P. Dreadie Memorial Group Grow 2016

Long-time THP veterans mourned the loss last August of Amarillo, Texas musician/songwriter/silversmith/chilehead Erin Mason, known to us here on the boards as P. Dreadie. Erin was an enigma, one of the most interesting and creative, yet gentle and loving guys I ever knew. Many of us may be unaware that he played harmonica in one of the original Austin, Texas bands of the early 1970s "Cosmic Cowboy" era, Alvin Crow and the Pleasant Valley Boys. When Erin decided to step off of Alvin's perpetually-touring bus and return to Amarillo, he travelled to Jamaica, fell in love with the Reggae beat, collected the best Scotch Bonnet fruit he could find, and his alter-ego Papa Dreadie was born.

In 2013 Erin sent me a few pods of the Scotch Bonnets he had been breeding, carefully selected descendants of the original fruit he brought back from the Caribbean all those years ago. I harvested every single seed from those pods, and stored them away, as I focused increasing attention on other varieties. When his wife Liz gave us the news last August that Erin had passed, I knew what I had to do with those seeds: a community grow in his memory. I have already shared about half of them, and I will continue to share them with experienced growers of the Scotch Bonnet until they are gone.

Papa Dreadie Scotch Bonnet Select, grown by Erin in 2013:

Lifetime memories posted by Liz Mason on Erin's FB page. Liz is an extremely talented professional photographer:

The legendary bus:

 

[Bicycle808]

Nkce plants, CaneDog. I love the way young Bonnet plants look. They have those giant crinkled lewves on relatively small stalks, and i can't help but be reminded of little hound-dog puppies that haven't yet grown into their ears yet.

Your comments about have me concerned about my own plants. Mine are still in Solos and no doubt cramped, but my plan was to ride it out this final month til plant-out. I got 9 Dreadie plants of similar size to yours, but probably way more curly....

 

[CaneDog]

Hey Bike Man!  Thanks.  Been happy to hear you're recovered and see you back at your glog.  Have you posted up your Dreadies anywhere? I don't remember seeing them.
 
So, I have these guys in the little 9oz Solo cups, not the standard bigger ones. I think because of less soil mass for the roots there's less hydration stability for the plant.  Some of my varieties don't seem to care, but a few get twitchy.  I have other bonnet and chinense bigger than these doing perfectly fine in the 9's.  I think with your bigger solos (those "knock-off" solos you rock are 16's, right? ) you're in much better shape to ride out the time.
 
BTW - I wanted to tell you the Zapotecs you sent me are blowing it out of the park!  I planted a few when I first got them that didn't grow very fast (one is actually fruiting now inside though) so I replanted 3 more recently and they are quickly becoming monsters.  For whatever reason, it's a night & day difference and they're growing the fastest of anything on my list.  Much appreciated!

 

[BDASPNY]

ive got several started and doing well. excited to see what they'll do.

 

[Bicycle808]

Hey Bike Man!  Thanks.  Been happy to hear you're recovered and see you back at your glog.  Have you posted up your Dreadies anywhere? I don't remember seeing them.
 
So, I have these guys in the little 9oz Solo cups, not the standard bigger ones. I think because of less soil mass for the roots there's less hydration stability for the plant.  Some of my varieties don't seem to care, but a few get twitchy.  I have other bonnet and chinense bigger than these doing perfectly fine in the 9's.  I think with your bigger solos (those "knock-off" solos you rock are 16's, right? ) you're in much better shape to ride out the time.
 
BTW - I wanted to tell you the Zapotecs you sent me are blowing it out of the park!  I planted a few when I first got them that didn't grow very fast (one is actually fruiting now inside though) so I replanted 3 more recently and they are quickly becoming monsters.  For whatever reason, it's a night & day difference and they're growing the fastest of anything on my list.  Much appreciated!

The knockoff solos I use are labeled as one point/16oz, but they are surely smaller. I've never audited them, and maybe I oughta, but I would guess they're 14oz..?

I do gotta take some pictures of the stairs and ask the rest of these things. My Bonnets all look so crazy, though. Just so wavy and crinkly, they look more like spinach than peppers...

 

[Bicycle808]

Wow. Please excuse all those typos above. To late to edit them, too. Oops. Here's a pic of the Dreadies. Basically, they're the back two rows and one plant in the third-from-back row.... The whole bin is yellow Bonnets and I got more...
https://i.imgur.com/VpcSash.jpg

 

[CaneDog]

Looks like a happy bunch Bike Man!  Going to be bonnets galore for you down the road and I'm sure you're good with that.

 

[Bicycle808]

Yeah I'm good with that. Many of them will go towards sauce and bartering for pepper-smokin' services at the local BBQ but who knows? This year is already so much more promising than last year... But, this Earth is fraught with peril. Something might very well go awry

 

[ShowMeDaSauce]

I just checked the 3 Dreadie pots from last year. I had those 3 on the lower patio. Tons of pods were left on those plants just because i had so many. Weeeeeelllll.... ive got tons of volunteer Dreadies now in those 3 pots.
 
I will probably leave 1 of those pots alone and let nature run its course. Only cull out what it needs to get a couple good strong plants. Have to say im a bit shocked that seeds survived our winter. I might go as far as to set that pot in the front of the house away from all the other plants. I got tons of chinenses going this year and those 3 pots were a good distance from the few others i grew last year.

 

[CaneDog]

Wow, what a cool surprise!  I'd have never guessed you could naturalize a scotch bonnet in MO!   

 

[BDASPNY]

does anyone have an idea about the discoloration?  it seems to be only on the scotch bonnets and habanero mainly.
 

 

 

[TrentL]

I have sprouted some p. dreadies that were sent to me 6 years ago this year, will post pics if I can find the dang things in the greenhouse.
 
Also got a bunch of p. dreadies going that scott (devv) sent me last year. I have 23 total p. dreadies in my grow this year. 5 old and 18 new.

 

[CaneDog]

does anyone have an idea about the discoloration?  it seems to be only on the scotch bonnets and habanero mainly.

 
It looks like the lighting might be a little intense for them, with the darkening be the result of anthocyanin accumulation for photoprotection.  Plus, they're canoeing quite a bit suggesting a transpiration issue.  Certain varieties like their conditions different than others, so you have a group of similar plants that aren't super happy, despite others seemingly fine.
 
When I see a plant start to show this type of darkening I'll typically move it to the perimeter of the lighting where it's less intense or raise the lights, depending on which I think is the better for all the plants.  If I'm seeing canoeing I'll usually move them to the perimeter regardless of raising the lights or not, in order to get the better air circulation.

 

[BDASPNY]

 
It looks like the lighting might be a little intense for them, with the darkening be the result of anthocyanin accumulation for photoprotection.  Plus, they're canoeing quite a bit suggesting a transpiration issue.  Certain varieties like their conditions different than others, so you have a group of similar plants that aren't super happy, despite others seemingly fine.
 
When I see a plant start to show this type of darkening I'll typically move it to the perimeter of the lighting where it's less intense or raise the lights, depending on which I think is the better for all the plants.  If I'm seeing canoeing I'll usually move them to the perimeter regardless of raising the lights or not, in order to get the better air circulation.

I had to look up a few of those terms. Ill try moving the lights away from them and see if it helps. I did notice the plants on the second pic seemed to do better after being out in sun during the hardening process. So maybe that will continue to help them.

 

[Orekoc]

Thank you CaneDog!  I'm having similar issues and wasn't sure what was causing them. Especially the canoeing.
 
I may, just may, take back that Dirty Dog award I gave you.

 
It looks like the lighting might be a little intense for them, with the darkening be the result of anthocyanin accumulation for photoprotection.  Plus, they're canoeing quite a bit suggesting a transpiration issue.  Certain varieties like their conditions different than others, so you have a group of similar plants that aren't super happy, despite others seemingly fine.
 
When I see a plant start to show this type of darkening I'll typically move it to the perimeter of the lighting where it's less intense or raise the lights, depending on which I think is the better for all the plants.  If I'm seeing canoeing I'll usually move them to the perimeter regardless of raising the lights or not, in order to get the better air circulation.

 

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Papa Dreadie Select seeds from 2014 just now getting around to growing/documenting them
 
 

 
 
 
 

 

[Orekoc]

Pepper-Guru, you are, without doubt, the guru of peppers.  Your plants are just lovely.  Some day, maybe I'll be 1/100th as good as you are at growing peppers.
 
I tip my hat to you.

 

[Bhuter]

Pepper-Guru, you are, without doubt, the guru of peppers.  Your plants are just lovely.  Some day, maybe I'll be 1/100th as good as you are at growing peppers.
 
I tip my hat to you.

Doesn't it make you wanna throw in the towel sometimes, Pugs? Lol. I guess I look at it as "something to strive for!!!" Lol. I'm excited to see your pods!!!

I love all of Rich's photos. Beautiful!!!

 

[Orekoc]

Yeppers!  There are others who are great at photography too.  He isn't the only one, but man, his plants, his photos, just wow.
 
I'm embarssed to post pictures of mine right now, they are nothing compared to his, well, to a lot of the people here.

Doesn't it make you wanna throw in the towel sometimes, Pugs? Lol. I guess I look at it as "something to strive for!!!" Lol. I'm excited to see your pods!!!

I love all of Rich's photos. Beautiful!!!

 

 

[Pepper-Guru]

Yeppers!  There are others who are great at photography too.  He isn't the only one, 
 

 
 
Two words; Prodigal Son 

 

[Bicycle808]

Doesn't it make you wanna throw in the towel sometimes, Pugs? Lol. I guess I look at it as "something to strive for!!!" Lol. I'm excited to see your pods!!!

I love all of Rich's photos. Beautiful!!!

As a somewhat inexperienced grower, I figured out early on that I'll quit in a hurry if I try to hold mY plants up against what the truly excellent growers produce. Aside from appreciating them for what they grow, and aspiring to one day have similar results, I don't really compare stuff like PepperGuru's gorgeous Dreadies to my own, which currently look a little battered from the hardening-off process.

I just try to do better this year than I did last year. If 2019 Bike808 can outperform 2018 Bike808, I'm improving, and that's good enough for me.

I gotta take and post some updated pics of my nine PDreadie plants... They're coming along nicely and, being that I didn't get to plant ANY of the PDreadies i tried to start last year, I'm doing great, by my standards.