Minor setback

[Pepper Ridge Farm]

This is my first year growing peppers from actual seed and I have made a few rookie mistakes. The biggest was the Baccto Premium potting soil I used to pot up my first seedlings. This stuff ended up being a brick in a cup and stunted my early plants. I had a lot of yellow leaves and leaf drop. Bad stuff. I then bought Fafard Professional Formula 3 Mix and this stuff has been like a dream to my newest plants. It drains so much better and my plants are growing so much faster. I also exchanged a HPS for a MH bulb and the growth seems to be dark green, not yellow. I was lucky as almost all my early plants were all test plants to get my system up and running and they did their job well. Peppers I have growing in cups so far:

Red Hab
Chocolate Hab
Orange Hab
White Hab
Scotch Bonnet
Fatalli
Devil Tongue
T. Scorpion
7-Pot
Bhut Jolokia
Naga Morich
Datil
Tabasco
Jalapeno
Serrano
Hatch
Inca Red Drop
Burning Bush
Bishop Crown

Hope I can now make it another month till my plants go outside.

 

[cmpman1974]

Yep, that Baccto stuff is pure garbage. Not worth a $1 in my opinion. It should be taken off the market. I too was suckered into buying a bag of "bricks."

Chris

 

[cmpman1974]

You're worried about having a month left? lol. You're in a better situation than me! How would you like to need to keep these plants indoors another 75 days?

I'm not too hopeful. It's sad because these are the best plants I've ever grown.

Chris

 

[Pepper Ridge Farm]

Chris, real nice plants you have. I don't believe I've ever had a leaf that big on a pepper plant. Those guys are going to be monsters.

 

[Pam]

This is my first year growing peppers from actual seed and I have made a few rookie mistakes. The biggest was the Baccto Premium potting soil I used to pot up my first seedlings. This stuff ended up being a brick in a cup and stunted my early plants. I had a lot of yellow leaves and leaf drop. Bad stuff. I then bought Fafard Professional Formula 3 Mix and this stuff has been like a dream to my newest plants.

So, where are you getting your good potting soil? I'm so frustrated with trying to buy anything around here since the organic garden center I haunted closed. Darn owners thought they had a right to retire, but what about me!

Anyway, any time I try and track down a good quality potting soil or soil amendment, they always seem to be in Charleston or up near Charlotte. We don't even have a decent hydro shop in this part of the state. So, I'm giving serious consideration to making a run to Charleston and instead of touring the lovely historic downtown, taking a tour of the local garden centers.

 

[Pam]

Oh, apologies. I really was in that "its all about me" mode!

Your plants look great. What's your plant out date? I was thinking it was closer to mid-March.

 

[Pepper Ridge Farm]

Pam, I have been shopping at Cross Seed In West Ashley. There is also a hydo shop just a mile up the road called Green Spirit Hydro. Cross seed carries all Fafard products and The hydro shop has the Foxfarm products. I really like the Fafard profession Mix 3 and am planning on using that soil in all my pots this year instead of MG. The soil has a real nice smell. I am going to be extra careful with the early plant out date and might wait, the late freeze did a number on my tomatoes last year.

 

[GrumpyBear]

You're worried about having a month left? lol. You're in a better situation than me! How would you like to need to keep these plants indoors another 75 days?

I'm not too hopeful. It's sad because these are the best plants I've ever grown.

Chris

yep, that's pretty much where i'm at... except my cr habs are huge cuz they're two weeks older...

So, where are you getting your good potting soil? I'm so frustrated with trying to buy anything around here since the organic garden center I haunted closed. Darn owners thought they had a right to retire, but what about me!

some people can be so selfish
what you need is a hippie granola co-op like what i have. five bucks = lifetime membership even cheapo me sprung for that...