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!

 

[DocNrock]

One more question, lol, do you some at low temps for the peppers (115 ish??)  or 225?  If low, do you have any tips to keep it low but lit?

For the dehydrator I run about 115.  For the smoker, about 275.  They pick up some brown around the edges, but I think that is part of the flavor of the smoked powder. 

 

[stc3248]

Nice...I been out of duck for a bit. Time to head to the Salton Sea this fall I suppose! That's gonna be some real nice powder.

 

[KiNGDeNNiZ]

duck.. duck.. GOOOSEEEE... nice already smoking fresh peppers for the season!!

in regards to the TS Green Scorp

http://thehotpepper.com/topic/39606-green-scorp/

 

[sicman]

oh my!!!   that duck is wonderful! 

 

[RocketMan]

If you can figure out a way to pull that smoker down to say the 110 range you'll be able to get even more smoke into those pods Doc. I have an Electric smoker that I can crank down that low and still get smoke so I'm able to smoke them for 4 hours and then into the dehydrator. Now you have me thinking I need to get some Jalapenos and get some Chipotle powder made \
 
Smoke Duck FTW!!

 

[Portuge]

Man that duck looks delish... A lil dab of Doc's smoked powder will make it HOT....

 

[stickman]

Alright Doc! Smoked Duck for supper looked great!   How does it compare to Confit? Now that you're into smoking pods for powder we'll have to get you into making hot sauces too. 

 

[Devv]

First off I have to say Doc's powder is the Bomb! My wife even asked me to put it on some fried potatoes, and she won't eat anything hot!
 
Then my son came over and brought just two of the four kids, the baby, just under a year old was being fed the potatoes, screaming if his wife wouldn't give him more. My son Tim said, "these are hot!" Hahahaha.
 
I say smart kid, he loved 'em!
 
Soooo.. your making more powder cool, can't wait to get to that stage!
 
Duck looks great!
 
Now about Mesquite, I cook with it all the time, it has to be dried 2 or more years, and this is after it's split. It is a potent wood but great once you get it down. I cook with a pit that has a fire box. Beer can chicken 2 hours@ 325, perfect. Brisket 4 hours of fire and then wrap in foil.
 
Smoking in the smoker, it's electric and I like to keep the temps around 125 if I can, here I go by color and experience.
 
One last consideration, this is Mesquite I harvest off my place, very well can be a local type thing. If you ever want to try my Mesquite holler, I'm still working on wood I cut years ago.
 
Keep up that great grow!

 

[Stefan_W]

I would not have guessed that duck works well for smoking because of the high fat content. I usually associate duck with high temps and trying to crisp the skin. It looks great, and I am glad it worked out well for you. 
 
How do you find the fumes when you smoke peppers? I've never tried doing it because I've always worried about how everyone in the house will react to it. 

 

[DocNrock]

Nice...I been out of duck for a bit. Time to head to the Salton Sea this fall I suppose! That's gonna be some real nice powder.

Thanks, man!  Haven't been duck hunting in eons.  This one was a store-bought domestic one.
 

duck.. duck.. GOOOSEEEE... nice already smoking fresh peppers for the season!!

in regards to the TS Green Scorp

http://thehotpepper.com/topic/39606-green-scorp/

Yes, thanks King!  And thanks for the Green Scorp link!
 

oh my!!!   that duck is wonderful! 

Thanks, Jason!  It was pretty friggen tasty.
 

If you can figure out a way to pull that smoker down to say the 110 range you'll be able to get even more smoke into those pods Doc. I have an Electric smoker that I can crank down that low and still get smoke so I'm able to smoke them for 4 hours and then into the dehydrator. Now you have me thinking I need to get some Jalapenos and get some Chipotle powder made \
 
Smoke Duck FTW!!

I seem to be able to get enough smoke into them, but I'll see what I can do about lowering the temps next time.  Definitely need some Chipotle! 
 

Man that duck looks delish... A lil dab of Doc's smoked powder will make it HOT....

Thanks Portuge!  Had some of my yellow powder in the rub. 
 

Alright Doc! Smoked Duck for supper looked great!   How does it compare to Confit? Now that you're into smoking pods for powder we'll have to get you into making hot sauces too. 

 
Thanks, Rick!   Never made confit so can't really say, but it was pretty tasty!  I'll give sauces a try later in the year.  I've done a couple that were so-so, but always up for an experiment. 

First off I have to say Doc's powder is the Bomb! My wife even asked me to put it on some fried potatoes, and she won't eat anything hot!
 
Then my son came over and brought just two of the four kids, the baby, just under a year old was being fed the potatoes, screaming if his wife wouldn't give him more. My son Tim said, "these are hot!" Hahahaha.
 
I say smart kid, he loved 'em!
 
Soooo.. your making more powder cool, can't wait to get to that stage!
 
Duck looks great!
 
Now about Mesquite, I cook with it all the time, it has to be dried 2 or more years, and this is after it's split. It is a potent wood but great once you get it down. I cook with a pit that has a fire box. Beer can chicken 2 hours@ 325, perfect. Brisket 4 hours of fire and then wrap in foil.
 
Smoking in the smoker, it's electric and I like to keep the temps around 125 if I can, here I go by color and experience.
 
One last consideration, this is Mesquite I harvest off my place, very well can be a local type thing. If you ever want to try my Mesquite holler, I'm still working on wood I cut years ago.
 
Keep up that great grow!

Thanks Scott!  Glad you and your family like the powder.  You've got a real chilehead in the making with that grandson of yours!
 
Regarding mesquite, please don't get me wrong.  It's a great wood for smoking.  Love it on beef, chicken, and turkey.  Tried it on chiles and it just seemed overpowering.  I felt it might be the same with duck, perhaps I'm wrong.  I just wanted a more subtle wood like pecan for my first smoked duck attempt.  Must say I was quite please with the final product.     
 

I would not have guessed that duck works well for smoking because of the high fat content. I usually associate duck with high temps and trying to crisp the skin. It looks great, and I am glad it worked out well for you. 
 
How do you find the fumes when you smoke peppers? I've never tried doing it because I've always worried about how everyone in the house will react to it. 

The thing about the high fat content is that is what captures the smoke.  The one thing you don't get with smoking the duck is crispy skin.  But, it still was hot enough to render out the fat.  I did crisp it up a bit at the end...I put it under the broiler for 15 minutes after it was done smoking.  The skin was quite edible, especially with the rub and the smoke flavor that was picked up. 
 
Regarding the peppers, they really don't seem to give off that much in the way of fumes.  But keep in mind the smoker is in the back yard, so any fumes were diluted by the natural airflow.  Certainly no worse than running the dehydrator. 

 

[WalkGood]

Smoked duck, dehydrator running and smoked peppers, I’d say you’re kicking some serious azz over there Doc Brent! Meanwhile the rest of us peons are eating chicken, hahaha … great job brethren!

 

[Devv]

Regarding mesquite, please don't get me wrong.  It's a great wood for smoking.  Love it on beef, chicken, and turkey.  Tried it on chiles and it just seemed overpowering.  I felt it might be the same with duck, perhaps I'm wrong.  I just wanted a more subtle wood like pecan for my first smoked duck attempt.  Must say I was quite please with the final product.     
 

 
Doc mainly I was wondering if what you've used was stronger, thinking geographical differences may have come into play. The stuff we have here is rather mild IMHO.

 

[DocNrock]

Smoked duck, dehydrator running and smoked peppers, I’d say you’re kicking some serious azz over there Doc Brent! Meanwhile the rest of us peons are eating chicken, hahaha … great job brethren!

Peons, hahaha!  No peons on this board, my friend.  My wife and I love duck.  Hard to find where we are, but last time we went back to San Diego we picked a couple up at our favorite store and popped them in the freezer. 
 

 
Doc mainly I was wondering if what you've used was stronger, thinking geographical differences may have come into play. The stuff we have here is rather mild IMHO.

Interesting.  What I have used is the bagged stuff off the shelf.   What you have there sounds great!
 
This is what the chiles looked like when they were done smoking: 
 

 
They've been dried earlier this week.  Grinding day is tomorrow.
 
Those concentric circles I found on the underside of some leaves a few updates back turned out to be giant whitefly eggs.  I also, just this morning, learned first hand what spider mites look like.    I now have two plants stripped to their stalks.  I am the one who cut them back, but they looked bad.  One was a Jamaican Yellow Mushroom, the other a Yellow Bell.  We'll see if they survive.  Found some mite infested leaves on my Trinidad Scorpion, but I didn't have to cut it back (yet). Just plucked about ten involved leaves. 
 
Anyway, on to the good stuff!
 
Ripe 7 Pot White (Pepperlover.com).  What I am growing seems to turn a creamy color, not unlike the White Bullet Habs.
 

 
Jay's Peach Ghost Scorpion (RFC), looking true: 
 

 
Unusual, but very gnarly, phenotype for the Sepia Serpent (SS via Coheed 196) on one plant: 
 

 
But more typical phenotype on the others: 
 

 
My "tall" corner.  The tallest is at about 5' 6" (Aji Yellow - Ajijoe).  My Pimenta de Neyde (SocalChilehead)  and Bishop's Crown (GA Growhead) are the same height, but are located in a different part of the yard.
 

 
Aribibi Gusanito (Pepperlover.com), a chinense/frutesens cross.  It is supposed to ripen white.
 

 
Rapires F1 (Stickman): 
 

 
Chinese 5-Color (orozconleche).  I love this plant, and so do most people who see it.  Looks like it is loaded with Skittles, lol:
 

 
And finally, my harvest for the past three days.  The harvests are increasing exponentially, it seems.  Have to fire up the dehydrator again tomorrow!
 

 
Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

 

[stickman]

Hi Doc,
   Sorry to hear about the Giant Whitefly eggs. I've never heard of those before, and why would they lay eggs in concentric circles? The money shot of your recent pulls looked great! I think I saw some Andy gochus in there. I'm glad the Rapires Hungarians are doing well for you too. Have a great Father's Day weekend!

 

[WalkGood]

Doc Brent the color on your smoked chilies came out excellent, freaking fantastic job brethren, I love their look!
 
Don’t know about anyone else but I’m feeling like a peon after seeing your magic mon [SIZE=12pt]♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪[/SIZE]

• 7 Pot White has a very nice color, you say "creamy color," I see a matte light yellow, WG likes ... nice!
• Peach Ghost is simply beautiful/excellent breathtaking \o/ ... home run mon ...
• Highly dangerous looking Sepia Serpent pods I love the rough surface bumps
• Wow your tallest is taller than all mine put together
• Super harvest with beautiful colors
• Fabulous, Brilliant, Superb, are some of the descriptive words that come to mind and you said no one’s a peon

Keep up dis awesome job mon and have a great weekend back at ya mon!
 
Edit: Doc try some of the "death by rosemary oil" and if you don't want to make some up, neem works great both on the whitefly and mites. I too did a little cutting but not down to the stalk and you can beat them, it just takes several applications (spraying). Good luck with the war ...

 

[Devv]

Awesome update!
 
Glad to see you're hauling the pods in some good numbers.
 
Now the busy time starts!
 
Smoked peppers are looking good!
 
That Chinese 5 color is a cool looking plant, love the multi colored pods.
 
Have a Happy Fathers Day!

 

[GA Growhead]

Crazy pod shots! So is the white 7 as yellow as it looks? Sepia serps both look cool! The irregular pheno is way gnarly. Btw, mine are bushing up. But much growth in any direction, just filling in the empty spaces. Maybe they will take off and decide to flower soon.
Jay's peach looks prime!

Break out some individual pod shots from that awesome harvest! That big ass yellow pod on the left looks like we should be formally introduced!

 

[JoynersHotPeppers]

Awesome update and harvest! Glad to see so many on this board growing the Jay's this year. You will love the heat and taste.

 

[stc3248]

Great stuff and even better harvest Doc! Wow! So early for numbers like that, you're on your game for sure!

 

[Stefan_W]

The sepia serpent definitely is gnarly. The Jay's peach ghost scorp looks really interesting and may end up on my grow list next year.
 
Looks like everything is going great