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JJJ Glog 2014.....in summary

Whew!
2013 Swirling down the Drain of Time.
 
Washing the 10x20s for a New Year.
 

 
 
By last October I was so peppered out  -40 some superhot plants and over twice that many mild and sweets. Didn't think I'd ever see the end of it. But, an early surprise freeze caught me off guard and I lost several mild and sweeties. I did get almost the entire superhot crop, dried, smoked, fermented, frozen or pickled. so I should have no dearth of heat to see me through to 2014 harvest.
 
I owe most of my pepper success in 2013 to YOU.
All the folks here at THP helped me from seed, to advice, to encouragement, to inspiration.  Couldn't have done it without y'all.
 
Some changes for 2014:
 

 
I'm moving my Cappy 1000 Pepper Incubator into my  basement utility room. Last year I had it in a minimally heated out building and the night times often dipped into the 50s or lower. And come to find out, baby peppers don't much care for that. They survived, they were just slow growers.
 
 
Dirt:
 
Fox Farms Ocean Forest will be my potting mix. It's organic and hopefully will be as good as the Miracle Grow Moisture Control and it can't be any worse than my home-brew last year which wasn't horrible but coulda been better.
 
Timing:
 
Instead of putting most of my seed in the ground in early February, I'm going to hold off until later on the Annums. The Chinensis at least some in early - mid January and some Manzano seeds earlier than that if I can find them. :rolleyes:
 
How Many for Plant Out?:
 
Not 140.
I'm devoting 2 raised beds -a 4x30 and a 4x16 to Sweet Peppers -Jimmy Nardello, King of the North, Gaint Marconis, Aji Dulce. About 26 plants. 
100' in my row garden. Probably 40 plant's. Haven't decided on the balance, Bhuts, 7 pot, Habs, Bonnets, Jalas, the usual suspects and a few odd balls.
66 plants +/- total. I totally neglected my maters last year(which given the season didn't make much difference), but this year I vow to do better by tomatoes. I hope to do 50 or so -all heirlooms, mostly paste.
I'll start several more of both than needed for selling and give-aways.
 
 
 
In related news....
 
My buddy up in Richmond grew a lot of peppers last year. He has a geodesic dome greenhouse. At the end of season he just dug up several of his pepper plants and moved them in inside.
 

 
They're looking pretty good for late December.
 
My last "harvest" of 2013 was 12/22/13; some Thai Chilis that I'd pulled the whole plants in October and just laid up on a table outside. Most had dried leather-hard.
 
I pulled, cooked, seasoned, ground and strained them into a sauce for Pad Thai for this winter.
 

 
 
Everything subject to change without notice.
(But I'll keep you posted)
 
Thanks for reading,
JJJ
 
 
 
Click to expand...
Everything's looking great, JJJ.  I've planted garlic any time from mid to late fall all the way up to very early spring.  Depending on the weather that particular year, they all can do well.  But you're right, if you wait too late in the spring, they won't have time to make well before the dry summer kills them back.  A problem here with fall-planting is the frequent warm spells throughout the winter (not so much of a problem this year, except right now).  The garlic will start growing, then a hard freeze will set it back.  If that happens repeatedly, it can sap the growing bulbs too much.  I've lost entire fall-planted crops like that.  On the other hand, a spring like we had two(?) years ago, where it basically went from late winter to hot, dry summer, spring-planted garlic didn't make.  I usually like to hedge my bets and plant half the crop in the fall and half in late winter, but have dropped the ball on that lately.
 
Plants look great. Nice and healthy. 
 
On the garlic topic, I didn't get any in the ground in the fall since I didn't have any beds ready to plant them. I'll have some in the ground as soon as I get the raised beds made in a few weeks if the weather cooperates. 
 
Thanks, guys.
I'm about out of last year's garlic except some we dehydrated. It sure is good to oil a head with some EVO and bake in a dutch oven until soft. I'll miss it.
 
One a brighter note, only 7 weeks until asparagus.  :drooling:
 
This post is about onions....
 
after a gratuitous foliage shot..
 

I looked at last year's glog to compare progress....I don't know how '13 plants survived to plant out.
 
 
Cippolini Onions -Flat of Italy.... from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds sown 1/11/14
catching some of yesterday's final rays.
 

 
I trimmed them back with scissors, a little bit every few days. 
To me these  are about the right size to handle for transplanting.
My guide said transplant when the third leaf appears, but my third leaves have been out a week or more.
There are 200++ onions in there.
The guide said they need at least 4" of depth.
 
Don't know how I did this blur, but just to show what the root density was.
 

 
After some painstaking tedium, I decided that the easiest way to handle them was, get a little handful,
 

 
clip the roots, and clip the tops.
 

 
 
Then I stuck them in about everything I could get my hands on.
 




All but the 3.5 pots are in coir, so they will get liquid chow.
 
Remember this interloper?

 
Thought it was a pepper, but it popped so quickly, I suspected something was amiss.
I didn't cast it out, just stuck in a tote with my OW chinese celery (which was set outside today)
90% sure it's a Cherokee Purple mater. I pruned leaves, stuck it in 1/2 gal milk jug of coir and it's under the LED, waiting for it's next mission. This is about the size I like to setout in the field -about forty days old
 
Don't know if any of this will work. I have the manual in one hand and the steering wheel in the other.
 
Thanks for reading.
 
 
 
...and onions shall rule the world.
 
JJJessee said:
I'm about out of last year's garlic except some we dehydrated. It sure is good to oil a head with some EVO and bake in a dutch oven until soft. I'll miss it.
Click to expand...
 
Man, I haven't had that in a long time.  I've been saving the biggest garlic cloves from the last few bulbs I bought.  Need to get them planted this weekend.
 
Still too cold to set the Onions out?
 
They look ready, not sure about your weather. I've found soaking the plants in water really helps to separate them.
 
 
HillBilly Jeff said:
So plant them each fall then to get garlic from them the next year.
Click to expand...
I'm sure your date is way later, but I put garlic in at the fall equinox, around Sept. 21. Harvest is June for us when the tops brown out.
 
Looking good JJJ. Never knew anything about onions. Looks like you got a good system down. Last year my onions were all stunted and sad.

That mater is huge! How did you prune it? Also you planting in milk jugs?
 
maximumcapsicum said:
Looking good JJJ. Never knew anything about onions. Looks like you got a good system down. Last year my onions were all stunted and sad.
Last year my onions started bad and ended worse. This batch of seedlings is looking good. I've got some others that are looking pretty iffy. Maybe some varieties just don't respond to artificial light as well.

That mater is huge! How did you prune it? Also you planting in milk jugs?
That thing has thrived on neglect. I left the top crown, and one good leaf, took the others off and planted it deep.
Yeah, milk jugs :D. I hate to throw reusable things away. The clear ones make a good cloche at plant out time too. Work good as berry and hot pepper picking containers strapped on your belt too. And we fill them with water to fill up dead space in the freezers. 
Click to expand...
 
 
Devv said:
Still too cold to set the Onions out?
 
Scott, I'm gonna set out baby onions mid-late March and even that may be pushing it. Probably put them under row cover a few weeks. Established onions can handle some cold but babies not so much. I have a few scallions that didn't produce in the fall that are trying to make something now.
 
They look ready, not sure about your weather. I've found soaking the plants in water really helps to separate them.
I thought I'd have to soak them but they crumbled apart surprisingly well.
 
I'm sure your date is way later, but I put garlic in at the fall equinox, around Sept. 21. Harvest is June for us when the tops brown out.
Click to expand...
 
JJJessee said:
Yeah, it needs a disco ball, lava lamps, or something.
Tomorrow, 4am, I'll hear Hendrix blasting from the basement.
Click to expand...
 
:rofl: Nothing wrong with that bro'! Have you gone into the LED grow station with a light meter to find out what the lumen output is? I'd be curious to hear that part of it. I tried an LED spotlight on my plants last year, but it just didn't have enough light output to help the plants underneath grow like they did under the T8s. Good luck with the experiment!
 
Rick, I wish I had a light meter. For now, the plants are my light meters :D From what little I've read, PAR values are more critical than lumens of the LED as plants respond to blue and red curves more than what we call visible bandwidth. But yes, there does  need to be a certain "volume" of light nonetheless and  I think I'm on the lower edge of, maybe even below, enough. I have a bunch more red modules to scrap out and reuse, but I may have to buy a few blues. I'm not discouraged with my T8s, just hope to save on the electric bill.
 
Pretty day here with sunshine and 60°s.
Not quite warm enough for peppers to be outside, but some of the onions enjoyed it
I used the weather to drag everything out of my out building, spawling it out in the driveway, for a complete re-organization. I'm half done. I may end up with some peppers back in there before plant out. I slightly :liar: over planted and this year they are growing like weeds....so time to get ready new space if needed.
 
One month update for several today.
These were all potted up on 1/23/14
 
JA Habanero.
Walkgood would be proud. :D
 

Thus far the plant has just been an average grower and it's just now coming into it's chinense crinkle.
 
 
7 Pot Yellow
 

I almost didn't grow these, but I think it was Annie convinced me I'd regret it.
They are from seed Durham Bull sent me last year. They are killer hot but good flavor and aroma.
I made a simple Thai sauce out of them last year that sees frequent action on the wok noodles.
 
 
White Bhut
Another gift from Walkgood
 

These have been a little slow but have just started to take off in the last few days.
 
 
Nagabon 
 

A fairly new cross from the Hippy Seed Co. of the Bih Jolokia and a Scotch Bonnet.
I'm expecting very hot, fleshier than most supers, and prolific. Only two plants and I may not grow out both of them.
 
 
 
In the mini-dome
 

My last germs of Wave 1. Trying for a couple more Jay's Peach(left) and Jigsaws(right-a few have popped) 
 
FIrst Manzano fork -35 days
 

 
http://s98.photobucket.com/user/JJJessee/media/Grow Log 2014/IMG_1011.jpg.html
 
The Manzano also seemed to have pickup steam in the last few days.
 
 
 
 
Better take in the flowers while we can. Snow will fly from VA north before February yields.
 

 
Thanks for reading
 
Lookin' good, JJJ.  I think Ramon grows the same strain of White Bhut that I do.  That was the strain that produced the "not white" Yellow BJ, so you might get a surprise from those.  Not likely, since I only had two "nots" out of 15 or so plants last year.
 
Thanks, guys.
Yeah, Jeff, I can just stand and stare at plants for hours, but Manzanos do have some some special visual allure.
 
Winter is suppose to restart tonight. Apparently, it hasn't realized it has worn out its welcome.
 
But it's warm inside.
 

 
I started a couple of brasiccas as an indoor test and they adapted to the T8 pretty good.
So I started a 72 tray that I hope to get in the ground under cover in a week or two
 
Kai Choi and Tainong(heading mustard)

Never have transplanted mustard. It may not go, so I'll back it up with a direct sow too.
 
Pepper Guru reminded me I never had gotten a hugelkulture bed going. So my last bed for spring, this spring ;), I thought I'd give it a try.
 

 
It'll be about 4x7. Next step is to get some logs to put in the bottom to provide a multi-year nutrient/moisture/microbe cache. I found an easy access pile of old wood chips along the road last weekend, and I'll probably throw some of those in there too. This year may not show a difference, hopefully in years to come it will.
 
By the time I was down about 18", I decided to start collecting the worms instead of just tossing them in random beds. The soil was almost devoid of worms when I first tilled it 2 years ago, but I'm seeing more and more.  Still not a lot though.
 

 
Finally, decided if I feed them, it may speed them up a bit. So I sunk and easy access fast food parlor into one of the beds. 
Just to see how it works.
 

 
I spent some time getting the Bed O' Bhuts going until I ran outta screws.
 

 
Thanks for reading
jjj
 
Awesome updates!
I dig seeing all the different types of veg starting indoors. The peppers amongst the rest, all appear very healthy and ready to go.

Looking at the last photo the shadow angle that's cast from the sun is shallow. That's a sign that Spring is near! Which direction in the photo is South facing ?
 
Hey, Pic. Yeap, the Sun is climbing fast these days. The slope faces SSE. I lucked out good on that one. Slope at the beds themselves is a good 5% or better and way steeper behind and some steeper below them. Slope, as well as South, makes a big difference in heating the ground. If I were to change anything it would be a fence to the west (to cut down on some wind)  and to the north above it (to cut down on cold air drainage at night). Not this year though.
 
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