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PIC 1's............Pod-ography.............2013

  Good Eve-ning, and Welcome to my bog...glog !

Hey folks sorry for the late glog-up I'm a month behind last years startup,...... :rolleyes: ...... I still have 12+ weeks (plenty of time) before I can start think about hardening off the plants outdoors.

First off I'd like to give a shout out to those who followed my grow last season. Thanks for all the comments, thoughts and ideas. The chuckles we shared......there were some good laughs...(and especially all the criticisms........ :liar: .......hah)

To those who are new, I try to follow a "weekend update" format with photos and captions. Although if anyone has questions or replies that needs and answer or response I'll get back during the week. I hope to keep this interesting and entertaining...

and away we go!


Garden Rewind


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Here's my 1st garden (1986)...it was modest but what we grew we used in our kitchen. I had a couple of dual bulb 4ft T12 fixtures in my basement. A couple grow-lux and daylight color temp bulbs. The indoor grow was far superior to the vegetable starts sold at the local nurseries.
My Italian neighbor couldn't understand why his bell pepper starts only had flowers while mine had golfball size peppers very early in the season.....The hot varieties I grew back then were the cayennes, orange habaneros, and a few different type or thai-birds. Things have changed but I still grow those varities.

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Here's a shot from last season. I grew around 150+ pepper plants in two different sections of the garden. Plants were grown in raised beds and containers from 5 gal up to 20 gal

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A typical weekend harvest shot from later in the season when the gardens at full swing.

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This is one of my seed catalogs, the c.chinense....the seeds that invade our gardens every year...
This book and other seed catalogs are kept in a tupperware container container on a shelve in the corner of the basement.
No elaborate system needed, The seeds are kept in 1.5" zip backs. I have seeds that are as far back as 2007, and still germinating without a hitch....theres no need to pitch. Speaking of pitching theres some old baseball card to display the size of the pages used.

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These are what I use to get the seeds on their way. I take 1/4 bag of each, mix that into a 5 gal bucket and moisten with water. The spagnum peat give fluff to the texture also helps indicate when the mix need to be re-moistened but the lighter color it displays. The vermiclite helps with water retension while letting the air and moisture through. The seed starting mix also has fine grain perlite to keep drainage and airflow moving.

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Ha..........I knew this chop stick would come in handy someday. Once the seed medium is moistened I'll make a hole with the stick 1/4" down .
The seeds will be planted at the same depth. That helps when misting the top with water. Seeds that are planted too high may dry out or seeds planted to deep may rot.

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I use two 2ft x 4ft germinating mats. Enough area to warm 8 seed flats at once...

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I don't bother with a thermostat for the mats. I run them through a timer, 2 hrs on, 1 hr off...continous. The average temp of the soil stays at +/-85 deg

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This is the main grow room. I built the 2 tier shelving units 8ft long x 2ft wide. 8 flats fit underneath the lighting units. Here we have four narrow spaced T8 4 bulb fixtures with 6500k bulbs and one 8ft TF twin bulb tight spaced fixture with 4100k bulbs. I have 4 identical systems in the room with an addition of three 400w mh fixtures with 7200k lamps. The room has 2- 20a dedicated circuits and 1-15a to split the current draw..

more photos in a few minutes....thanks for looking!
PIC 1's......Pod Pornage.............2012

















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That pizza looks friggin awesome. I gotta come down there one day and we should meet up at Spacca Napoli. Awesome Italian certified from Naples Italy. Other than that them things are getting big man!
 
YOU SUCK......at nothing.

Your plants are killer and so is the pie (shhhhhh, we're not supposed to say that in the Chi)

Another awesome update...oh and I love the idea of a Brainnet, sound dilicious.
 
WalkGood on random thoughts …

… only been 60 days since I dropped this "Galapagoense" seed in the dirt...... :shocked:…
They say good things come to dem dat wait, congrats ^_^

… just pulling the helmut off of one of the MoA's …
Nice bit of surgery but probably not that tuff for a pro like you ^_^

… 6 for 6 with the Moa's. Just spending some time basking in the morning sun …
Congrats mon!!! While all mine popped as well 6/6 I still think one of the ladies won’t shed her hat it’s tighter than a ladybugs ar$e :D

… Main grow room... plant trays in the light of 2 T8 4 bulb fixtures...with a T5 eight ft fixture overhead …
Are you sure you don't mean "the ferrari of all grow showrooms” :D

… maybe its just my 100 dollar pocket camera thats the problem … … Just raising the lights for some shots of the plants....one side at a time.
Don’t change, you do great with it ... cause you know it’s da mon behind the gear and not always da gear :) Are dem showroom lights motorized ;)

… The "Maui Purple" gang just hangin round... Soon to be budding beauties ! Hawaiian Sweet Hot looking pretty dense …
Agreed, they are certain to be beauties guided by your hands … dam I miss Hawaii it sure was fun the times I’ve been!!!

… Here's the lonely "Test Pod" from the "Bonnet/Brain" cross. …
She’s destined to be one bad aZZ girl with dat 7/Pot side, will be nice to see her in action in a few months!

… Although far from traditional this Pineapple/ Pork combo fare's well with the barbeque sauces rather than the "conventional Red Italian sauce"
FibraMent Baking Stone, fresh ingredients, lots of love, topped with shredded Thai Basil leaves … Man you Chicagoan’s make the best pies I’ve ever eaten!!! Are you sure pizza wasn’t invented there or did you guys just perfect da art :)

… Kona Golden Ale …
What no rum ;) hehe hehe …

Once again a very enjoyable read and great pictures, keep dem tunes playing mon ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪
 
Plants are very full bodied, very cool.

No offense Geg but what's with the food pics? I've noticed a few people posting pics of food. Your glog so you can obviously do what you want with it, I'm just curious.

Best of luck to you man.
 
(6/6) on the MoA! Glad to see helmet surgery went well Doctor!

Brain bonnet pods! Awesomeness. I agree that early pods can be small or inconsistant shaped.

Pizza looks divine!
Plants are very full bodied, very cool.

No offense Geg but what's with the food pics? I've noticed a few people posting pics of food. Your glog so you can obviously do what you want with it, I'm just curious.

Best of luck to you man.

Yeah Greg! How dare you make this glog more interesting!
 
That pizza looks friggin awesome. I gotta come down there one day and we should meet up at Spacca Napoli. Awesome Italian certified from Naples Italy. Other than that them things are getting big man!

Thanks, I'm always up for a brick oven pie, or if you're out this way late April early May I'll probably have some extra plants on hand.

YOU SUCK......at nothing.

Your plants are killer and so is the pie (shhhhhh, we're not supposed to say that in the Chi)

Another awesome update...oh and I love the idea of a Brainnet, sound dilicious.

Haha the plants are only as good as the time and money behind the scenes.

I cents a good Summer

"Brainnet"......now why didn't I think of that ?
,

:lol:
And so begins GREGs legion of plants. Simply amazing shots of the lights down to the helmet removal. You got 3 thumbs or what ?!

Thanks Denniz,
If I had three thumbs I would have played the piano....it would have been easy to hit the thirds............ :) ..........I hammered the drums instead.
Thanks for stopping by

Pizza looks good. That's some quality ingredients there.

Thanks,
Its a different kind of pie.......I like to keep the kitchen stacked ...stocked with ingredients...

WalkGood on random thoughts …


They say good things come to dem dat wait, congrats ^_^


Nice bit of surgery but probably not that tuff for a pro like you ^_^


Congrats mon!!! While all mine popped as well 6/6 I still think one of the ladies won’t shed her hat it’s tighter than a ladybugs ar$e :D


Are you sure you don't mean "the ferrari of all grow showrooms” :D


Don’t change, you do great with it ... cause you know it’s da mon behind the gear and not always da gear :) Are dem showroom lights motorized ;)


Agreed, they are certain to be beauties guided by your hands … dam I miss Hawaii it sure was fun the times I’ve been!!!


She’s destined to be one bad aZZ girl with dat 7/Pot side, will be nice to see her in action in a few months!


FibraMent Baking Stone, fresh ingredients, lots of love, topped with shredded Thai Basil leaves … Man you Chicagoan’s make the best pies I’ve ever eaten!!! Are you sure pizza wasn’t invented there or did you guys just perfect da art :)


What no rum ;) hehe hehe …

Once again a very enjoyable read and great pictures, keep dem tunes playing mon ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪

Thanks Ramon,
I don't know where to start, so let me finish by saying your comments are well appreciated, I do read everything word for word...

I'm looking forward to getting the plants outdoors.... 2.5 months from now.............. :tear:

Plants are very full bodied, very cool.

No offense Geg but what's with the food pics? I've noticed a few people posting pics of food. Your glog so you can obviously do what you want with it, I'm just curious.

Best of luck to you man.

Thanks Patrick,
The plants are on par with the startup date outdoors....mid May.

Well you're right about the glogs........folks show all kinds of things.

The foods shots aren't necessarily a filler for photos but a tie-in with the spice and how it can be used.. I was hoping to incorporate the garden heat with some kicked up meals through the glog.
As the season picks up I'll probably be too busy between other projects elsewhere. So if I do occasionally post a food shot it will only be the plating photo ...maybe an ingredient list. Who knows at this point. I'm trying to focus on sauce making and powdering this season...
 
(6/6) on the MoA! Glad to see helmet surgery went well Doctor!

Brain bonnet pods! Awesomeness. I agree that early pods can be small or inconsistant shaped.

Pizza looks divine!


Yeah Greg! How dare you make this glog more interesting!

Thanks Steve,
It helps to have a magnifying glass on hand, the seed hulls are very easy to remove when they're swollen.
If the cap sticks on my only Galapo seed I will do likewise.

Ha, thanks , interesting ? the element of surprise. Tonites dinner was Blackened Grouper on the grill, ...tacos with flour tortilla's, Mango's, slivered Red Cabbage and Cilantro. It was dark outside but I could "smell" when the fish was done............ :liar: .......ha
 
I just spent the last couple of hours reading through this glog. Awesome effort and results here. I saw the part about the hydrogen peroxide concentration, but Greg, if you don't mind my asking, what concentrations do you use for the potassium nitrate and Epsom salt? I've heard of people adding Epsom salt to the soil mix as a micronutrient, but what does misting with it do for you, or rather, for your plants?

I like looking at the food ingredient pictures and trying to guess what you're going to cook up with it all.
 
Hey G,things are looking as expected. You make it look pretty easy my friend! Growing them is the simple part,having the dedication to inspect every leaf for pests,prune,keep the area clean,keep humidity down,transplant,etc....those are the things that get overshadowed by the beauty of your pics and plants. That stuff impresses me more than the 1/8" between leaf sets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


That pic of the plants under HID is pretty damn good for a 100,000$ camera! If I know you the color of the leaves in that shot are as close as you can possibly get to being accurate. Most of the time my shots under HID look like my plants are at Studio 54!! It's crushed perlite...I swear!!!! It's always fun when they look like they are in a plant police line up with the horizontal bars right?? You have to take the picture fast so you don't get an aneurysum from looking through the viewfinder.

Glad to see your galapa sprouted. Looks like that seed was on the verge of rotting?? C.ciliatum is the one that has my dander up!! Only capsicum I have not been able to germinate. I have some "BALCO" tactics for those little pricks.
 
I just spent the last couple of hours reading through this glog. Awesome effort and results here. I saw the part about the hydrogen peroxide concentration, but Greg, if you don't mind my asking, what concentrations do you use for the potassium nitrate and Epsom salt? I've heard of people adding Epsom salt to the soil mix as a micronutrient, but what does misting with it do for you, or rather, for your plants?

I like looking at the food ingredient pictures and trying to guess what you're going to cook up with it all.
Hey Sawyer,

The PN is diluted 1 tbl per gallon of water, up to a six hr soak with the pepper seeds, I've gone as long as 2 days with certain tropical plant seeds that have hard husks.I use 1 tsp of Epsom Salts in a qt misting bottle filled with warm water. Shake the bottle before each use. The plant will absorb the solution faster through the leaves than the roots. I also foliar feed with diluted amounts of Fish Emulsion.I don't add much to the small containers indoors besides water.

Chemicals can take along time to leach out, especially salt. Although I have read about folks drenching their soil with epsom salt, I don't recommend it. I'm looking forward to getting my plants outdoors, there's something mystical about rain water that ya can't buy in a bottle.

Remember less is more when feeding the crop. Most important take care of where the feet(roots) of the plant set foot. Having a great soil base is key to growing a lush plant. If you're planting in ground take care of the planting hole and surrounding area with compost and other amending products. If using pots outdoors find the best soil mix or combine your own as I do. It makes the difference at the finish line (Harvest)

Greg
 
Everything looks great, Greg! What more is there to say then keep the pictures coming, love watching them. You think the Bonnet/Brain cross is gonna produce different podshape next time it pods up?
 
Hey G,things are looking as expected. You make it look pretty easy my friend! Growing them is the simple part,having the dedication to inspect every leaf for pests,prune,keep the area clean,keep humidity down,transplant,etc....those are the things that get overshadowed by the beauty of your pics and plants. That stuff impresses me more than the 1/8" between leaf sets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


That pic of the plants under HID is pretty damn good for a 100,000$ camera! If I know you the color of the leaves in that shot are as close as you can possibly get to being accurate. Most of the time my shots under HID look like my plants are at Studio 54!! It's crushed perlite...I swear!!!! It's always fun when they look like they are in a plant police line up with the horizontal bars right?? You have to take the picture fast so you don't get an aneurysum from looking through the viewfinder.

Glad to see your galapa sprouted. Looks like that seed was on the verge of rotting?? C.ciliatum is the one that has my dander up!! Only capsicum I have not been able to germinate. I have some "BALCO" tactics for those little pricks.
Agree on all the photo stuff as said in the PM.Maybe the seed was starting to rot, I haven't seen a seed turn that color and still sprout.

Everything looks great, Greg! What more is there to say then keep the pictures coming, love watching them. You think the Bonnet/Brain cross is gonna produce different podshape next time it pods up?
Thanks Stefan,
I'm hoping to get more of a variety of photos once the plants get moving.Your seeds are doing well, I'll be potting them up, maybe some photos soon.

I would imagine different shapes on that plant through the season. It was a pod from the 1st flower to set, which was before any major branching out. I picked all the other flowers off to speed the pod ripening up. Small as it was it did have a half dozen seeds which I which I may stick in the dirt for kicks....why not?

Although any seeds that I keep for stock whether isolated or not will be picked from the best producing plants and select pods.That plant is taking the shape of a Bonnet producer. Growing with alot of lower and inner branching and forking out out in 3rd and 4th branching. The Yellow Brain from last season grew tall and forked out in two directions with additional branching up top not down under.

I'm not focusing on grossing varieties...that can take 7 yrs to stabilize ( I'd be itching by then) by I'm always trying something different each year to keep this hobby from reaching the "job" ststus...
Thanks for the comments

Greg.
 
Hey Sawyer,

The PN is diluted 1 tbl per gallon of water, up to a six hr soak with the pepper seeds, I've gone as long as 2 days with certain tropical plant seeds that have hard husks.I use 1 tsp of Epsom Salts in a qt misting bottle filled with warm water. Shake the bottle before each use. The plant will absorb the solution faster through the leaves than the roots. I also foliar feed with diluted amounts of Fish Emulsion.I don't add much to the small containers indoors besides water.

Chemicals can take along time to leach out, especially salt. Although I have read about folks drenching their soil with epsom salt, I don't recommend it. I'm looking forward to getting my plants outdoors, there's something mystical about rain water that ya can't buy in a bottle.

Remember less is more when feeding the crop. Most important take care of where the feet(roots) of the plant set foot. Having a great soil base is key to growing a lush plant. If you're planting in ground take care of the planting hole and surrounding area with compost and other amending products. If using pots outdoors find the best soil mix or combine your own as I do. It makes the difference at the finish line (Harvest)

Greg

Thanks for the info, Greg. I do agree "less is more". I'm not particularly committed to all-organic when it comes to feeding, though I do try to stay away from nasty pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. I use Peter's Soluble Trace Element Mix (STEM) for micronutrients and I like the results I've had, but now that I look at its analysis (pdf), I see that, while it does provide sulfur, it doesn't include magnesium. I guess I'll pick up some epsom salt.

I'll be planting both in the ground and in pots. My garden space is well over 100 years old (no one really seems to know how long this place has been inhabitated - the current house was built in 1897.) I'm sure its seen both traditional and chemically-enhanced techniques, but the top soil is about 14" deep and of good tilth. For the pots, I'll be using Sunshine Mix #1, Osmocote, and the aforementioned Peter's STEM.

Speaking of rain water, I wonder to what extent the microorganisms present in rain water benefit the plants and soil upon which it falls. Given the whole topic is relatively new, I doubt anyone has researched this aspect yet. (Would love to see relevant articles if anyone knows of any.)

Speaking of hard-to-germinate seeds, have you ever tried using giberrellic acid, kits available here? Used at the right concentration, I've read (no personal experience) it can work seeming miracles on germinating otherwise difficult-to-impossible seeds. Too much can cause plants to become spindly and weak, though.
 
Thanks for the info, Greg. I do agree "less is more". I'm not particularly committed to all-organic when it comes to feeding, though I do try to stay away from nasty pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. I use Peter's Soluble Trace Element Mix (STEM) for micronutrients and I like the results I've had, but now that I look at its analysis (pdf), I see that, while it does provide sulfur, it doesn't include magnesium. I guess I'll pick up some epsom salt.

I'll be planting both in the ground and in pots. My garden space is well over 100 years old (no one really seems to know how long this place has been inhabitated - the current house was built in 1897.) I'm sure its seen both traditional and chemically-enhanced techniques, but the top soil is about 14" deep and of good tilth. For the pots, I'll be using Sunshine Mix #1, Osmocote, and the aforementioned Peter's STEM.

Speaking of rain water, I wonder to what extent the microorganisms present in rain water benefit the plants and soil upon which it falls. Given the whole topic is relatively new, I doubt anyone has researched this aspect yet. (Would love to see relevant articles if anyone knows of any.)

Speaking of hard-to-germinate seeds, have you ever tried using giberrellic acid, kits available here? Used at the right concentration, I've read (no personal experience) it can work seeming miracles on germinating otherwise difficult-to-impossible seeds. Too much can cause plants to become spindly and weak, though.


Stefan,
Sounds like you have a good foundation outdoors for your plants, Although I have a newer home that was built on unimproved property, I still grow in containers and raised beds. I did have my soil tested by a state certified agency for lead or contamination before we moved in. All was fine, I just plant flowers (annuals and perennials) in the ground.

I do have other plants at a community garden and at some other locations inground, but I'm not always there and I don't consider those locations part of my garden...since they're not solely managed by me...

I haven't tried but have read up on Giberrellic Acid. If it can crack open the nut before the nut rots then it may be worth the look. Pepper seeds are fairly easy to germinate but sometimes in out travels I pick up tropical seeds, shoots or tubers. Depending how old the item is it can be difficult to penetrate with water alone.

That's where the PN comes in handy.I have been using Superthrive for a couple of seasons, its a hormone with vitamins. The plants like it although I haven't done a comparision with or without I have seen a flurry of growth with the peppers and primarily the flowers that I grow...
 
It helps to have a magnifying glass on hand, the seed hulls are very easy to remove when they're swollen.
If the cap sticks on my only Galapo seed I will do likewise.
Thanks! Just removed 2 of the 3 with your method this morning (MoA's), didn't need my magnifying glass this time. One of the two I left it on the second leaf as I didn't want to rip that leaf and it wanted to say another day or two :D. My 3rd helmet head probably won't come off as it appears wrapped down to the stalk (the worst one I've ever seen) but I'm keeping her sprayed with epsom/water mist and check daily just in case she gives me the opportunity to remove her hat. Great idea using needle nose pliers, have done before with hemostat pliers but I like my needle nose pliers better, again thanks!
 
Just amazing as ever Greg, love the pics of the sea of green and can't forget that oh so delicious pizza... Making me hungry just strolling thru page 8...
 
Greg, that is a very impressive glog man. The plants look brilliant and the food looks amazing man... keep it up! Another glog I will have to cover my keyboard in plastic wrap first... yay :drooling: :drooling: :drooling:
 
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