Guru's Garden - Traveling the World in Search of Peppers

Just starting this glog now so it's one less thing to do in a few months when I'm knee deep in compost and getting things in the ground.
 
Not much to report at the moment. Strains yet to be determined, but I'll probably end up growing too many like always...lol
 
 
Only thing that's going on right now is a clean back patio and the chickens doing their part turning over my compost pile on the daily. Intersted in seeing how the soil microbes appreciate the added chicken poop!
 

 

 
Hope everyone has had a decent winter so far and here's to happy germination!
 

 
 
 
EDIT UPDATE: This glog has turned into an ongoing overwintering, greenhouse and soil building how-to!

 

[Pepper Ridge Farm]

Yes, I did see that review and thought you handled it well drooling over a sink in your kitchen.  lol.  Are you growing the BS this year in your garden?

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Yes, I did see that review and thought you handled it well drooling over a sink in your kitchen.  lol.  Are you growing the BS this year in your garden?

Dude, I'm hard pressed to find a pepper that will destroy my mouth, and your BrainStrain was really hot in there but it MURDERED my stomach man....simply destroyed me...I wen't to sleep after that ordeal (and eating an entire cantaloupe) only to take a psychedelic journey to far away realms. Had a dream about a troll on thp getting banned, and when I woke up THP had actually banned them...super strange dude...
 
I'm not actually growing them this year because I have a SURPLUS of dried pods and sauce. I actually didn't grow much of anything this year. Only a handful of different varieties. Didn't want to overgrow myself and more importantly I moved the garden to a new plot (ground space) on the property and I'm still not quite sure how it will perform. Didn't want to place all my eggs in one basket, so to speak. So far the plot is doing well, but I can tell it needs this first year to really get going in the soil food web department. Things have slowed down a little with this weather. I'm dumping a huge load of horse manure with some chicken, then covering with another load of mulch and I'm calling it a day on this season for that plot. I've also gotta get the trout tea going. I've been really busy! 

 

[GnomeGrown]

"Feed the Soil"
 

 

[ronniedeb]

Nice photos Richard! When you say you are going to start up a trout tea. Will that be decomposed for this season or next?

 

[PIC 1]

Those Scotch Bonnets are looking very Jamaican.....mon......................

 

[Pepper-Guru]

"Feed the Soil"
 

 
Took me only a few years to figure out the real value behind that mantra!

Nice photos Richard! When you say you are going to start up a trout tea. Will that be decomposed for this season or next?

Oh, for sure this season. Gonna super turbo charge this batch. I'll be wanting to use it as a soil drench very soon. 
 

Those Scotch Bonnets are looking very Jamaican.....mon......................

I can't wait man, the suspense is truly agonizing! I'm just glad I know I have the real thing now I may even celebrate the first ripe pod with a bowl of ... blue mountain delight

 

[ronniedeb]

 
 
Oh, for sure this season. Gonna super turbo charge this batch. I'll be wanting to use it as a soil drench very soon. 
 

 
Great. How long does it take for the fish to decompose to usable level? May give it a go. Dont have any trout. Lots of Mackerel though.

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Great. How long does it take for the fish to decompose to usable level? May give it a go. Dont have any trout. Lots of Mackerel though.

it can be done in two weeks. I usually do a month long ferment or more, but. I'm gonna try something different and see if I can't speed things up.

 

[Pepper Ridge Farm]

I would like to see how this is done also Rich, I have access to mahi-mahi fish carcasses and want to make some fish emulsion if I can.  Thanks in advance! 

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Any fish works, but we don't do emulsion! We do hydrolysate! Say it with me now! HYDROLYSATE!

 

[Jeff H]

Any fish works, but we don't do emulsion! We do hydrolysate! Say it with me now! HYDROLYSATE!

 
I saw you do that stinky brew last year or was that the year before, but never knew what it was called.
 
For anyone too lazy to google it, I did it for ya.
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fish_hydrolysate
 
 
Either way, I don't think the wife or neighbors would be pleased if I did that around here.

 

[Pepper-Guru]

My wife has grown to not hate me for it. The neighbors are kept guessing because of my random hole digging at 2 am in the back yard (just to mess with em) follow that with the aroma and needless to say, property remains untresspassed...

 

[GA Growhead]

Lol. That fish brew smells like death! Still will do it again though.
Dying to wet my line!

 

[ronniedeb]

My wife has grown to not hate me for it. The neighbors are kept guessing because of my random hole digging at 2 am in the back yard (just to mess with em) follow that with the aroma and needless to say, property remains untresspassed...

 
I'm thinking a bucket within a bucket might suppress the smell a bit. Or no?  I live in a built up area, so need to do something. 

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Here's how I'm doing it this year:
 
Usually I drop the fish in whole, and let the microbes (enzymes) and time do their thing. I need things to move a bitter faster for me right now, so here's how it's getting done. 
 
 
 
The tools needed:
 
Blender, Knife, Fish, Rain water, and Bacterial (enzymatic inoculation) 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
Slice the fish up into blender manageable pieces.
 

 
 
 
 
Blend with rain water. Again, this step is to give the enzymes a head start in eating away and converting the bones, fats, and oils into the readily available nutrients for the soil and plants. 
 

 
 
Add enzymes to do their thing. I strained all the juice from the compost bucket, dumped the solids into the worm bin, and then inoculated the fish soup and rain water with the compost juice. This already smells WONDERFUL
 

 
 
I imagine this dank tank will be really rank fairly soon. I need to use it within two weeks. Again, I normally do open air inoculation and drop the fish in whole. That method only takes a month+-, the blending of the bones and adding of the compost (fruit juices) adds a lot of enzymes that have already had the chance to colonize. Now they are really going to have something to munch on

 

[Shurbryn]

Followed for further knowledge of the soil food web

 

[JJJessee]

Got the ol' Bass-o-matic going, eh?

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Update time:
 
So, noticed things start to slow down and not look that great towards the end of June into July. Which was odd, because I know this plot should be performing well with all that went into it. Our daily afternoon showers had decreased in frequency but I didn't think that could be it because of the irrigation system and the fact that nothing looked under watered. Did some investigating and released that earlier in the season, I left my main irrigation supply out across the yard in full sun. I tested the water with my foot when it cut on one evening and instantly got burned! Water coming out of the drip lines was nearly boiling my delicate root zones and all the microbes along with them. 
 
I've since remedied the situation by relocating the main supply line just inside the wood line under the shade. Now when the water cuts on, its much cooler. Things are starting to look better now, but I didn't stop there. I've been building a huge vermicompost barrel with all my compost over the last few months, so I took all those solids, worms and all, added all my composted chicken manure, lots of rain water from the pond and made a HUGE compost slurry. I brought all 55 gallons out to the plot and did a massive soil drench. What remains is a sweet smelling land mine of organic matter on top of all that mulch in the plot. Plants are already responding to it and I think the soil food web is back in full swing. 
 
I've still got the dank tank fermenting/converting and that will be used within the next two weeks. I expect a BIG jump in growth from that application. 
 
Here's a visual update on our progress so far:
 
 
 
 
Corn's near harvest ready and will be pulled soon after. Replaced by some other crop that I haven't had the chance to grow this season. Probably some melons.
 

 
 
 
 
Tomatoes are doing well
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
Jalapenos bearing fruit and corking up!
 

 
 
 
 
Rooster Spurs noded and loaded!
 

 
 
 
 
White Habs, so tasty
 

 
 
 
Some volunteers finally revealing themselves! 
 
First: 
 
Aji Crystal Volunteers
 

 
 
 
 
Birgit Volunteers
 

 
 
 
 
Then some yet to be identified C. Chinense volunteers! Fingers crossed for some YELLOW 7 PODS! C'mon baby!
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
TO BE CONTINUED after a kind bump de bump  

 

[Weed]

bump

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Thanks
 
 
cont...
 
 
Grow down Contestant # 1 Aji Chuncho 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
contestant # 2
 

 
 
contestant # 2 closeup pods
 

 
 
 
And, Ministry of Agriculture Jamaican Scotch Bonnets
 

 
That's it for now. 
 
I just got a new lens in the mail ( Lumix 20mm 1.7), so the next update will be pod porn and harvest shots!
 
Stay tuned