Highalt's 2012 Grow Log

I haven't made it to the super hot level yet, so not sure how interesting you guys will find this, but I like having one place to post all of my pictures throughout the season, so here goes.

2012 Preliminary Grow List:

Aji Yellow
Alma Paprika
Ancho Gigantia
Ancho San Luis
Barker (NuMex)
Big Jim (NuMex)
Black Hungarian
Chile de Arbol
Chile Hidalgo (don't actually have seeds for this one yet)
Chilhaucle Rojo
Chimayo
Cosa Arrugada
Costeno Amarillo
Fish
Fresno
Georgia Flame
Giant Szegedi
Habanero Chocolate
Habanero Peach
Hawaiian Sweet Hot
Inca Red Drop
Jalapeno 'Biker Billy' (The only hybrid on the list)
Jaloro
Japone
Jimmy Nardello
Lemon Drop
Melrose
NuMex Espanola Improved
NuMex Pinata (don't have seeds for this one yet either)
Patio Red Marconi
Piment 'd Espelette
Rain Forest
Rocotillo
Sante Fe Grande
Serrano Tampiqueno
Tollie's Sweet Italian

*Disclaimer - this list is subject to change ... hourly

I host an annual group pepper seed swap on another site, so I'm sure I'll probably add to this list once that gets going, but this is the bulk of what I plan to grow anyway. The problem with adding to this list isn't where to plant them, it's finding enough cat-free space indoors to start them all!

If you check out my post on early season Serrano substitutes you'll see I'm still looking for information on a few of the peppers I"m thinking of growing. It's so much better hearing from someone that has actually grown a variety, rather than going by a description on a seed vendor's website!

The habaneros may get started in the next couple of weeks, but I'll probably wait until February to start the rest. I'll be back with pictures once the seeds are in the dirt.

 

[highalt]

UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Damn Bonnie, that wrecked my day. Hope it keeps to that one plant for you. You can try to sterilize that area by putting down some clear plastic with a small air gap to act like a mini greenhouse. Every few days cultivate the soil under the plastic to try to cook it clean. You did the absolute right thing chucking it, I waited too long, and Mild Mottle Virus has claimed victory at my house. I have more infected than not now. I don't know too much about how fusarium is transmitted, but if it can be transmitted through pests or mechanically its a good idea to work in the Community Garden first then come down to the house that way you minimize the chance of carrying it with you to your other plants. I carry hand sanitizer and use it between each plant as well. Good luck and keep us posted!

Beautiful rainbow shot!
Shane

Sorry I ruined your day, Shane! You're the first person I thought of once I figured out what I was dealing with. I had to resist the urge to go into a full-on panic about it, and kept telling myself, it's just one plant. I tend to go straight for the worst case scenario in my head! Thank you for your grace under pressure example you set for the rest of us!

Yeah, I washed my hands a lot yesterday. Kind of like having one of the kids sick, and having clean up duty, and trying not to spread it to the rest of the family. Been there done that for sure!

According to the research I did yesterday, fusarium wilt affects plants in the mint family, which basil falls into that category. This might explain why I've never been able to keep mint alive, or lemon balm either! Makes me feel better to think it wasn't user error anyway.

I was just going to say "Call Shane!"

Good luck Bonnie - I live in fear of something like that happening here

You know, I never gave something like this much thought. It definitely caught me by surprise.

Assuming that the town continues the community garden next year, my plan is to put ALL the non-nightshade veggies here at the house, and strictly do peppers tomatoes, and tomatillos down there. The problem is that things like cukes, and zukes take up a lot of space, which I don't have much of here at the house. As long as they don't start building a house on the empty lot next door, I can continue to use the space along the outside of my backyard fence for some of the space hogs.

Sorry to hear about the wilt - living in the soil for several years? Are you kidding me? That sucks. Hopefully it doesn't spread, you've already overcome quite a bit this year.

Thanks, Andy! I think maybe I was getting a little overconfident, since things were going so well lately. I had a feeling a challenge was on the horizon!

To quote our friend Paul, "Every pod's a victory!"

Wow Bonnie! That's an amazing shot of a double rainbow a little after sunset... I've never seen anything like it. Do you think the recent fires might have something to do with it?

I think it was just lucky timing. The skies have been smoke free the past 2 or 3 weeks now.

 

[capsidadburn]

Bonnie, Sorry to hear of your plant loss. I hope the rest of your season is wonderful!

Mike

 

[stc3248]

I am going probably exclusively container for a few seasons with my peppers to attempt to heal the soil. I would try something like that if I were you that way if something creeps into your community plot you have some fallbacks. I feel your pain believe me. PMMOV is rarely fatal to the plants though, and I have only lost a couple to it. I'm really praying you don't have any more issues.

 

[highalt]

Yeah, Shane, I have two Earthboxes, and several large pots on the patio that will hold a total of 14 plants. Maybe I'll buy another Earthbox or two to use until I get this problem resolved.


Check out my first harvest pic!!!

Hey, it's a start!

It's also a NOT. Seeds came from a swap and were labeled Costeno Amarillo. Unless there's a Costeno Rojo than I'm not sure what they really are, but I'll report back on the heat and flavor. My hubby is cooking me salmon and scallops, and fresh corn on the cob on the grill tonight in honor of my birthday, which was earlier this week. I made the dessert, my first pineapple upside cake. Maybe I'll post some food pics later.

Oh, and as a gift he sent me and my 13 year old son white water rafting this afternoon. What a blast! Gotta love living in a place where it's only a 20 minute drive to go rafting, and 45 min. to go skiing! That's what I'm talking about!!!

 

[ColoradoRonin]

Congratulations on your first harvest!
It appears something good came out of all the bad stuff you've been dealing with!
Happy Birthday too!

 

[stc3248]

Great harvest shot Bonnie! First of many...as is on Paul's signature, "Every pod a victory!"

 

[highalt]

Thanks ColoradoRonin and Shane!

Okay, these are not the best photos I've ever taken, but I think you'll get the idea.

Teriyaki steak on a stick, scallops, salmon, and corn on the cob grillin'.

Took this shot while the plate was on the stovetop, so it's a bit overexposed. My birthday dinner.

Dessert

So the Not Costeno Amarillo was pretty tasty, maybe jalapeno hot or a little hotter. I was just about to say it didn't have any heat, when it kicked in. On top of that, when I made the basting sauce for the salmon, I dumped in more of Kevin's Spicy Blend than I meant to, so my lips were on fire for the first few bites, but it was delicious!

 

[stc3248]

Happy birthday a little late! Looks wonderful! All that's missing is enough candles to set off the smoke alarm on that cake! I know your younger than me, but a fire extinguisher should still be in order! Really glad you got to reap a small harvest for your bday dinner. Everything looks amazing, but I am sure that little pod was the sweetest thing on your plate...

 

[Pinoy83]

Thanks ColoradoRonin and Shane!

Okay, these are not the best photos I've ever taken, but I think you'll get the idea.

Teriyaki steak on a stick, scallops, salmon, and corn on the cob grillin'.

Took this shot while the plate was on the stovetop, so it's a bit overexposed. My birthday dinner.

my favorite food and congrats on your first harvest and more to come

 

[stickman]

Happy Birthday... also a little late.. I hope you didn't spend it all in one place...

 

[capsidadburn]

Beautiful grill, plate and dessert Bonnie! Looks quite yummy!

 

[PaulG]

Great stuff, Bonnie! That birthday plate looks awesome, as does your cake. YUM!
Now that you have your first pepper under your belt, you will have many more!
Can't wait for you to regale us with tales of your success! And I hope the wilt
thing isn't bringing you down too much, although as Shane says, it's hard not to
get low once in a while. But you have a great attitude, Bonnie, so keep up the
good work...

 

[KiNGDeNNiZ]

Bonnie.. this year ive been dealing with forasium wilt and have tossed about 4-6 plants already.. i have read that overwater can be a good breeding ground for it. once it hits the plant.. theres really nothing you can do to save the plant.

mine doesnt have streaks on the plant nor on the pods.. so yours might be different. .. but if it is.. then TOSS any plant and TOSS any soil if its in containers.. if it is in ground like this.. keep an eye out on the plants next to it.. they may be next.. do what shane said and black tarp it to nuke the soil....

good luck with your plants...

 

[highalt]

Hi Denniz! Yeah, mine looks a bit different than yours, but it matched one of the pictures I found in the research I did. Plus, the fact that I've seen the same thing on the basil in previous years, and the basil is growing right in front of the peppers, makes me fairly certain that I've made the right diagnosis.

When I checked on the plants yesterday afternoon things looked wilted and stressed, even though I didn't see any evidence of the fusarium wilt on any of the plants. I was feeling a bit disheartened, but then we had a late afternoon thunderstorm drop over 3/10" of rain, and everything looks much better today. I think they were all just thirsty, since the temperature reached 97 on Saturday, and I had shut the irrigation off. The afternoon thunderstorms can trick you around here. There's lots of wind, thunder, and lightening, but it usually only rains for a couple of minutes, so you think you got some moisture, but in reality it wasn't even measurable. The one yesterday was probably the most rain we've had at one time all summer though.

 

[RocketMan]

Hi Bonnie, really cool Pic of the rainbow. I had to call my little daughter over to see it and she just gasped when she saw it. Sorry to hear about the plant but atleast it's just one and hopefully you got it out intime to prevent it spreading.

A belated Happy Birthday to you too. That's a good Man you got there to send you off for an adventrue and then have that wonderful meal for you.

Cheers
Bill

 

[romy6]

Better late than never. That was one tasty meal your DH made

 

[highalt]

Hi Bonnie, really cool Pic of the rainbow. I had to call my little daughter over to see it and she just gasped when she saw it. Sorry to hear about the plant but atleast it's just one and hopefully you got it out intime to prevent it spreading.

A belated Happy Birthday to you too. That's a good Man you got there to send you off for an adventrue and then have that wonderful meal for you.

Cheers
Bill

Thanks for the birthday wishes, Bill! They seem to roll around a lot faster these days! Glad your daughter enjoyed the rainbow. The picture made the sky look a little darker than it was. I was just glancing out the window, and the whole sky looked red. At first I thought it was a fire, and when I realized it was a rainbow, I grabbed my camera and ran outside.

Better late than never. That was one tasty meal your DH made

Thanks, Jamie!

I agree with you and Bill, my DH treats me very well.



Here's a photo update from here at the house.

I should have waited until the patio was in the shade for this pic, but it's the Earthbox with the monster Guajillo plant in it. The other three plants are 18"-24", but I measured that baby today, and it's 39" tall.

A close up of one of the pods on the Guajillo.

Also in that same Earthbox, is a Jaloro plant.

... and my lone Biker Billy.

In the other Earthbox I have my first pods on Pusztagold, a sweet yellow pepper. The camera refused to focus on the pods.

and my largest peppers so far, Patio Red Marconi.

The Cosa Arrugada is loading up on pods, but they aren't wrinkled like they were last year yet.

Look who's starting to turn ... Black Hungarian.

My first tomato here at the house. This one is Rainy's Maltese.

And just because sh'es pretty, Shasta Daisy 'Fiona Coghill'

Well, I'm off to make a batch of Cranberry Banana Nut bread for tomorrow's breakfast.

 

[highalt]

Today's harvest:

1 Aji Chinchi Amarillo

... and one zucchini

Well, there was also one Jimmy Nardello, but it wasn't really ripe. I just knocked it off the plant trying to stake it. Even with the Florida weave in place, the plant was so heavy with pods that it got knocked over in the rain the other day. It wasn't all the way uprooted, so I'm hoping I was able to salvage it.

Good news! Much to my surprise, all of those pitiful plants I bought a couple of weeks back are actually putting out new growth, and some even have buds on them. I also found pods on Aji de la Tierra, Tobago Seasoning, Belize Sweet, Rain Forest, Pequin, and one other one, I think it might have been Chiero Recife. I'll try and remember the camera next time, and get pics of the newest pods.

Off to make jello jiggler hearts for VBS. Not exactly culinarily challenging, but the kids will have fun with them.

 

[stc3248]

They all look real nice! How do you use the Marconi? Looks very Poblano...ish. I really love my stuffers!

 

[highalt]

Shane, the last time I grew it, I used it in place of bell peppers for cooking. The flesh was thinner, and when red is much sweeter than a bell. It would be a good one for roasting, or stuffing too!

Remembered the camera when I went by the community garden today. Here are pics of the first Belize Sweet pods:

Inca Red Drop

Jimmy Nardello. You can see why the plant toppled over and had to be staked.

Here's a close up of one of the pods starting to show some color.

I've got pods on both of the Hawaiian Sweet Hot plants, but they are different. This one looks the most like the pictures I have seen for this pepper.

The pods on this plant are all shorter and stub nosed like this one.

Check out the podage on this baby, Chilhuacle Amarillo. They are the darkest green pods I have ever seen!

Pequin. Sorry for the blurriness, the camera was having trouble focusing on the teeny, tiny pod. They are about the size of a grain of rice!

I'll be back in the morning to post a few more.