HM's Second Attempt for 2020

internationalfish · Nov 16, 2020

Wow, looking great! The jalafuego in particular seem promising. And your pepperoncini are looking great! Are you planning to eat them green or let them ripen?

I had lemon drops outside last season and really enjoyed them. Though mine grew like a vine and attempted to take over the patio rather than bothering with the sun...

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HeatMiser · Nov 16, 2020

internationalfish said:
Wow, looking great! The jalafuego in particular seem promising. And your pepperoncini are looking great! Are you planning to eat them green or let them ripen?

I had lemon drops outside last season and really enjoyed them. Though mine grew like a vine and attempted to take over the patio rather than bothering with the sun...

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Thanks 'fish!

Jalafuego is the first variety I ever grew successfully, so they have a special place in my grows. They pack a punch heat-wise, are great producers and we really enjoy them. I'm of the mindset that given their versatility and improved flavor over store-bought peppers, the humble jalapeno is worth growing.

For the pepperoncini, yes, the plan is to eat them green and let a few ripen to refresh my seed stock and see if their flavor changes after ripening.

I'm most excited about the Lemon Drop since I've never tried it, and yeah, they do grow like vines. It seems like the challenge is to keep up with the vertical growth pattern of these plants, but they are otherwise good producers.

HeatMiser · Nov 22, 2020

Things are chugging along over here. So a quick update

Lemon Drop and Pepperoncini
These two plants have really different growth patterns. On one side you have the Lemon Drop, on which you rarely find a flower, but has so many pods I've given up on trying to count them. On the other side, we have the Pepperoncini, which has been a show-off from day 1, but doesn't produce as many pods as the number of flowers would suggest. Still, getting the Pepperoncini closer to the lights seems to have helped, as I've found a few new pods scattered throughout the plant.

Here are a couple new pods. They are growing fast

Jalafuegos
These plants haven't put much vegetative growth lately, which seems to indicate they are instead focusing the energy on growing their current set of pods. I'm totally OK with that. There are a few new pods that show up every now and then, but it seems like we're going to have a good harvest at some point.

PaulG · Nov 22, 2020

Your plants just keep looking better and better, HM!

HeatMiser · Nov 24, 2020

PaulG said:
Your plants just keep looking better and better, HM!

Thanks Paul, at this point it is starting to become evident to me that I made the right choice in deciding to ditch my previous plants and start a new grow. It was a hard decision to make, but I don't think those plants would have gotten this far, and it would've required a lot more work. I'm definitely happy with the way this grow is going.

HeatMiser · Nov 29, 2020

There hasn't been much change this week. I'm mostly just waiting for some pods to ripen - especially those Lemon Drops.

Lemon Drop and Pepperoncini - Not much has changed this week. The Lemon Drop will soon have room to stretch its branches since I was able to get another HLG100 for Black Friday. Parts of the Pepperoncini have already reached the lights. I'm wondering how to tell if the Pepperoncinis are ready to be picked even though they are still green. They are supposed to be picked when green.

Jalafuegos - These guys haven't grown much either, but are putting their energy where it matters - those pods are now getting big. They are now a darker shade of green, so I think we could already start picking some. I've never let these ripen all the way to red, so this time I'll be letting a few go all the way and see if there's a change in flavor. I also want to save some seeds and see what kind of funky genetics we get on F2.

The pods have grown a bit:

Non-Topped Jalafuego: I haven't posted about this one that much, but this is another Jalafuego I decided to keep after the Chichimeca failed to germinate. I did not top this one, and while it is taller than the other Jalafuegos, it hasn't produced as many pods. In this instance, it seems like topping this variety does increase yield, at least for the time being

Pods on this plant.

1 Gal Kratkys: I think I'll be including these two in my 2021 glog since they won't have time to fully develop this year. Anyway, I expect their growth to pick up quite a bit from now on

Numex Twilight

Mystery Pepper

PaulG · Nov 29, 2020

Rockin' right along, HM!

If you're not sure about ripeness, give the pods
a squeeze. When they start to soften a little, they
should be good to eat. The red ones will have more
heat if the are anything like jalapeños and poblanos
I have grown.

HeatMiser · Dec 2, 2020

PaulG said:
Rockin' right along, HM!

If you're not sure about ripeness, give the pods
a squeeze. When they start to soften a little, they
should be good to eat. The red ones will have more
heat if the are anything like jalapeños and poblanos
I have grown.

Thanks Paul - I was able to try this today. Some of the older pods are now starting to change colors (the picture doesn't show it very well)

However, they are still pretty firm. Since they are supposed to be picked when they are still green, I decided to try a slightly newer pod that is also just starting to turn

There was no heat whatsoever. A little sweetness coming through, but still some of that green/bitter flavor. So what I'll do is wait for a pod to ripen to red and try it. If we're still not happy with the flavor, I'll harvest all the pods in the plant and pickle them (after all, that's what you do with these peppers

). If they're not that great pickled - then I'm going to have some room back for the 2021 grow :party:

While I'm not that impressed with the flavor, I'm really happy I was able to finally get some pods to maturity in this second grow. This is already more than what I achieved earlier this year.

HeatMiser · Dec 13, 2020

Well, nothing much happened the previous week and I was dealing with some back pain. Now that I actually have something to report, here's an update...

First of all, the plants got rearranged and the grow room got an upgrade. I got a shiny new HLG100 for Black Friday and finally bit the bullet and decided to hang the two HLG100 from the ceiling instead of the fugly PVC frames I had built. I really like the portability of the PVC frames vs the static nature of hanging the lights from the ceiling, but the frames were a pain to deal with when performing nutrient changes and ph checks - especially as the plants grew taller and wider. That's just some of the things you learn as you go and you try to optimize to streamline your own process.

So here's a before pic:

And after - Pictured here from left to right are the Pepperoncini, Jalafuego and Lemon Drop. I have to do some cable management, but it looks a lot better now, and I believe that gives me more room to spread out the plants or add an additional bucket or two under those two lights. I'm also glad the Lemon Drop is now able to grow freely.

With those plants now under the HLGs, I moved the Numex Twilight and Mystery pepper under a T5 fixture that will be better suited for them. I will definitely be carrying these two plants over to my 2021 grow:

Growth-wise, the plants are about the same - currently ripening their pods. Last night was nacho night at home, so I decided to pick one Jalafuego - they have grown to a good size now:

Cutting it open - this one wasn't the hottest Jalafuego I have tried, but still considerably hotter (and better tasting) than supermarket jalapenos.

I'm thinking about picking half of the peppers currently on the plants and pickle them. Then we can also try them when they ripen to red - we've only had them green and they were great, so I'm wondering what their taste will be like when they fully ripen.

CaneDog · Dec 13, 2020

It does look easier to navigate the area without the structures, HM. Also like there's room enough to squeeze in another plant or two

What spectrum HLG did you get? I've found those fixtures pretty convenient to work with, though a knock that comes to mind is the cord can seem a bit stiff and heavy. It's sure a lot of light from such a small footprint.

Like your plan for the jalafuegos. I'm a fan of red ripe jalapenos, myself.

:thumbsup:

HeatMiser · Dec 13, 2020

CaneDog said:
It does look easier to navigate the area without the structures, HM. Also like there's room enough to squeeze in another plant or two

What spectrum HLG did you get? I've found those fixtures pretty convenient to work with, though a knock that comes to mind is the cord can seem a bit stiff and heavy. It's sure a lot of light from such a small footprint.

Like your plan for the jalafuegos. I'm a fan of red ripe jalapenos, myself.

It's definitely made it easier to move around. But I think most importantly, it gives me the ability to spread plants farther apart as they grow and also makes for easier checking of the nutrients, which is a huge improvement IMO.

As far as the light itself - they are both the 4000K. I was wondering if I should get the 3000K, but I've gotten decent results and decided not to mix things up. They really are convenient to work with - lightweight and with a small footprint which is perfect for the space I have, but I do share your gripe about the cord being "out of proportion" with the rest of the fixture, especially since it's shorter than the T5 fixtures I already have.

They do put out a lot of light as you mention, and I've always wondered since I got the first one if this isn't damaging to our eyes, so I usually turn off these fixtures when I'm around those plants. I prefer the cool daylight temp of the T5s vs the HLG, but this isn't an option unfortunately.

CaneDog · Dec 13, 2020

I remember Uncle E made a reflector for his to block some of the direct light - http://thehotpepper.com/topic/73392-next-to-my-chair-again/?p=1672823 I definitely like the light of the T5's much better. It's actually a pleasant part of visiting the grow room during the winter months.

I've considered a 3000K if I get another. The internodal distance on many of the plants I put under the 4000K is just ridiculous - the plants can look almost like they're mashed flat. That's very different than what you're experiencing and I've wondered why. Perhaps it's simply due to different varieties, as not all types are similarly affected - chinense and rocotos seem to be more than annuums. Maybe hyrdo and nutrient levels play a part. An alternative to 3000K I've considered was a small booster light in the red spectrum, either running simultaneously or for a short time after lights out.

Anyhow, great to see things chugging along well for you.

PaulG · Dec 13, 2020

The new arrangement looks great, HM.
Glad to see you having such success
with your LED fixtures.

HeatMiser · Dec 13, 2020

CaneDog said:
I remember Uncle E made a reflector for his to block some of the direct light - http://thehotpepper.com/topic/73392-next-to-my-chair-again/?p=1672823 I definitely like the light of the T5's much better. It's actually a pleasant part of visiting the grow room during the winter months.

I've considered a 3000K if I get another. The internodal distance on many of the plants I put under the 4000K is just ridiculous - the plants can look almost like they're mashed flat. That's very different than what you're experiencing and I've wondered why. Perhaps it's simply due to different varieties, as not all types are similarly affected - chinense and rocotos seem to be more than annuums. Maybe hyrdo and nutrient levels play a part. An alternative to 3000K I've considered was a small booster light in the red spectrum, either running simultaneously or for a short time after lights out.

Anyhow, great to see things chugging along well for you.

Hmm, yeah, Uncle E has grown chinense under those lights and he didn't seem to have an issue with internodal spacing either. One of my Jalafuegos has been grown entirely under that light and didn't seem to mind - actually that was one of my criteria for deciding to invest in another HLG100 - I wanted to confirm I could successfully grow a plant. The yellowish leaves on that pepper are more due to neglect on my part, trying to see how long they can go between nutrient changes.

Anyway, are you using your light inside a tent? Uncle E didn't have one either, so I'm wondering if that has more to do (more light being reflected to the plant to the point it doesn't need to stretch at all? just a guess...). It'd be interesting if it really was hydro vs soil.

HeatMiser · Dec 13, 2020

PaulG said:
The new arrangement looks great, HM.
Glad to see you having such success
with your LED fixtures.

Thanks Paul!

Just some small tweaks to the overall process. You guys don't get to listen to all the swearing I do when I have to untangle the plants from each other and the pvc pipes when I have to check the nutrients, haha! so it will definitely help me enjoy the hobby a lot more!

HeatMiser · Dec 19, 2020

Plant-wise there isn't much to report today.

The NuMex Twilight and Mystery Pepper were topped yesterday. I will definitely try to keep the Twilight really well manicured - my wife would like to turn that one into a bonchi once it's ready to do so. It will be a while, but I think it would be perfect to try that out.

The Lemon Drop seems to definitely be liking the HLG100 and not being topped anymore. I'm eagerly waiting for the pods to ripen on this one

Now, the interesting part...

I harvested all the green pods from the pepperoncini plant in order to pickle them. There are still about 3 pods on the plant that I will let ripen. I must say I expected a bit more from these peppers, both in terms of yield but especially flavor.

And this is where I claim redemption for this year, as I also picked some Jalafuegos. There are at least just as many pods left on the plants. I will wait until some of them ripen before I harvest again.

We had some small jars laying around, which we needed to use - so I used ChilliChump's pickling recipe and got to work. This is the result:

I really like how the Pepperoncinis look like. However, these better be the best tasting Pepperoncinis to ever be pickled in order for me to consider growing them again:

CaneDog · Dec 19, 2020

Looks like you've been industrious, HM. Too bad about the lackluster Pepperoncinis, but the Jalafuegos should go a long way toward making up for them. And maybe the pickling spices will help. I had Pepperocinis as about 50/50 for next season, but maybe not so much anymore.

Looking forward to seeing the NuMex and Mystery bush out!

HeatMiser · Dec 19, 2020

CaneDog said:
Looks like you've been industrious, HM. Too bad about the lackluster Pepperoncinis, but the Jalafuegos should go a long way toward making up for them. And maybe the pickling spices will help. I had Pepperocinis as about 50/50 for next season, but maybe not so much anymore.

Looking forward to seeing the NuMex and Mystery bush out!

Busy morning for sure CD!

And yes, the Jalafuegos alone are worth the whole grow. The Pepperoncinis were a little disappointing, but I'm still glad I grew them and I'm looking forward to trying the pickled ones. Maybe a different variety of Pepperoncinis might be better - I'd be willing to try the Golden Greek ones sometime in the future. These ones were sold as "Pepperoncini".

The Numex and Mystery are definitely starting to get going. If I'm successful growing them in these smaller container I might add more of these small containers to my grows and phase out some of the 5 gal ones.

CaneDog · Dec 20, 2020

Being hydro I'm not sure what to expect from the smaller containers. In soil though, I'd expect some pretty big plants. The pepperoncini I have is Burpee's Pepperoncini Orange - https://www.burpee.com/vegetables/peppers/pepper-hot-orange-pepperoncini-prod500127.html. Given that I'm trying to downsize my grow next year I wasn't feeling too bad about having a reason to sit them out next year. I'll re-evaluate when I hear your post-pickling report.
Taco night at La Casa Del McPerro, with a Butch-T Scorpion sauce. :fireball:

Maybe I'll grow some scorpions instead...

HeatMiser · Dec 20, 2020

CaneDog said:
Being hydro I'm not sure what to expect from the smaller containers. In soil though, I'd expect some pretty big plants. The pepperoncini I have is Burpee's Pepperoncini Orange - https://www.burpee.com/vegetables/peppers/pepper-hot-orange-pepperoncini-prod500127.html. Given that I'm trying to downsize my grow next year I wasn't feeling too bad about having a reason to sit them out next year. I'll re-evaluate when I hear your post-pickling report.
Taco night at La Casa Del McPerro, with a Butch-T Scorpion sauce. Maybe I'll grow some scorpions instead...

I expect more plants! and more maintenance too, which is the appeal of the 5 gal containers. I leave them alone for weeks at a time.

I'll report back on the flavor of the pickled Pepperoncinis if that will help sway your mind one way or another.

We love taco night. The pandemic coupled with having now 2 kids has taught us the value of big cuts of meat that make a lot of dishes once cooked - We have relied on Brisket, Pork Shoulder and Turkey to quickly whip up awesome stuff. We made some Cuban sandwiches last night with some pulled pork and fresh Jalafuegos. Pulled pork tacos are another quick dish we put together, but with a milder hot sauce!, haha. Did you make that sauce or is it one of your advent calendar sauces?