Four-Pepper False Start Glog

While I'm (successfully) growing plenty of herbs at the moment, the important stuff is obviously the peppers... and, since I'm pretty sure I baked the first set of seeds I attempted to germinate due to underestimating the power of my seedling heat mat after moving it into the grow tent, we're calling that a swing and a miss and moving on with Batch #2.
 
Tomorrow night they'll get the coffee-filter-in-a-baggie treatment and a hopefully-more-comfortable place in a lovely fluffy towel on the mat.

 

[internationalfish]

Love seeing all those peppers... yeah buddy

 
It's exciting! So far the only ones I've harvested have been alma paprika, which are really good, but I want something spicy!
 
[edit: Ooh, toppin' my own page, if you know what I mean...  ]

 

[internationalfish]

These guys are growing really well. The top and right five are hawk's claw. The bottom two are -- er, might be -- Sri Lanka Red. The runt actually lost its cotyledons pretty much entirely, so I was impressed that it managed to start growing true leaves. Not counting that one out, he's a fighter.
 

 
The bottle on the left is one of my not-SLR's. It's seriously taking off; pretty impressive! Turns out these little bottle plugs make topping off the nutes a real pain in the ass, but man, it sure is working. Hoping to get a tasty cross that's worth keeping. The datil on the right isn't doing bad either. 
 

 

[skullbiker]

These guys are growing really well. The top and right five are hawk's claw. The bottom two are -- er, might be -- Sri Lanka Red. The runt actually lost its cotyledons pretty much entirely, so I was impressed that it managed to start growing true leaves. Not counting that one out, he's a fighter.
 

 
The bottle on the left is one of my not-SLR's. It's seriously taking off; pretty impressive! Turns out these little bottle plugs make topping off the nutes a real pain in the ass, but man, it sure is working. Hoping to get a tasty cross that's worth keeping. The datil on the right isn't doing bad either. 
 

In the past, some of my runts grew out to be awsome plants.

Maybe you could use what I use to put nutes in your bottles(if plastic), just drill a little hole in them near the top and use something like this if available(I get them from Walmart). Holds 30ml.

 

[internationalfish]

In the past, some of my runts grew out to be awsome plants.

Maybe you could use what I use to put nutes in your bottles(if plastic), just drill a little hole in them near the top and use something like this if available(I get them from Walmart). Holds 30ml.

Thanks for the suggestion. I already have 10ml tubes, it's a drill I don't really have a reason to keep around. In the US having lots of tools was normal; here there's just no room to keep them. I do miss that.

Regardless, that's the right direction. I imagine I'll be figuring out some kind of hole punch.

 

[internationalfish]

Apparently WHP is having trouble getting packages into Japan lately. So those golden ghost seeds probably dead-ended in some government employee's trash bin. 
 
Can't really be mad at customs for it; it's not like we're legally allowed to import seeds here. Certainly does suck, though.

 

[CaneDog]

Apparently WHP is having trouble getting packages into Japan lately. So those golden ghost seeds probably dead-ended in some government employee's trash bin. 
 
Can't really be mad at customs for it; it's not like we're legally allowed to import seeds here. Certainly does suck, though.

 
Well that sux.  Hopefully they're just delayed and will still make it to you.  3 weeks to arrive.  3 weeks to sprout.
 
Slowest... pepper... ever...

 

[internationalfish]

Well that sux.  Hopefully they're just delayed and will still make it to you.  3 weeks to arrive.  3 weeks to sprout.
 
Slowest... pepper... ever...

 
Haha, yeah. Unfortunately, we're actually going on five weeks, which is where I start to suspect it's not just USPS international shipping being basically random and think it might've gotten canned.
 
It could still be on the way, but Justin said this has been an issue for others in the Land of the Rising Sun, so I'm assuming this one isn't coming.

 

[CaneDog]

I'm a little surprised he sends enough to Japan to know what the state of things is at any particular time.  That's pretty cool actually.  Wonder if LRSPS caught on at some point and flagged the address. Kinda curious how it all works.  What are you looking forward to next if you won't have the Solid Gold right away?

 

[internationalfish]

I'm a little surprised he sends enough to Japan to know what the state of things is at any particular time.  That's pretty cool actually.  Wonder if LRSPS caught on at some point and flagged the address. Kinda curious how it all works.  What are you looking forward to next if you won't have the Solid Gold right away?

 
I think it was more of a coincidence that Justin ended up having two or three packages heading this way recently. Knowing how large organizations work, I'm leaning towards this just being a case of someone actually doing their job, probably a new hire. Who knows, though.
 
 Next thing will be getting the big ones outside, which will free up more than half the tent; not sure yet quite what I want to do. Got a bunch of Korean pepper sprouts to deal with as well as my healthy-looking hawk's claw seedlings (plus of course, what I guess you could call one and a half Sri Lanka Red candidates).
 
I still have a solid dozen varieties I haven't even started, so there's no real shortage of new things to grow. I also need to clone some lavender for a friend, though, so maybe I'll change gears a bit and work on some herbs. Maybe try to revive the hopefully-not-quite-dead shiso that seems to have survived the winter outside.

 

[internationalfish]

So here's the current State of the Tent.
 

 
Top left tray: The big'ns I cut way down and put in coir+perlite are doing well, except for the alma, which I gave up on. In the front left is my healthiest Maybe-SLR, which I just transplanted yesterday (predictably while not sober, so hopefully it doesn't die).
 
Top center: The Ktratky family is doing pretty well. The runt is, of course, the Zapotec jalapeno. It's barely grown at all despite its new hydro-home, but I'm giving it more time. Next to it is the datil, which is very happy. Further in the back, hard to see, my crossed SLRs are loving the bottle (my spirit animal!). The tray in the middle has my hawk's claw seedlings and the cotyledon-free SLR candidate, which needs a bit more time.
 
Bottom center: In front is a giant white habanero seed that might or might not bother to germinate; behind that is a caribe that's very slowly putting out its true leaves. Using that one to see how quickly a plant will fruit in these little bottles, but it seems like it might not be a great example. Behind those is my second germination tray. I planted out the wife's beets last night (again... hoping they don't die), so all that's left in there is a bunch of grocery store Korean pepper sprouts. Going to need to think about picking a few to move into new homes soon; really not sure what to do with them. Also, lavender clones.
 
Most of the bottom shelf: The Outsiders. CGN 21500 is looking like a bust. It'll get pitched soon and replaced with one of the upper righties, which I think are all going outside once I get two more planters. I pruned these guys and pulled a small harvest of almas so that plant can hopefully concentrate on greening back up.
 
All of which means that the whole bottom shelf and almost half of the top are going outside fairly soon. Which will give me a lot of room to play with.

 

[CaneDog]

So here's the current State of the Tent.
 

 
 
All of which means that the whole bottom shelf and almost half of the top are going outside fairly soon. Which will give me a lot of room to play with.

 
State of the Tent appears solid iFish.  Looks like you're making good use of all the space!
 
And plant out can't come soon enough.  Will definitely make life easier.

 

[internationalfish]

State of the Tent appears solid iFish.  Looks like you're making good use of all the space!
 
And plant out can't come soon enough.  Will definitely make life easier.

Doing what I can.

Yeah, really looking forward to that. Though as my latest SLR candidates grow, I'm more and more concerned that they might all be from the same cross pollinated pod and I might not end up with a viable plant at all.

 

[internationalfish]

Well, the office plants have definitely gotten thirstier, particularly the J bell pepper. It's a bit droopy here, but it'll perk up since its roots are now swimming happily.
 

 
They got a bit of a trim... more than enough height and set pods already. So now they'll just have to go full bush-afro.

 

[internationalfish]

Got some more peppers into the planters. They're getting a bit more sun and then coming in; hopefully this time I won't kill any of them.
 
From left to right, top/bottom:
...never mind, I don't actually remember. Don't really care any more; I'll figure out what they are if they fruit.
 
[edit: Turns out the bottom leftmost plant looks to be a choco hab; it has a pod that's fairly far along that I hadn't even noticed. The lemon drop is also fruiting for the first time, though those are still way smaller.]
 

 
With that out of the way, I'm down to just one shelf! In front are the Korean pepper sprouts, and in the small squares are the hawk's claws and the runt SLR. In the back, the usual suspects. Far right: off-pheno SLR. The large bottles behind it with the orange caps have datil and my now-growing-slightly-better Zapotec jalapeno. In the small bottles, a very tiny new caribe sprout and the other non-SLR.
 

 

[PaulG]

Really making good progress there, 'Fish! I know the
great feeling of being able to get some plants outside
and getting some grow space back inside! I hope those
peppers out there just kick it for you!
 
The Kratky Korner looks super good!

 

[internationalfish]

Really making good progress there, 'Fish! I know the
great feeling of being able to get some plants outside
and getting some grow space back inside! I hope those
peppers out there just kick it for you!
 
The Kratky Korner looks super good!

 
Thanks a lot! Very pleased with the current state of things. It looks like the end of April will be the soonest it's consistently pepper-safe out 24/7, so I'm going to just keep shuffling them in and out until then. Hope my wife doesn't get too upset about half of the entryway being occupied for a few weeks.
 
Came back to the office to find the plants doing well here, too. Tried to get a picture that showed most of the J bells, and kinda half succeeded, sort of.
 

 
The CGN 21500's are looking gorgeous.
 

 
These two get way more light and heat than they need or want, which isn't ideal, but they're clearly making the best of it. Looking forward to adding one or two more plants to this little jungle.

 

[CaneDog]

That's looking awesome iFish- especially the CGN.  Good stuff!
 
Hope none of your co-workers scam the pods when they ripen...

 

[internationalfish]

Hope none of your co-workers scam the pods when they ripen...

 
To get approval for more window space, I agreed to put some of the ripe ones out for anyone who wants them. In practice, that'll probably mean most or all of them; I really just have those here so I don't have to go the entire work day without fooling around with peppers. 

 
I'm guessing most people here will be too nervous about hot peppers to take the more interesting varieties anyway. The J bell peppers will have a lot more competition; they're not that cheap in the grocery store and they're very popular.

 

[internationalfish]

A few updates.
 
The good:

• The plants I potted down and into 1-gallon bags of coir are looking very happy, and I think they'll fit well this way. So 12 bags on the top level should be workable, which gives me room for six more good-size plants and still leaves the bottom shelf open for Kratky fun.
• My SLR hybrids in Kratky are both looking good and budding away, so hopefully I'll see flowers there in the next week or so.
• Nine out of ten of my to-go-outdoors plants are looking healthy. That includes the lemon drop, which is fruiting like crazy.
• I... think one of my SLR sprouts might actually be the right pheno? I'm nervous to even post a picture in case it's not... but here it is.

• My Korean sprouts in rockwool are looking OK. Going to get them into coir+perlite with some mild nutrients today, I think. Not an amazing picture, but I am not an amazing cameraman.

 
The bad:

• I think the alma I put outside last time that wasn't doing too well is a goner. Which leaves me with no almas. Clearly not an acceptable situation.
• The weather isn't cooperating at all, so despite working from home today, I won't be able to give my outdoor kids any outdoor time.
• Pretty sure my only other SLR candidate is the wrong pheno.

 
The ugly:

• No, you can't have a picture of me!

 

[internationalfish]

Here are those Korean sprouts again, taking their first drink in their new homes. I have room in the tray to bottom water these along with the hawk's claw and the final SLR reject, but those are in coir and these are in soil, so I figured I'd keep them separate. Yeah, my desk is a disaster of clutter.
 

 
After starting to plan four more varieties to fill out the top shelf... what the hell was I thinking? I'm already growing sixteen types of peppers, with a 17th probably on the way (giant white hab as a test for starting from seed with my Kratky grow-out mini-bottles), without even thinking about all the extras that will come about when I finally start crossing them with each other, which will hopefully start soon with J bell pepper x chocolate habanero.
 
Six plants in 1-gallon bags, ten (soon to be twelve thanks to those Korean newbies) in large planters ready to go outside, two (soon to be four) in the window at work, three in large Kratky bottles, two (probably soon to be three) in small Kratky bottles (and a pa~rtri~dge in a pe~ar tree).
 
28 plants. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do with all the pods. I mean damn. I'm going to have to run multiple dehydrators 24/7 at this rate.