HillBilly Jeff's 2014 Adventure - Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!

 

Just throwing this up here to plan out my list for next year.  Looking at some changes to my grow next year.

 

Just throwing this up here to plan out my list for next year.  Looking at some changes to my grow next year.

 

Just throwing this up here to plan out my list for next year.  Looking at some changes to my grow next year.

 

[Devv]

 
 
When does everyone else pull their plants from the dome?  I am really not looking to pot up until the trues come on, longer if I can help it.  I just don't want them to be under the dome too long either.  Keeping a close eye on them.

When mine show the cotys, or are hooking and I can tell it's not a helmet. Helmets stay in longer..
 
Edit: I just got this sudden overwhelming urge for fish! It's like suggestive advertising..

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

When mine show the cotys, or are hooking and I can tell it's not a helmet. Helmets stay in longer..
 
Edit: I just got this sudden overwhelming urge for fish! It's like suggestive advertising..

 
 
Do you pot up when the coty shows, or just move them out from under the dome?
So a bit off the topic of peppers, but I just ordered up 3 packs of chipolini onions and I have some walking onions coming as well.  Definitely going to need some raised beds if this keeps up.

 

[Devv]

I remove the netting, and put them in 16oz. solo cups, leaving the pellet about 1/2" proud of the potting soil. I top water along the sides very sparingly, and when they are few weeks old I move them to the larger pots. When the leaves are spreading outside the cups they have enough roots to transfer without the dirt falling apart, plants are about 4"s high. I may be up-potting early but I've seen some roots of plants left in the cups too long..
 
Once in the larger pots I bottom water, and when I know they have three or four days outside I top water. It seems they don't get the side roots that support the plant in the wind when just bottom watering. This could also be because I move them to a larger pot early...growth has been good...so I'm staying with that method..

 

[Jeff H]

Walleye looks fantastic. I don't think I have ever had any. It is on my list to try.  

 

[maximumcapsicum]

How exactly do you bottom water? Fill a tray beneath the pot or carefully submerge the base of the pot and then let it drip out for a minute?

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

I remove the netting, and put them in 16oz. solo cups, leaving the pellet about 1/2" proud of the potting soil. I top water along the sides very sparingly, and when they are few weeks old I move them to the larger pots. When the leaves are spreading outside the cups they have enough roots to transfer without the dirt falling apart, plants are about 4"s high. I may be up-potting early but I've seen some roots of plants left in the cups too long..
 
Once in the larger pots I bottom water, and when I know they have three or four days outside I top water. It seems they don't get the side roots that support the plant in the wind when just bottom watering. This could also be because I move them to a larger pot early...growth has been good...so I'm staying with that method..

 
Thanks for the info.  Mine are still doing good with the dome still one, but some are an inch or so from the top already and as soon as they hook they seem to have a root out the bottom of the pellet.  I can't have them overcoming the netting as it must come off.
 
 

Walleye looks fantastic. I don't think I have ever had any. It is on my list to try.  

 
You are from Ohio with Lake Erie being the Mecca of all Walleye fishing and you haven't had a walleye?  Better not say that too loud or they might kick you out of the state.  That's almost as bad as living in Columbus and being a Michigan fan!!!  What part of Ohio?  I am 5 hours from Cleveland and 4 hours from Middletown.
 

How exactly do you bottom water? Fill a tray beneath the pot or carefully submerge the base of the pot and then let it drip out for a minute?

 
The way I do it, and generally just to get my dirt wet in the pots I am potting up in, is to put pots in tray and put water in tray and let them draw up a drink.  Now how much for watering I am not sure.  With my presoaking, I just want to get it wet to the top, which it should do overnight.  
 
 
Only jumped up to 41/72 germed today, so it was a slow day.  3 peach bhut and 3 peach x and only 1 x is up so far.  That is a bit concerning.
 
I did have another Bart pop up that I wasn't counting on.  So that should make me 2 cells, 2 seeds per cell and 4 plants.  Still no word on Jaques.

Some pics of the tray.  I think I will be getting ready to pot up 36 tomorrow.
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 

[Spicegeist]

Very nice!

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Proper reading material in the man cave for the coffee table.  Mainly just to match up with the old albums I have on the wall.
 
 

 

[Jeff H]

 
You are from Ohio with Lake Erie being the Mecca of all Walleye fishing and you haven't had a walleye?  Better not say that too loud or they might kick you out of the state.  That's almost as bad as living in Columbus and being a Michigan fan!!!  What part of Ohio?  I am 5 hours from Cleveland and 4 hours from Middletown.
 
 
 

 
 
I ain't nowhere near that mistake on the lake that Geeme lives in. And not being a fisherman, I only eat what I buy at Kroger or at a restaurant and I don't recall walleye being on either but I'll check the next time I am at Kroger.
 
I'm much closer to Middletown (one of my favorite cities since Aim Surplus is there), but I digress. Cincinnati is where I hail from. Home of the not-superbowl bound Bungles.  

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

 
 
I ain't nowhere near that mistake on the lake that Geeme lives in. And not being a fisherman, I only eat what I buy at Kroger or at a restaurant and I don't recall walleye being on either but I'll check the next time I am at Kroger.
 
I'm much closer to Middletown (one of my favorite cities since Aim Surplus is there), but I digress. Cincinnati is where I hail from. Home of the not-superbowl bound Bungles.  

 
Well then, you are right near a nice lock system on the Ohio River that has plenty of Wiper, Walleye, and Sauger in it!!!  I used to take the AA highway around Cinci on my way to Ashland Kentucky when I had my old job.

 

[PaulG]

Looks like your grow, and kitchen, are firing on all cylinders, Jeff.  Nice work all around!

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Looks like your grow, and kitchen, are firing on all cylinders, Jeff.  Nice work all around!

 
Potted up is coming sooner rather than later though.  The good news is I am going to cycle the light sooner.  I am going to try to keep the temps lower than last season, and I have constant air movement on them.  The pot ups will be smaller and thus easier to water for some time.  The time to dread is when the 18 pots in the tray are crowding themselves so much and they are hard to water.  Hoping not to have that issue until April.  

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Potted up 37 plants this morning.  I think in the future I will be cutting the netting off the bottom of the pellets before I start.  I don't like trying to ease that root back through the netting.
 
1 error during pot up.  The Peach X peat pellet broke in half.  The pepper wasn't broken, but it got a little rough.  That one and my Fatalii are the only two that haven't bounced back from TPS.  The pellets were also drier than I thought they would have been.  Need to make note of that on future germing.
 
Now some pics.
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
My first set of pot ups.  These seed were planted on the 15th of December.  So just over a month from the seed hitting the dirt.  Pete is just going nuts.
 
 

 
 
 
My pot ups from Christmas planting
 
 

 
 
 
And to my surprise, Tomatillo Gigantic Verde 2 hooking in 3 days!!!  These puppies are going to be huge by May 20th.
 
 

 

[Jeff H]

 
 The time to dread is when the 18 pots in the tray are crowding themselves so much and they are hard to water.  Hoping not to have that issue until April.  

 
Jeff, I have been bottom watering this year just because it is easier. take one plant out to make a little too make room and pour 1/2" of water in the tray then put the plant back. If the plants don't drink all the water you might have to transfer them to another tray.
 
My time to really dread is when the plants are all way too big for 4" pots and I have to start putting them in 1 gallon pots. WTF am I going to do with them all at that point?!?
 
 
By the way, what does HBJ stand for? Is that the special Hill Billy Jeff cross?

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

 
Jeff, I have been bottom watering this year just because it is easier. take one plant out to make a little too make room and pour 1/2" of water in the tray then put the plant back. If the plants don't drink all the water you might have to transfer them to another tray.
 
My time to really dread is when the plants are all way too big for 4" pots and I have to start putting them in 1 gallon pots. WTF am I going to do with them all at that point?!?
 
 
By the way, what does HBJ stand for? Is that the special Hill Billy Jeff cross?

 
I have the trays that are form fitted for my 3 1/2 inch pots.  With that said, they won't hold water.  I won't be potting these up into gallon containers.  I just don't have the room to have that many gallon containers all over the place.  They have always made it okay in the past.  The one Manzano and two MoA that I planted back in October will probably have to hit bigger containers, but the rest are at best a month early.
 
HBJ is a color strain I have been working for three years now.  The seeds are from different plants I had last year, so I can further check for trends.  Like seed from last years plant 3 is doing better than all the others etc.  I didn't know what to call it at this point.  Just like my PSB isn't a new plant or breed or anything like that.  It is from the 7 pod burgundy pod that had a beautiful stinger.  Perfect Stinger Burgundy.
 
The Fatalii as straightened back up and I did a little dirt manipulation to stand up the Peach X.  The X is the only one I am really concerned with at this time.
Bonda Ma Jaques isn't playing nice.  Saved the seeds the same as I did with all the other pods Annie sent me and those all germed at just about 100%.  I just loaded about thirty seeds into a paper towel and baggie behind the wood stove.  I don't care if I get 20 to come up, I gotta get some of these peppers to go.  Usually when I go all drastic on the seeds everything starts to pop up.  Looking for the ones in the dirt to pop now that I started these....hoping that's how my karma goes this time
 
In other news, I have been requested to grow Thai pepper again this year.  I guess my Thai pepper relish is a big hit around here, so I will be growing another plant this season.

 

[stc3248]

Your "Pete" and tomatoes will be 4' tall by May!!! Lol...I did the same thing last year with my tomatoes...and they about took over the damn grow room!
 
Great looking pics and progress Hillbilly! You're gonna be a busy man!

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Chocolate Fatalii and another HBJ are popping.  This puts me at 43/72.  I really am hoping more pop than this.  
 
Potted up the 4 Petes I had in one 3 1/2 inch pot.  They are showing some major TPS atm.

 

[maximumcapsicum]

Love the pot ups. One of my favorite parts of growing in general!

It'll be interesting to see how your hbj strain turns out. Can't wait till I've been at this long enough for that kind of thing! Good luck!

 

[Capsicum Select]

Awesome Jeff! Congrats on all the tri-cotys too! haha
 
How big are those tomatillos? I grew some purple milpas last year which were nice. I tried to OW them but they didn't make it.

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Awesome Jeff! Congrats on all the tri-cotys too! haha
 
How big are those tomatillos? I grew some purple milpas last year which were nice. I tried to OW them but they didn't make it.

 
Do you mean how tall are they or how big is the fruit they produce?  The plants are just hooks, so I assume you mean the fruit.  Never grew them before but since they are called Gigante, I am thinking 30-40 pounds apiece!!!