, so they must be good!

Stay warm!

capsidadburn said:
Ferment looks great Scott! After you taste it, think about it for a while and let the direction come to you.

Your grow is green and awesome too!

Mike

Thanks Mike!

That's what I plan to do, was just looking for hints

I think as is it should be fine...perhaps too hot...

The ladies get some real sun for the next few days, yours should be OK too no?

Thanks for stopping by all!

A few pics done on the kitchen table, still nasty outside...

I topped my first plant the Choc Hab that was getting too tall. It already has some lower branching..so it should do fine. Trying to root the top in a week seaweed mix...

Yellow Cardi, the next gal to get a trim..

Some of the younger ladies in pots..

MoA, two of them..a few plants got a sunburn on Saturday. It hit a high of 71°

Fatalii, with just 12 hours a day doing the rotation they still have the dense growth pattern...Just love the T5!

Yellow fatalii

Scotch Bonnet from an online source, kinda, sorta looks like part Annuum? We'll see as it matures I guess..

Jay's Red Ghost Scorp, some of these suffered some wind damage Sunday morning

Choco Bhut Douglah, note the "T5 burn". I only see this on the lighter colored plants...

I hope everyone has a safe and warm week!

maximumcapsicum · Jan 7, 2014

I bet the chocolate hab top takes off fast.

The MoA's look great. I can't wait to get afew of them started here. Their leaves appear to be a bit more rounded a robust than other chinenses, and the color, as far as I can tell on the forum pics, is superb. Can't wait to see 'em grow.

Texas climate sounds challenging. My habs produced pods through the hottest part of the summer here in Atlanta, though it was pretty mild all around.

Devv · Jan 8, 2014

Hi Adam,

It's already starting to sprout at the upper nodes, so it should be just fine.

This is my first time growing the MoA's, Ramon sent me a few pods and they are a super pepper, great taste!

The climate here is crazy, like last Saturday was 71°, then a high of 33° Monday. We can have 95° from late April to late September; although both months are usually cooler.

The larger plants are outside getting a 20 minute soak in 2.5"s of rain water and should be OK out there until Friday or Saturday night depending on the weather.

Thanks for stopping by!