DocNrock's 2013 Glog - 7/11/13

My 2013 grow officially began 10/14/2012, when seeds hit soil. After seeing Fernando (SocalChilehead) growing in his greenhouse "sanctuary" and KiNGDeNNiZ continuing to start new growth in his AeroGarden, as well as the community HP22B grow thread already being 8 pages, I broke down and started my 2013 grow. I was going to limit it to 50 varieties, but that ended up being 64, 77 including the plants I want to save from 2012. If some varieties don't pop or I end up losing some along the way, I might still be down to 50 (or less!) in no time. The grow list with pop dates is at the bottom of this post.

Since I had plenty of seeds I wanted to try an experiment. Which is better for germination, soil or Rapid Rooters? I have two mini-greenhouses with 36 soil cups each, and one mini-greenhouse with a 72 cell insert loaded with Rapid Rooters. All seeds were soaked overnight in water that had been boiled and cooled and contained a dilution of brewed chamomile tea and H2O2. The Rapid Rooters and soil were both moistened with the same mix. The soil is Sungro Sunshine mix #1 amended lightly with Ancient Forest and worm castings. Wondering if the organisms in the amendments might help break down the seed coat. Each cell contains about five seeds. This will force me to cull the weaklings, as opposed to trying to save them, hahaha! At most I will end up with two seedlings for each variety. If both survive, I can try to gift one of the two. I am thinking that some varieties may germinate better in soil, some better in the Rapid Rooters, and for some it may not make a difference. I read somewhere that kelp solutions are rich in growth hormones. Has anyone added a light kelp solution dilution to their germination setup? I was thinking of adding a couple of drops to each Rapid Rooter cell. Fert-wise, the kelp solutions are very, very weak. I doubt it would do any harm. Has anyone ever tried the kelp? I have not, but might try it later on anything that seems stubborn to sprout.

I am hoping these guys are all budded up come springtime, and ready for an early harvest. Since my indoor space is limited, I am giving serious consideration to building a small greenhouse in the backyard and putting in a couple of space heaters for the night time. I decided against a raised bed, and will probably go with 5 gallon Root Pouches for the larger plants. Some of the annuums and plants I'm as yet unsure of I will grow in 2 gallon pots. If I end up liking them, I can always up-pot them.

Getting organized:

Man, I hope I didn't mix any of these up! 64 cups to keep straight is a far cry from 3. It will be 6 months until I know for sure!:

Rapid Rooters:

Soil:

Let the waiting game begin!:

Also, in case anyone is interested, the white plastic labelling tags are available at Discount Hydroponics, $2.95/100! Cheaper than popsickle sticks!

Regarding the plants I already have, I am going to try to start cuttings off most of them in the event the plants don't make it over the winter. I won't need to start those from seed, although there are four varieties (Douglah, Fatalii, Barrackpore and Yellow Bhut) I am starting from seed, as well.

Question: When we start a new grow season, is it typical to just add to one's glog thread, or is it appropriate to start a new thread for the new grow year?

Anyway, happy growing to you all and thanks for looking. I'm hoping all the lessons I learned this year will help me to make this grow much more successful!

GROW LIST: I will try to edit in pop dates for both soil and Rapid Rooters. The Rapid Rooters might get earlier pop dates since I can see the rootlets before hooks form.

Sown seeds (65):

Trinidad Scorpion (AJIJOE) 10/20/12 (RR)
HP22B (Pepper Joe) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/27/12 (soil)
Primo (Primo) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Billy Boy Jonah (Silver_Surfer via Coheed) 10/22/12 (RR)
7 Pot Congo Gigantic (Pepperlover) 10/23/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
7 Pot Barrackpore (Biscgolf) 10/27/12 (RR)
Dorset Naga (Pepperlover - pods) 10/24/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Naga Morich (Biscgolf - pods) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Bhut Jolokia (JoynersHotPeppers)
Red Rocoto (SocalChilihead) 10/22/12 (RR)
Malawi Peppadew (Refiningfirechiles) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Trinidad PI281317 (Pepperlover) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Anaheim (Pepperlover - gift)
7 Pot Chiguanas (Silver Surfer via Coheed) 10/23/12 (RR)
Red Devil's Tongue (Pepperlover - gift) 10/28/12 (RR)
Butch T (Pepperlover - pods) 10/24/12 (RR)
7 Pot Jonah (Pepperlover - pods) 10/27/12 (RR)
7 Pot Burgundy (Silver_Surfer via Coheed) 10/23/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Infinity 10/20/12 (soil), 10/22/12 (RR)
Yellow Moruga (Pepperlover) 10/23/12 (soil), 10/23/12 (RR)
Yellow Brain (Biscgolf) 10/24/12 (RR)
Yellow Bhut Jolokia (Biscgolf) 10/26/12 (soil)
Fatalii (AJIJOE) 10/22/12 (RR),10/28/12 (soil)
7 Pot Yellow (Biscgolf) 10/24/12 (RR)
Peach Bhut (AJIJOE) 10/28/12 (RR)
Beni Highland (AJIJOE) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/22/12 (soil)
Trinidad Morova (Pepperlover) 10/23/12 (soil), 10/28/12 (RR)
7 Pot Orange (Silver_Surfer via Coheed) 10/23/12 (soil), 10/28/12 (RR)
Golden Cayenne (SocalChilehead) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/20/12 (soil)
Yellow Scotch Bonnet (AJIJOE) 10/22/12 (soil), 10/22/12 (RR)
7 Pot Brown (Biscgolf) 10/24/12 (soil)
Douglah (Biscgolf) 10/27/12 (soil)
Black Habanero (Refiningfirechiles) 10/20/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Chocolate Scorpion (KiNGDeNNiZ) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/23/12 (soil)
Douglah x Chocolate Scorpion F4 (Silver_Surfer via Coheed) 10/23/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Black Naga (Refiningfirechiles) 10/20/12 (soil)
Pasilla Bajio (Refiningfirechiles) 10/22/12 (soil), 10/27/12 (RR)
Long Chocolate Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/24/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Chocolate Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/23/12 (soil), 10/24/12 (RR)
Black Stinger (Refiningfirechiles) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/23/12 (soil)
7 Pot White (Pepperlover) 10/24/12 (RR), 10/27/12 (soil)
Giant White Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/23/12 (soil)
White Bullet Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
White Devil's Tongue (Silver_Surfer via Coheed) 10/28/12 (RR)
Serrano (Pepper Joe - free) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/19/12 (soil) ***FIRST SOIL***
Jalapeno (Pepper Joe - free) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/20/12 (soil)
Red Bell (store bought pepper) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Andy F1 Gochu (Stickman via SocalChilehead) 10/17/12 (RR) ***TIED, FIRST OVERALL*** 10/23/12 (soil)
Korean Winner Hybrid (Stickman via SocalChilehead) 10/17/12 (RR) ***TIED, FIRST OVERALL***
Pimenta de Neyde (SocalChilehead) 10/28/12 (RR)
Trinidad Scorpion Green (SocalChilehead) 10/19/12 (RR)
Most Prolific C.chacoense (Pepperlover - gift) 10/23/12 (RR)
Royal Black (AJIJOE) 10/22/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Assam (SocalChilehead) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/22/12 (soil)
Trinidad Scorpion "FG" (AJIJOE) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/24/12 (soil)
Australian Lantern Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/26/12 (RR), 10/26/12 (soil)
Aji Yellow (AJIJOE) 10/23/12 (RR)
Jamaican Hot Chocolate (KiNGDeNNiZ) 10/22/12 (RR)
Aji Omnicolor (OROZCONLECHE) 10/19/12 (RR)
Not-Trinidad Scorpion (long yellow pod from Arboretum, KiNGDeNNiZ) 10/22/12 (RR)
Mystery Chocolate Mix (Silver_Surfer) 10/23/12 (RR)
Red Congo (AJIJOE) 10/23/12 (RR)
Peach Habanero (AJIJOE) 10/19/12 (RR), 10/22/12 (soil)
Yellow Hablokia (AJIJOE) 10/20/12 (RR), 10/22/12 (soil)
Sown 10/20/12
Yellow Bell (store-bought pepper) 10/23/12 (RR)
Sown 10/28/12
Chocolate Bell (Refiningfirechiles)
Jay's Peach Ghost Scorpion (Refiningfirechiles)
Malaysian Goronong (Refiningfirechiles)
Douglah (Refiningfirechiles)
Peter (Refiningfirechiles)
Yellow Bhut (Refiningfirechiles)
Chocolate Bhut (Refiningfirechiles)
Aji Pineapple (Refiningfirechiles)
Aji Dulce 1 (Tradewinds)
Datil (Tradewinds)
Goat's Horn (Tradewinds)
NuMex Big Jim (Tradewinds)
Paprika (Tradewinds)
Brain Strain 7 (PepperRidge)


What I hope to save from my current grow, either whole plants or clones (13):

Carribean Red (local nursery)
Aji Panca (Refiningfirechiles)
Peter Pepper (Refiningfirechiles)
Jamaican Yellow Mushroom (Refiningfirechiles)
Moruga (Refiningfirechiles)
Malaysian Goronong (Refiningfirechiles)
Thai Dragon (North Park Produce)
Chenzo (North Park Produce)
Red Brain Strain (Baker's Peppers - pods)
Chinese 5-color (Orozconleche)
Aji Dulce (Orozconleche)
Datil (Orozconleche)
Bonnie "World's Hottest Hab" (Fatalii?) (Home Depot)

I'm going to do my best to keep one of each alive, but with 77 total, I might be lucky if a few croak!

 

[WalkGood]

Happy Memorial Day Weekend Doc & family ... have a great one mon!

 

[DocNrock]

Baccatums are ripening!  They probably have the coolest blossoms of all the Capsicums.  Well, most of them, anyway.  No flowers or pods yet on the Bishop's Crown (GA Growhead pod), but it was a late start.  Still a big plant, though.  Probably just setting itself up for massive pod production (I can only hope   ).
 

 
On to ripening pods!
 
Malawi Peppadew (RFC).  I tried one that ripened yesterday.  Very tasty: 
 

 
Aji Pineapple (RFC): 
 

 
Aji Yellow (Amarillo?, Ajijoe): 
 

 
Blonde (Pepperlover.com).  I love these pods.  Tried one yesterday.  Mild heat, juicy and cruncy, and kind of taste like jicama:  
 

 
Aji Omnicolor: 
 

 
And a one-day harvest of everything.  I think I need to fire up the dehydrator this weekend    :
 

 

[WalkGood]

Awesome harvest, seems they keep getting better ... I'm betting you'll hit the mother load soon!

 

[GA Growhead]

That bishops is getting big. Last years did take a bit to start podding up, so give her some time.
Stoked on the blonde descript. Looking even more foward to them now! I think i have two planted!

nice little harvest!

 

[stc3248]

NIce pull Doc! Get to powdering! 

 

[Devv]

Nice harvest and great pics of the pods!
 
Speaking of powder, I brought it to work, we always have huevos rancheros on Fridays. My tech tried a 1/16 of tsp on a taco he made and loved it, tripled the amount on the second one...I warned him...man he got bit, face turned red, started sweating. "I feel the burn all the way down to here" pointing to his stomach. But he loved it!
 
Have a great 3 day!

 

[DocNrock]

Awesome harvest, seems they keep getting better ... I'm betting you'll hit the mother load soon!

Thanks, Ramon!  It's like little hot gifts I get for taking care of them. 
 

That bishops is getting big. Last years did take a bit to start podding up, so give her some time.
Stoked on the blonde descript. Looking even more foward to them now! I think i have two planted!

nice little harvest!

Thanks, J!  I was surprised about the Blonde.  Just noticed little buds forming on the BC, so I think it is getting ready.
 

NIce pull Doc! Get to powdering! 

Sir, yes sir!  Great avatar for Mem day!
 

Nice harvest and great pics of the pods!
 
Speaking of powder, I brought it to work, we always have huevos rancheros on Fridays. My tech tried a 1/16 of tsp on a taco he made and loved it, tripled the amount on the second one...I warned him...man he got bit, face turned red, started sweating. "I feel the burn all the way down to here" pointing to his stomach. But he loved it!
 
Have a great 3 day!

Awesome, man!  And thanks!

 

[Darthpepper]

Looking better and better each day. Have a safe and happy holiday weekend.

 

[stickman]

Nice pull Doc! Any luck on the house-hunting yet?

 

[Sanarda]

Doc that is a great harvest you have there .. Colors are amazing.  They almost look like fake fruit all shiny and pretty    Well done my friend.... Well done

 

[DocNrock]

Looking better and better each day. Have a safe and happy holiday weekend.

Thanks, DP!  Hope you had a great one, as well!
 

Nice pull Doc! Any luck on the house-hunting yet?

Thanks Rick!  Didn't get the dehydrator fired up yet as I spent all day yesterday putting in a drip irrigation sytem.  Didn't finish it, but it only needs another hour or two to be complete.  But I can use what has currently been installed!  On one hand, it was a lot of work.  On the other, it was not nearly as much work as I initially thought it would be.  I only have 16 more plants and my wife's two raised beds left to go!
 
Regarding the house hunt: it continues.  I don't know if you knew, but we made an offer on a short sale.  We absolutely loved the house.  Unfortunately, we will probably have to withdraw our offer.  Paperwork coming from the seller's agent during negotiations really raised some red flags for me that he could be out to scam people out of their earnest money deposit.  Before our response to Counter #3, I hired a real estate attorney to review everything.  Our attorney balked at a number of conditions set by the seller's agent.  He wrote up an all-inclusive counter that protected our deposit to the extent possible.  The response?  Our offer is no longer being considered and they will not be countering.  If we want the house, the seller's agent wants us to sign the original addenum attached to the listing and to submit a new offer.  I should state that my attorney had already told me no one in their right mind should sign the original addendum.  They even lowered the asking price, "to attract more buyers."  This really is meaningless since the seller's bank would ultimately have to approve any offer.  Of note, our initial offer was for the initial full asking price, so that we would have some leverage in negotiating the terms of escrow.  The house was already priced about $10/sf less than the surrounding comps.  So, we shall wait until another house we really like comes on the market.  The inventory around here is really tight right now.  Fortunately, we are just fine where we are.  We are currently living in an investment property I bought back in '98.     
 

Doc that is a great harvest you have there .. Colors are amazing.  They almost look like fake fruit all shiny and pretty    Well done my friend.... Well done

Thank you, Pia!  I'm really looking forward to powdering these.  Can't wait to see your grow in full podding glory!

 

[Devv]

Dang Doc!
 
Sorry about the house. But you did the right thing, one has to cover their tail end.
 
It's shame the way things are going these days!
 
Good luck on future views!

 

[DocNrock]

Dang Doc!
 
Sorry about the house. But you did the right thing, one has to cover their tail end.
 
It's shame the way things are going these days!
 
Good luck on future views!

Thanks Chris.  Fortunately, my BS meter was flashing red as we were going through the back and forth counters.  Even my buyer's agent, who is pretty good, had told me she didn't really understand what the seller's agent was trying to accomplish.  It was exactly then that I decided to consult an attorney, as I had pretty strong suspicions.  I talked to my attorney again earlier today after sending him the e-mail exchange between my agent and the seller's agent.  He flat out stated that the only explaination for the selling agent's positioning in the negotiations was to set us up to lose our deposit.  The fact that our offer is no longer being considered and that they would not be countering simply states that they know I'm on to them, so they need to keep looking for the "right" sucker(s).  I don't even think their agent told them about our last counter.       
 
It's really too bad.  The house would have been perfect for us, but something else will come on the market at some point.  Since we're living in a place we own and don't plan to sell, we've got plenty of time to wait for the right house to come along.  I actually feel badly for the sellers.  I don't think they have any idea what is going on.  We met the wife when we toured the house.  It turns out that she and my wife used to work together for a couple of years before we got married.  Small world.  I'm pretty certain this "short sale realtor" has her fooled that he is looking out for the best interest of her and her family.  He will probably hang them out to dry after he saps a potential buyer or two of their earnest money deposits.  Unfortunately, I can't really go to the seller and tell her what I believe is going on.  One can only hope she'll figure it out.
 
   

 

[stickman]

Hi Doc, Fantastic that you got your drip irrigation mostly installed. The condo ass'n here is in the process of getting an in-ground water line to the garden installed with standpipes for every 2 plots. If they can pull that one off I'll be getting a drip system going there next year as well.
 
Good thing you're doing your homework so you can prevent unscrupulous people from taking advantage of you while you're looking for a new place. It's also a plus that you're not under the gun to find a place and can take your time to scrutinize the fine print. Best wishes in that department!

 

[WalkGood]

Can't add much to what Scott & Rick have already said, it's just sad that you didn't get what you wanted :/ and it kills me that we still have unscrupulous peeps in the real estate industry ... Not much different here :/

 

[MGOLD86]

If you need a bit of help on this trickster Realtor let me know,  in my line of work I 'know' a few people...if ya know what I mean....
 
But on the pepper front I am lovin the color!  You are gonna have some awesome harvests coming up and it is great that you are starting this early, it can sate our hunger for harvest shots!
 
Keep it up, everything looks great!

 

[GA Growhead]

That's crazy. Scamming people out of money like that! Glad you wised up and went to the attorney on that one!
Any pods on that not variegated cross yet?

 

[DocNrock]

Hi Doc, Fantastic that you got your drip irrigation mostly installed. The condo ass'n here is in the process of getting an in-ground water line to the garden installed with standpipes for every 2 plots. If they can pull that one off I'll be getting a drip system going there next year as well.
 
Good thing you're doing your homework so you can prevent unscrupulous people from taking advantage of you while you're looking for a new place. It's also a plus that you're not under the gun to find a place and can take your time to scrutinize the fine print. Best wishes in that department!

Thanks Rick.  Yes, it was a lot of work, but so nice getting home today and most of the chiles watered themselves.    That will be killer if your association can pull that off. 
 
And yes, we are definitely in a good situation when it comes to buying. 
 

Can't add much to what Scott & Rick have already said, it's just sad that you didn't get what you wanted :/ and it kills me that we still have unscrupulous peeps in the real estate industry ... Not much different here :/

 
Thanks, but no worries, Ramon.  Yeah, it would have been a sweet pad, but I'm sure a better one will come around.  Unfortunately, as you know, there are unscrupulous people in every industry.  I hate to say it, but even in medicine. 

If you need a bit of help on this trickster Realtor let me know,  in my line of work I 'know' a few people...if ya know what I mean....
 
But on the pepper front I am lovin the color!  You are gonna have some awesome harvests coming up and it is great that you are starting this early, it can sate our hunger for harvest shots!
 
Keep it up, everything looks great!

Hahaha!  AC/DC comes to mind...Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap!    So happy you got your garden going.  It was hard to keep the surprise.  Can't wait until YOU are swimming in pods!
 

That's crazy. Scamming people out of money like that! Glad you wised up and went to the attorney on that one!
Any pods on that not variegated cross yet?

Yeah, they're out there.  They seem to gravitate towards "tough" markets.  The attorney was definitely money well-spent. 
 
Regarding the Variegata, yes, it has some pods.  I up-potted it this past weekend and meant to get a shot for you but didn't get a chance to take pics of anything really.  I'll try to get something up by the end of the weekend.  The pods are slender and a little longer than I recall the parent pod was.  They are green but turn black where they are hit by the sun.  Nothing has ripened yet, so I don't know the final color.

 

[Devv]

Good great thing your "spidy senses" kicked in.
 
Good things always come to good people.
 
I'm confident you'll find an even better place down the road.
 
Now back to peppers!

 

[Spicegeist]

Baccatums are ripening!  They probably have the coolest blossoms of all the Capsicums. 

 
Your plants look great, nice pics too.  If you like beautiful flowers, you have to try C. praetermissum if you haven't already.  Here's a flower on one of my plants from last year: