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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...
Almost any good meal I can think of has an onion in it, or garlic.
I found out last year how tough it is to go from seed to onion, but I'll try again.
My mother always just bought onion sets(dormant second year onions), a pound or so, and you can stick them in the ground in early, early spring. 
It's not long until you have green onions to chop up with some leaf lettuce and scald briefly with hot bacon grease. (cornbread is obligatory)
The sets  will make a good size bulb by summer, but they won't keep over their second winter and as such are classified as biennials
So for winter-keepers, you need a first year bulb that has been grown out as long a possible and gone dormant. And some varieties "keep", as in a cellar, better than others. 
This is mostly research, rather than experience.
These cipollinis are called pickling onions, often used as cocktail onions,  The are small and not good keepers but, I'm glad to pickle what I can't eat fresh.
This year, I'm following the onion voodoo from this site,
I have sown them thick since they will be thinned at three-leaf stage into other pots of 3 or 4 to reach adolescence when the are put in the ground.
after germination, they'll also need to be kept cooler than peppers like.
What will be new this year to me, is to keep them trimmed, I guess it's to push the bulb to make new leaves instead of just one or two big ones.
I did barely anything right last year, and this year as a precaution I've order starts (instead of sets) from Dixondale just to make sure I don't get skunked -again.
I'll even put a few sets in too,to make double-double sure.
The starts, or shoots, I'm growing will be planted just like a set about April 1, except it will already have pruned green leaves on it.
Stickman has successfully raised  from seeds, so I'm watching over his shoulder too. :) I've got another variety, a big yellow, that I'll sow later this week I think.
 
I think I've failed to mention, Bhut_eater has sent me some Fatalli Jigsaws that I have had in the ground less than a week. So I did slip a new one in. As well as an orange grand-Manzano of Shane, via Rick.
 
Good info on the Onions JJJ!
 
I have trouble getting them to keep, hot here, no root cellar, and if I had one I would probably need to cool it. So they go in a box with holes in the dining room that's not...LOL.
 
Growing from seeds IS the way to go. One just has to be dedicated. The second best choice is the transplants...lucky for me the feed store called today, so they're really fresh! A local farmer grows for them...and I wanted them in dirt a week ago.
 
I usually grow reds, they simply keep the best 'round here. Also whites and sweet yellows. The sweet yellows need to be used ASAP. We pick around 1st of July and the reds last until Oct-Nov.
 
I've been experimenting the last two or three years with potato onions.  Supposedly, once you get them established, you never have to buy onions again.  They remind me, more than anything, of very large shallots with an onion flavor.  They grow and keep like shallots.  Plant one bulb and it turns into a bunch more where the largest individuals can be as much as 4" across.  Use some, replant some, save some to plant in the spring.  Harvested in fall, some will keep 'til spring.
 
I started by ordering sets from every vendor I could find offering them.  Some did well, some ok, some not at all, and some obviously weren't potato onions.  I didn't feed my alliums adequately last year, but that just further narrowed the field of best performers.  Normally I'll plant half my stock in the fall and half in the spring, but I went for broke last fall and planted everything.  (I think.  I know I have shallots yet to plant.)
 
 
Devv said:
Good info on the Onions JJJ!
 
I have trouble getting them to keep, hot here, no root cellar, and if I had one I would probably need to cool it. So they go in a box with holes in the dining room that's not...LOL.
 
Growing from seeds IS the way to go. One just has to be dedicated. The second best choice is the transplants...lucky for me the feed store called today, so they're really fresh! A local farmer grows for them...and I wanted them in dirt a week ago.
 
I usually grow reds, they simply keep the best 'round here. Also whites and sweet yellows. The sweet yellows need to be used ASAP. We pick around 1st of July and the reds last until Oct-Nov.
Click to expand...
 
Scott, do you grow red onions from seed?  What variety do you grown?
 
I'm thinking of trying Copra (again), since it's supposed to be a good keeper.  I have Catawissa walking onions well established (almost like a weed, wish I could figure out a way to pickle the top sets), as well as elephant garlic and garlic chives.  I had Korean Red and Georgian Fire garlic, but neither survived the drought/heat of 2011-2012.
 
Scott's Quesadilla Night was so inspiring and we had some chicken leftover waiting for us, so....
I embellished with some red and green peppers I sprang for at the grocers.
No Habs available :(
 
But I pulled a jar of aji dulces from the fridge that I blanched and pickled last fall.
 
Threw few in the blender with a smoked, pickled red bells, some garlic. Not bad.
I bumped mine with some super powders, a side of guac.... sorry no pictures.
We ate it like dinosaurs.
 

 
The popping is at definate lull, not even any new manzanos.
 
I have gotten my JA Habs up to nine cotys. I'll give them a day or two for a stragler and pot them up.
 
My oldest pot ups ar 10 days now. Fatallis. One in coir and one in Ocean Forest.
 


 
These little Fidalgo Roxas have turned plumb purple.
 

 
A lo, after almost 3 weeks an Aji Dulce makes the scene.
 

 
Just days after I re-sowed of course.  :rolleyes:
 
JJJessee said:
Scott, you may have heard of Dixondale, a big onion transplant supplier down in Carrizo Springs. I've ordered some from there as well.
Click to expand...
I haven't, and dang it I'm having trouble finding bunches this season. Next year I grow from seed again..gonna look them up!
Sawyer said:
I've been experimenting the last two or three years with potato onions.  Supposedly, once you get them established, you never have to buy onions again.  They remind me, more than anything, of very large shallots with an onion flavor.  They grow and keep like shallots.  Plant one bulb and it turns into a bunch more where the largest individuals can be as much as 4" across.  Use some, replant some, save some to plant in the spring.  Harvested in fall, some will keep 'til spring.
 
I started by ordering sets from every vendor I could find offering them.  Some did well, some ok, some not at all, and some obviously weren't potato onions.  I didn't feed my alliums adequately last year, but that just further narrowed the field of best performers.  Normally I'll plant half my stock in the fall and half in the spring, but I went for broke last fall and planted everything.  (I think.  I know I have shallots yet to plant.)
 
 
 
Scott, do you grow red onions from seed?  What variety do you grown?
 
I'm thinking of trying Copra (again), since it's supposed to be a good keeper.  I have Catawissa walking onions well established (almost like a weed, wish I could figure out a way to pickle the top sets), as well as elephant garlic and garlic chives.  I had Korean Red and Georgian Fire garlic, but neither survived the drought/heat of 2011-2012.
Click to expand...
Dang it John, I cant remember the variety tonight, it will come to me ...
JJJ, Glad to see the babies are still popping!
 
Too bad! Would love to see quesadilla pics!

The aji's and superhot powder sounds like a mean combo. Delicious and mean. Why didn't you invite me?

The sprouts are looking strong. Love the Roxa purples... Maybe I have a soft spot for em.

Happy growing!
 
Next time, MaxCap ;)
 
Quick up date and inventory on the pot-ups so far
 

 
55 was my count ( :confused: but I'm 2 off)
Have a lot of extras at this point as several supers have yet to materialize and haven't even sowed any annums.
Only aim to set out about 75-80
 
The oldest was transplanted on 1/12
 

 

 

 
stay warm
 
Max, I think they are coming along pretty good, the room is not quiet as wrm as I think they'd like. The lights help, but I almost scorched my JA Hab transplants yesterday.
None of the others have ever showed any shocke, but those things droopped and curled within ten minutes of putting them under the lights.
 
On the nutes, I would think they could go until they are approaching root-bound, before extra nutes are needed. Maybe just a little kelp or worm casting tea just ahead of that -at most. It's my first use of it, so I don't really know, I'm just playing by ear right now.
 
Maybe Jamison, or someone who has had experience with it could chime in.
 
The pop-tray has just about come to a halt.
Not even even a peep out of the re-sows.
 
BUT I got a care package today from Jamison.
  :dance:  :dance:  :dance:

 
My own saved-in-pod Red Bhuts may not have been ripe, got too hot, whatever.
So Jamison generously bailed me out plus a couple of other goodies, BOC and Jay's Peach Ghost Scorp, which I have taken a recent lust for.
 
Sow Fever over came me last night and I put some put  Red Inca Drops in the dirt.
Still getting an occasional new pop from the first manzanos I sowed.
 
As you can probably guess from the hydometer in the picture, it's brew day at the Jessee abode. :cheers:
Since the weather broke, and we were about out of drinking water, we went out to the spring, just east of Damascus at the intersection of US58 and the AT.
We got 40 gal.
 

 
We came home and cooked up a 5 gal batch of Peach Meade(cyser)
 

 
got some seeds to soak
cheers
 
 
 
 
 
 
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