Peppers,Peppers,Peppers.....
This starts my third Grow Log on THP.
And “I (as we all promise) am cutting back this year”, but we'll all struggle not to plant willy-nilly way more than we can easily get in the ground, consume, or harvest for next summer. There are many less innocent passions to pursue so, “what the hay?” My goal as far as cut-back, is to not end up with more that 45 plants in the ground about the end of May. But the “sowing itch” could make that 60 in a heart beat.
It's about time to get some soil made up. Last year I think for the first time I started to really get a handle and some decent results in the making of container soils, due mostly to the advice of Ganjagirl on a 420 site. Plus, I tried some plain ol' coir with hydro nutes and that works as good as soil. Even grew some tomatoe transplants in pure, well-composted oak leaves and guano tea. Worked just fine. I made a trip to an organic farm supply last September and stocked up to add to what a scrounge up locally. I have some bricks of coir and a bale of sphagnum already soaking, worm casting, azomite, kelp, perlite, vermiculite, compost, composted oak leaves, glacial rock dust, oyster shell grit, dolomite, and a few other goodies at the ready to start thinking seriously about a final recipe. [SIZE=10pt]Thirty days is good to let everything meld before sowing in, but 60 days is better. So it's none too early.[/SIZE]
I'm still looking for that magic start date that gets the best-sized transplant plant in the ground with plenty of time to ripen fruit. The super-hots, manzanos, and a few others are the main lots that I want to time-tweak. First year, supers were sown in early February, the plants were smallish (bad soil, cool grow area) at mid-May plant out. Still they made a more than adequate crop, though some varieties had a lot of green pods at frost. That can be a factor of summer heat interrupting pollination and not just immature plants. Then the there's day length...so many variables, so few equations. A lot of things work plenty well enough, I have a habit of over-thinking. The next year I started early in January, good soil and warm grow space, thinking bigger plants would produce more ripe pods and maybe sooner too. It was better, but the the plants may have been a little root bound, it was dry for a month after plant-out, for what ever reason they seemed to stall in the ground, more than just a little transplant shock, but nothing major. So this year I'm going to do a bit of a straddle. A few early January supers, but moving to a gallon pot at about 4-6 weeks. Last year, I moved a few from 3.5” to 5” but I think there wasn't enough recovery time or pot volume to make a difference from the ones that stayed in 3.5” square (deep) pots. But in the end, this year's protocols will be just slightly better educated guesses with plenty of unknowns to keep me interested.
Anyway's here is my sowing calendar for peppers subject to change (without discretion)
Sowing dates will also flex I'm sure. I just need something to help me focus and control the Itch.
I've spent a fair amount of time getting my seed database in order this past year.
I'm doing a little less experimenting variety wise this year. Lots fewer supers, but plenty enough to heat things up. I've thought of growing supers in 5 gal SIP buckets, but before I do that I need to hook them up on a float-controlled water supply. A SIP with a big plant in it sometimes need watering everyday and I'd rather side-step that everyday thing.
One pepper that I'm getting good mileage from on the dinner plate is the Manzano. I've still got good fresh peppers in the fridge over a month old.
I grew 6 plants and some had ripening issues, but I've got a couple of early starts already going in 5" pots.
At this rate I'll have to prune or something make it to May. Those sprouted in about 11 days and are 5 weeks from seed.
Rather than idle my grow shelves I've been cropping lettuce and chard on them for salads since an extra cold Nov decimated my outdoor lettuce bed among other things.
This is 25 days from seeding.
I did get my garlic in the ground a little earlier this year (about a month ago) and a nice layer of composted leaves on it.
I should start giving it liquid nutes about late February.
The only real expansion I have in mind is a series of small raised beds about 30" x 48" for herbs, perennials, and what not.
Plus some 4x4 for roses,
Maybe some wine grapes - Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, Riesling, do OK around here.
I'll likely plant another 25 raspberries in late March.
2015 could be the year I finally start some bee hives. Ya never know.
Thanks for reading.
This starts my third Grow Log on THP.
And “I (as we all promise) am cutting back this year”, but we'll all struggle not to plant willy-nilly way more than we can easily get in the ground, consume, or harvest for next summer. There are many less innocent passions to pursue so, “what the hay?” My goal as far as cut-back, is to not end up with more that 45 plants in the ground about the end of May. But the “sowing itch” could make that 60 in a heart beat.
It's about time to get some soil made up. Last year I think for the first time I started to really get a handle and some decent results in the making of container soils, due mostly to the advice of Ganjagirl on a 420 site. Plus, I tried some plain ol' coir with hydro nutes and that works as good as soil. Even grew some tomatoe transplants in pure, well-composted oak leaves and guano tea. Worked just fine. I made a trip to an organic farm supply last September and stocked up to add to what a scrounge up locally. I have some bricks of coir and a bale of sphagnum already soaking, worm casting, azomite, kelp, perlite, vermiculite, compost, composted oak leaves, glacial rock dust, oyster shell grit, dolomite, and a few other goodies at the ready to start thinking seriously about a final recipe. [SIZE=10pt]Thirty days is good to let everything meld before sowing in, but 60 days is better. So it's none too early.[/SIZE]
I'm still looking for that magic start date that gets the best-sized transplant plant in the ground with plenty of time to ripen fruit. The super-hots, manzanos, and a few others are the main lots that I want to time-tweak. First year, supers were sown in early February, the plants were smallish (bad soil, cool grow area) at mid-May plant out. Still they made a more than adequate crop, though some varieties had a lot of green pods at frost. That can be a factor of summer heat interrupting pollination and not just immature plants. Then the there's day length...so many variables, so few equations. A lot of things work plenty well enough, I have a habit of over-thinking. The next year I started early in January, good soil and warm grow space, thinking bigger plants would produce more ripe pods and maybe sooner too. It was better, but the the plants may have been a little root bound, it was dry for a month after plant-out, for what ever reason they seemed to stall in the ground, more than just a little transplant shock, but nothing major. So this year I'm going to do a bit of a straddle. A few early January supers, but moving to a gallon pot at about 4-6 weeks. Last year, I moved a few from 3.5” to 5” but I think there wasn't enough recovery time or pot volume to make a difference from the ones that stayed in 3.5” square (deep) pots. But in the end, this year's protocols will be just slightly better educated guesses with plenty of unknowns to keep me interested.
Anyway's here is my sowing calendar for peppers subject to change (without discretion)
Sowing dates will also flex I'm sure. I just need something to help me focus and control the Itch.
I've spent a fair amount of time getting my seed database in order this past year.
I'm doing a little less experimenting variety wise this year. Lots fewer supers, but plenty enough to heat things up. I've thought of growing supers in 5 gal SIP buckets, but before I do that I need to hook them up on a float-controlled water supply. A SIP with a big plant in it sometimes need watering everyday and I'd rather side-step that everyday thing.
One pepper that I'm getting good mileage from on the dinner plate is the Manzano. I've still got good fresh peppers in the fridge over a month old.
I grew 6 plants and some had ripening issues, but I've got a couple of early starts already going in 5" pots.
At this rate I'll have to prune or something make it to May. Those sprouted in about 11 days and are 5 weeks from seed.
Rather than idle my grow shelves I've been cropping lettuce and chard on them for salads since an extra cold Nov decimated my outdoor lettuce bed among other things.
This is 25 days from seeding.
I did get my garlic in the ground a little earlier this year (about a month ago) and a nice layer of composted leaves on it.
I should start giving it liquid nutes about late February.
The only real expansion I have in mind is a series of small raised beds about 30" x 48" for herbs, perennials, and what not.
Plus some 4x4 for roses,
Maybe some wine grapes - Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, Riesling, do OK around here.
I'll likely plant another 25 raspberries in late March.
2015 could be the year I finally start some bee hives. Ya never know.
Thanks for reading.
!
