maxcaps 2014 grow: avoiding the freeze!

HabaneroHead · Feb 19, 2014

Beautiful plants, Adam! I love those fat leaves!

Nick08* · Feb 19, 2014

I'm sure the plants were LOVING the fresh air.Did the hopper have wings? Looks like you're a ways up there...

maximumcapsicum · Feb 20, 2014

HillBilly Jeff said:
Looking good. Hit 50 here today, forecast called for high of 40, but still can't take plants out lol.

Won't be long.

Come on down to HOTLANTA. We're on the uptake for now, so long as you don't mind losing a month of productivity for an ice cube.

HabaneroHead said:
Beautiful plants, Adam! I love those fat leaves!

Thanks Hab Head! Always what I like to see. I am going to have to move some of the bigger guys into bigger pots soon... gonna be complicated with the limited grow shelf.

Nick08* said:
I'm sure the plants were LOVING the fresh air.Did the hopper have wings? Looks like you're a ways up there...

Yup. Up top. Wouldn't have it any other way. If only they gave me the roof, then I could have some fun.

Tonight's gonna be a rotate night if I can find the time. Jals really need to go where the chinenses are now and vice versa. Noticed some of the jal's leaves are asymmetric... big on one side, small on the other. That come from dry soil or too much wind?

maximumcapsicum · Feb 22, 2014

Life is exhausting! Been playing tons of catchup with lecture plans thanks to the snow days, and haven't had alot of time for research. Enough to make a man crazy!

Not as much time for peppers as I'd like either, but I have made some progress.

Haven't had a peep from the Aji Chuncho I started for the growdown, so I tossed a couple more seeds in pellets. Also started a last round of reseeds: Jeff's Naga's and one more goat's weed, because that is a mighty fine pepper (Thanks for that Jamison! I never would have tried it without your sample. Learning is fun!)

Some of the plants are definitely getting fed up with their shelves. Most roots are still looking pretty happy with their setup so I'm not too worried about potups yet, but for some resoun Mr. Brainstrain went a little yellow on me.

My biggest mystery/frustration is the Brown Egg. Up until now it's been the healthiest plant in the mix, and its still putting out leaves and looking very strong. but yesterday out of now where the coty's dropped off. It's light on water but not dry. But yeah. Pics:

Coty's just dropped off. Can't find any reason why, especially given its growth is still pretty vigorous. Reaction to it's 2 hours outside maybe? Quite a delayed reaction if that is the case. I suppose as long as nothing else goes wrong everything is fine. Just got me nervouse.

I'm worried that the biggest of the bunch need new shows. Roots are starting to fill the bottom of the cups:

Still looking very healthy, but maybe I sign of trouble to come? I am going to try to pot up the largest plants around the end of next week when I can get some nursery pots. I was thinking 1/2 gallon. I still have around another month until plantout, so I'm not to keen on potting up too much, but I don't want to hurt any of the plants.

Had this appear too in the JA Hab:

Bottom of the leaf is bumpy around the pores. Probably Edema. Managing the soil moisture has gotten harder than it was when everyone was smaller!

Because 99% of the plants are doing great, a group shot of the top shelf:

So when I pot up, I was thinking about keeping the plants mostly on the shaded balcony (low natural light) while it was warm during the day. Do you think they'd need supplemental lights when they came inside, or could I just get away with moving them in and out day and night? Might be a good way to harden them and to let them get some good air flow, but I'm worried they wouldn't get enough light. Don't really need them to grow too much bigger before plantout anyway, but I want to keep them healthy. I guess I am in a game of chicken... root health or light. If I keep them under the lights the roots suffer, but if I plant them out the amount of light they can get goes down. What should I do, oh great THP elders?

Next time will be happy pics, I promise!

stickman · Feb 22, 2014

No problems at all with the Brown Egg dropping cotys at this stage... their only purpose is to provide food for the plant so it can put out true leaves. If your plant has grown out at least 2 nodes, the cotys are redundant anyway, and the plant jettisoned them when it didn't need them anymore. Besides... that far down on the stem with the leaf canopy it has now, light penetration isn't all that good anyway.

Roots are looking fine! And +1 on the Edema call. Let 'em dry out until the pots are noticeably light, but not to the point the plants look droopy.

You're right on track Adam... just keep on like you're doing. Cheers!

GA Growhead · Feb 22, 2014

Agreeing with Rick.
You can always pot up to 32oz cups. Will not take up as much space, but give the roots move space to grow down. Even more top heavy though, so watch out if you do.

HillBilly Jeff · Feb 22, 2014

Plants are looking good. That one sure looks like a beast in the overall shot. That one has got to be full of roots. If it is really drinking the water, it might need potted up. Mine were constantly needing water when they were massively rooted in the container.

maximumcapsicum · Feb 22, 2014

stickman said:
No problems at all with the Brown Egg dropping cotys at this stage... their only purpose is to provide food for the plant so it can put out true leaves. If your plant has grown out at least 2 nodes, the cotys are redundant anyway, and the plant jettisoned them when it didn't need them anymore. Besides... that far down on the stem with the leaf canopy it has now, light penetration isn't all that good anyway.

Roots are looking fine! And +1 on the Edema call. Let 'em dry out until the pots are noticeably light, but not to the point the plants look droopy.

You're right on track Adam... just keep on like you're doing. Cheers!

Thanks for the confidence boost Rick! I am right now just worried about them getting stunted in the cups, but don't really have the resources to expand the grow lights. Well I can in a pinch. Maybe next week. Just wondering if natural light from the balcony would do if they were outside.

Either way, I think I am going to pot a couple up next week, maybe use a clamp light with my extra CFL bulbs to feed them in a pinch.

GA Growhead said:
Agreeing with Rick.
You can always pot up to 32oz cups. Will not take up as much space, but give the roots move space to grow down. Even more top heavy though, so watch out if you do.

Great idea! I am probably going to save some 32 oz yogurt containers for pot ups. Not so top heavy, I go through one or two a week. The shape looks perfect. Problem is getting everyone light as I start potting up. Wasn't expecting them to grow so fast!

HillBilly Jeff said:
Plants are looking good. That one sure looks like a beast in the overall shot. That one has got to be full of roots. If it is really drinking the water, it might need potted up. Mine were constantly needing water when they were massively rooted in the container.

Thanks! Actually the tall one has some of the smallest roots. That's the chiltepin X barrackpore cross. Its hairy roots are only just sticking out of the bottom. No wrapping or anything. Kind of odd actually.

Thanks for the help guys! And of course keep the suggestions coming. I figure now I'll start moving the bigger guys to the balcony each day since the temps are going to be above 60°. Only problem is of course the low light on the balcony. If it doesn't seem to hurt them I'll just pot up everything I'm worried about. Another week or so shouldn't hurt anyone, right?

GA Growhead · Feb 22, 2014

Indirect light is perfect for transitioning. Go for it!
I should have pulled the overwinters out before I left the house today. Pretty nice today!

maximumcapsicum · Feb 22, 2014

Thanks Jason! Yeah I'm gonna have my bigger buds on the balcony most this week I think. Leaves are dark and healthy so I think they're liking it, though I suspect their growth will slow down in the lower temp/lower light. About to move the ficus bonsai's out for good. The balcony is their normal home.

Jeff H · Feb 23, 2014

Plants look fantastic Adam. Whatever you are doing, keep it up.

IMHO, time to transplant that big one. You don't want them to get too root bound. Fixing a severely root bound plant will set it back when you plant it outside.

maximumcapsicum · Feb 23, 2014

Thanks Jeff. I'm going to start upping the shoes in the big guys as soon as I can lay hands on some containers, probably by the end of the week. May stick a couple in 32 oz yogurt containers in the meantime. Pretty sure they'd do fine hanging out on the balcony until plantout after a couple days of rotation, so space isn't a huge issue now.

Only one piece of bad news; explosion of spider mites in the ficus bonsai's. Yuck. But we're having warm weather so I think they may be banished to the balcony now, only coming in for cool nights. That way I can sterilize the top shelf and use it for the biggest peppers. Seems like light rotating etc will keep everything where it needs to be.

Today I did childcare most the day. Luckily the baby allowed me to experiment with a batch of base salsa. This is a low heat base that I plan to add powders/superhots to when I make bigger batches. Just trying to perfect the basics now. More details are here, though I did go ahead and blanch the tomatoes as below:

Store bought jalapenos. Not bad, but not spectacular:

Broiled them for 10-15 minutes on each side to try to get the skins off. Can never get the skins all the way off, but it doesn't seem to negatively affect the taset:

When I do a bigger batch I'll use the grill on the roof, but this is just experiment time.

Combined everything, brought to a boil, the simmered on medium for about 2 hours:

Still a little watery for me, should have gone another hour. But quite tasty, and not heat complaints from the non-chileheads. I'll probably do this basic recipe on a huge scale for the summer peppers, try to get a bunch canned for gifts and my own needs. I go through a jar or two a week.

Here is the annuum tomato shelf:

Everything is coming along great! Some weird, crinkly leaves, I think from the fan or maybe I'm not giving 'em water, but the sprouts are growing fast and healthy so maybe its just a trait.

Here is my second generation chiero roxa:

Looks like he definitely crossed with something, probably an annuum by the look of the leaves. Wonder what it'll end up looking like? The parent was closest to some cayennes, but there were also jals and hungarian waxes in the area. Yeah Jason, warning, that roxa may not grow true!

Goat's Weed:

Probably the annuum I'm most excited about next to the jal's (who are just workhorses in my kitchen!). Shane's Goat's Weeds look amazing as bonchi bases, and the dried flakes taste fantastic! Thanks again Jamison.

The balcony crew after they came in for the night:

Puppy dog eyes "please give us new shoes!" Looking into ordering some 1/2 gallon pots tonight, but may have to hit up the hydro store next weekend. I think they'll be fine for another week based on Paul's pics, so trying not to get too anxious.

First buds on the big chiletepinXbarrackpore cross!

Thanks for reading!

HillBilly Jeff · Feb 24, 2014

Plants are looking good man. That salsa looks mighty tasty I must say.

Jeff H · Feb 24, 2014

Salsa looks great. If you think it was too watery, try Roma tomatoes next time. They are meatier.

All the plants look very nice, but I spy a big problem on your annuum shelf. A couple of those annuums are looking suspiciously like tomatoes. If they are invading, that might be a problem. :think:

HillBilly Jeff · Feb 24, 2014

Jeff H said:
Salsa looks great. If you think it was too watery, try Roma tomatoes next time. They are meatier.

All the plants look very nice, but I spy a big problem on your annuum shelf. A couple of those annuums are looking suspiciously like tomatoes. If they are invading, that might be a problem.

They're a new hybrid annuum!

stickman · Feb 25, 2014

+1 on the Romas for a sauce that's less watery... Those are the ones I grow for sauce-making for that reason. Do you ever make uncooked Pico de Gallo Adam? I actually prefer that to cooked salsa as long as it doesn't have Tomatillos in it. Try roasting the garlic and onions along with the peppers before you add them to the salsa, it cranks everything up a notch taste-wise.

Annuums look good Adam, how soon before you get them in the ground? What are your night-time low temperatures about now?

maximumcapsicum · Feb 25, 2014

Jeff H said:
Salsa looks great. If you think it was too watery, try Roma tomatoes next time. They are meatier.

All the plants look very nice, but I spy a big problem on your annuum shelf. A couple of those annuums are looking suspiciously like tomatoes. If they are invading, that might be a problem.

HillBilly Jeff said:
They're a new hybrid annuum!

Haha yeah I should have started them a week or two later, but I think they're looking fine for a March 20ish plantout date. Tomatoes can go out a couple weeks before peppers, no?

stickman said:
+1 on the Romas for a sauce that's less watery... Those are the ones I grow for sauce-making for that reason. Do you ever make uncooked Pico de Gallo Adam? I actually prefer that to cooked salsa as long as it doesn't have Tomatillos in it. Try roasting the garlic and onions along with the peppers before you add them to the salsa, it cranks everything up a notch taste-wise.

Annuums look good Adam, how soon before you get them in the ground? What are your night-time low temperatures about now?

Those actually are romas! Maybe I should have gotten smaller romas or plums?

I do make pico! Mostly the same ingredients, though. I'll lean toward an uncooked pico if I have garden tomatoes. Just not too impressed with grocery store tomatoes... seem to taste better cooked. One question though, when you make an uncooked pico do you still roast your peppers or use them fresh? Also, how crucial is it to skin the jals? I don't notice a huge difference myself, but I tend to like peels.

Will do on the garlic and onion with the jalapenos. Figured they all got to roast together for 2 hours so it wasn't crucial this time.

I am thinking April 1 will see me into the ground. Maybe a week earlier on the tomatoes. Last week the night temps were in the 40's, but this week we have some 20's and then toward the middle of next week we'll have some low 30's. I am thinking the ficus are ready to go on to the balcony unless a freeze appears, in which case I can just take them in at night. This gives me plenty of room to pot up the peppers, which will start rotating under the lights and on the balcony.

Devv · Feb 25, 2014

Everything looks great Adam!

Some good advise up above too. I had a bout with edema, never saw it before, and though it was critter eggs. Don't be alarmed when the brown spots appear, edema destoys the plant issue. Mine cleared up by being stingy with the water.

Have a great week!

Spring is a comin'!

Jeff H · Feb 25, 2014

maximumcapsicum said:
One question though, when you make an uncooked pico do you still roast your peppers or use them fresh? Also, how crucial is it to skin the jals? I don't notice a huge difference myself, but I tend to like peels.

This is one of my favorites. This place is one of my wife's favorites when we are on vacation in MI. Make it hotter as you can handle it.

no one I know skins peppers for salsa.

Pinoy83 · Feb 25, 2014

babies looking great...they gonna explode the time you plant out...and salsa looks ONOOOOO :drooling: