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Pulpiteer 2016 Grow Log - better late than never.

Like the title says, better late than never.  It's been such a busy beginning to the year with work, I've not been able to do much of anything on this website, but I'm going to make a go of it just because this community has been such a good thing in my pepper growing experience.  I want to stay connected.
 
I began sowing seed at the end of December and had four more stages to it - two in January and two more in February.  
 
Here is the grow list:

A1 Bob's Pickling              Pepperlover            Annuum
A2 Hot Cherry Pepper      Buckeye Pepper     Annuum
A3 Jalapeno Biker Billy     Buckeye Pepper     Annuum
A4 Monkey Face Yellow   Buckeye Pepper     Annuum

B1 Aji Cito                         Pepperlover           Baccatum
B2 Aji Habanero               Pepperlover            Baccatum
B3 Aji Melocoton (PL)       Pepperlover           Baccatum
B4 Aji Peruvian                 Pepperlover           Baccatum
B5 Bishops Crown            Buckeye Pepper    Baccatum
B6 Brazilian Starfish         Pepperlover           Baccatum
B7 Orange Starfish           Pepperlover           Baccatum
B8 Aji Fantasy                  Buckeye Pepper    Baccatum

C1 7 Pot Brain Strain [R]                    Cappy       Chinense
C2 7 Pot Brain Strain Caramel (F2)   Romy 6     Chinense
C3 7 Pot Bubble Gum (Brown)           Romy 6     Chinense
C4 7 Pot Peach (F3)                           Sawyer    Chinense
C5 7 Pot Primo                                   Pepperlover   Chinense
C6a 7 Pot Yellow                                Andy             Chinense
C6b 7 Pot Yellow                                Buckeye Pepper    Chinense
C7a Bahamian Goat                           Andy           Chinense
C7b Bahamian Goat                           Buckeye Pepper    Chinense
C8 Bhut Jolokia Peach (SS)                Pepperlover      Chinense
C9 Bhut Jolokia Red                           Pepperlover       Chinense
C10a Bhut Orange Copenhagen        Andy              Chinense
C10b Bhut Orange Copenhagen         Coheed196     Chinense
C11 Big Black Mama                          Romy 6           Chinense
C12 Carolina Reaper                          Andy               Chinense
C13 Coyote Zan White                        Pepperlover   Chinense
C14 Harold St. Barts Habanero          Buckeye Pepper    Chinense
C15 Jay's Peach Ghost Scorpion       Buckeye Pepper    Chinense
C16 Naga Brain Yellow                       Romy 6                  Chinense
C17 Nebru7 SB                                  Trident Chilli           Chinense
C18 SBJ7                                            Romy 6                  Chinense
C19 SBJ7 Yellow (F1)                         Romy 6                 Chinense
C20 Scotch Bonnet Black River           Gentners              Chinense
C21 Scotch Bonnet FDA Red              Trident Chilli          Chinense
C22 Scotch Bonnet FDA Yellow          Pic1                       Chinense
C23 Scotch Bonnet Giant MoA            Romy 6                 Chinense
C24 Scotch Bonnet MoA                      Steve954              Chinense
C25 Scotch Bonnet Peach                  Trident Chilli           Chinense
C26 Scotch Bonnet Schneider Farm    Andy                     Chinense
C27 Trinidad Scotch Bonnet x 7 Pot    Trident Chilli          Chinense
C28 Uruguay Seasoning                      Pepperlover          Chinense
C29 Wild Brazil                                     Coheed196           Chinense
C30 Santa Rosa Bianca                       Trade Winds         Chinense
C31 Scotch Bonnet Papa Dreadie        Pic1                     Chinense
C32 Chinese 5 Color                            Buckeye Pepper   Chinense
C33 Trinidad Scorpion Moruga (O)      Buckeye Pepper   Chinense
C34 7 Pot Jonah                                   Aji Joe                 Chinense

P1 CAP1481 Guatemala                       Coheed196          Pubescens
P2 CAP273 Peru                                   Coheed196          Pubescens
P4 Giant Mexican Rocoto (ow)              Pepperlover         Pubescens
P5 Pineapple Rocoto (ow)                     Pepperlover         Pubescens
P6 CAP357 (Peru)                                 Coheed196          Pubescens
P7 CAP 1695                                         Coheed196         Pubescens

W1 CAP 212 C. Chacoense                  Coheed196          Chacoense
W2 Tsholo                                             Coheed196
W3 Galapagoense                                 Coheed196          Galap.
 
 
This was actually an attempt to cut back on the number of varieties and peppers, which I did by maybe 10, but there were too many good seeds that I had. 
Also, this grow list reflects some of the wonderful people on THP as well as some vendors I really love (pepperlover and buckeye).
 
Finally, just to have this down somewhere - this is my 5th year of having a glog, so I thought I'd link them all at least for myself for future use, if no one else.  2012, 2013, 2014, 2015.  
 
I'll have pictures later.
Thanks for stopping by!
 
Hey Andy, looks like you've got things rolling along.  I love the tires and chickens.  I'd like to get some chickens, too, but have a lot of prep work to do first.  What did you use to cut the rims on the tires?  I have access to a bunch of old tires and am thinking of building a low retaining wall with some.  I want to drill or cut the bottom rim to prevent them from holding water, but am not sure how best to do it.
 
OCD Chilehead said:
Very nice pile of mulch. That's gold in my garden. Will make great compost. Plants are really going to kick off soon. Comfrey looks good. Glad to see some bee's. I've seen bees for the first time in years in my yard. I've been reading the benefits of planting comfrey. From medicinal uses to breaking up clay and nutrients for the soil.
 
Thank you. Yeah, I love using it.  A lot of it is pine, so I think I'll let that sit for a year and compost in place.  
 
I really like the comfrey, I'll have more below, but besides food for bees, it's great to make a fertilizer out of it.  
 
Sawyer said:
Hey Andy, looks like you've got things rolling along.  I love the tires and chickens.  I'd like to get some chickens, too, but have a lot of prep work to do first.  What did you use to cut the rims on the tires?  I have access to a bunch of old tires and am thinking of building a low retaining wall with some.  I want to drill or cut the bottom rim to prevent them from holding water, but am not sure how best to do it.
 
Thanks, things are coming nicely now.  I'm hoping for a good year.  I was blessed to have a parishioner help with the tires.  He used a sawzall on them, with the garden hose running a trickle of water over the blade and tire where he was cutting so it didn't over heat there.  He went through it surprisingly fast, and it is a great help.  He then used a drill to put just a few drainage holes in the bottom.  It didn't take many.  I hope that helps! 
 
 
 
So, here's a shot of the pepper area with the raised beds.  They are settling in now and things are actually looking pretty good.  I'm pleased.  Hopefully they will root in and take off soon.  We've had good warm weather now for a bit, so I'm optimistic. The barrel has comfrey and water and is making a comfrey tea for fertilizer. I’ll be able to use that in about three weeks. I'll use it both as a foliar fertilizer and I'll pour it into the root zones.
 
2016-06-05_4592.jpg


Here is a look down a row that’s in the long bed with wood sides:

2016-06-05_4596.jpg


The plants are doing well. They are adjusting. Some of the bigger leaves they develop inside are being beaten up and shed, but smaller ones are taking their place. Usually when this happens the new growth comes in more dense than before.

2016-06-05_4600.jpg


Here is a jalapeno

2016-06-05_4597.jpg


And this one is a Pineapple Rocoto from one of the over wintered plants. It’s just about time to pick it.

2016-06-05_4595.jpg


I think this one is a Bahamian Goat:

2016-06-05_4604.jpg


Here are two of the Scotch Bonnet Black River plants from the seed that some folks brought back from a missionary trip – I’m excited to see how they will turn out.

2016-06-05_4605.jpg


Here is the little chicken tractor. We’ve got 4 Isa Browns in here. There is a laying box about halfway back and we get 3 to 4 eggs a day. It has worked great.

2016-06-05_4602.jpg


Here is my youngest carrying one of the birds, which he caught himself. These birds have been great with the kids. His hair is in ponytails because his older two sister had them and he thought it would be funny.

IMG_0322.jpg


Finally, a shot of the front yard from a different angle. Things are filling in nicely. We've had a few berries and many flowers and a bit of growth this year. In a few years it'll be awesome.

2016-06-05_4606.jpg


That's what I've got - thanks for stopping by!
 
Nice to know about the tea. Beds are looking great. I love the berries. I'm going to get some cuttings from a friend of mine this week. Should have planted berries years ago. Interested in seeing how the SB Black River turns out as well. That's a big chicken. Looks like a beautiful day. Thanks for sharing.
 
Your plantation is looking great Andy... ripe pods is fantastic!
 
My observation with the leaves exactly... I think they grow bigger leaves to make up for the relatively weak artificial light when we have them indoors, and shed them when they get set outside under natural sunlight and in the wind.   Keep on truckin'!
 
Nice update Andy!
 
The garden is thriving!
 
Glad to see the kids out there with you, it's setting a great foundation that they will carry on as they get older. I'm really glad to see my oldest who has 4 kids of his own carrying on the gardening tradition. I'm a "skip generation" kid, as my parents never grew, but my Mom's side lived off what they produced. They call me a "throwback" LOL
 
Here's to gardening! Ones brain loves it ;)
 
     Great looking plants! They should be off to the races any day now with the heat here in the midwest. Looks like your fruit trees are liking their new home, too.
 
Pastor andy...things look great. How's the galapagoense....
I wish I had time to construct a germ station like yours. And the plot configuration with the tires..nice..
 
Your grows are always awesome, Andy, but this
year you are raising the bar! The grow room upgrades
are great - just keeps getting better and better in there.

Also glad to hear that the pepper draft was a success.
200 plants? That's awesome. I hope you get to stay with
your congregation for a long time to keep developing
your new plantation!
 
OCD Chilehead said:
Nice to know about the tea. Beds are looking great. I love the berries. I'm going to get some cuttings from a friend of mine this week. Should have planted berries years ago. Interested in seeing how the SB Black River turns out as well. That's a big chicken. Looks like a beautiful day. Thanks for sharing.
 
I actually just used the comfrey tea tonight for the first time. I smells terrible and the stench stays on my hands for a long time.  That's the downside.  It is a good fertilizer though.  
 
stickman said:
Your plantation is looking great Andy... ripe pods is fantastic!
 
My observation with the leaves exactly... I think they grow bigger leaves to make up for the relatively weak artificial light when we have them indoors, and shed them when they get set outside under natural sunlight and in the wind.   Keep on truckin'!
 
Thanks Rick! 
 
romy6 said:
Looking great  Andy amazing how fast our kids grow . Glad your cherishing every minute with them :)
 
Thanks Jamie - the seed you sent has worked out great.  Excited to see how the pods turn out! 
 
Devv said:
Nice update Andy!
 
The garden is thriving!
 
Glad to see the kids out there with you, it's setting a great foundation that they will carry on as they get older. I'm really glad to see my oldest who has 4 kids of his own carrying on the gardening tradition. I'm a "skip generation" kid, as my parents never grew, but my Mom's side lived off what they produced. They call me a "throwback" LOL
 
Here's to gardening! Ones brain loves it ;)
 
Thank you! I'm hoping the gardening bug catches on with a few of them.  If nothing else they are getting exposed to some good stuff.  
 
Hybrid Mode 01 said:
Great looking plants! They should be off to the races any day now with the heat here in the midwest. Looks like your fruit trees are liking their new home, too.
 
Thank you.  Yeah, the heat has really been intense and the peppers have loved it.
 
Trident chilli said:
Andy those Black River bonnets are really coming along nicely now they are in the dirt ... will be watching their development
 
They are.  I'm really curious how they will turn out.  I've got to check those plants in particular to see if they are forming any pods...
 
KiNGDeNNiZ said:
Pastor andy...things look great. How's the galapagoense....
I wish I had time to construct a germ station like yours. And the plot configuration with the tires..nice..
 
Howdy Dennis, the galap is going slow for some reason.  It's in a pot on the other side of the house - my best isolation spot so I can save seed.  I hope I can get a pod from it.
 
PaulG said:
Your grows are always awesome, Andy, but this
year you are raising the bar! The grow room upgrades
are great - just keeps getting better and better in there.

Also glad to hear that the pepper draft was a success.
200 plants? That's awesome. I hope you get to stay with
your congregation for a long time to keep developing
your new plantation!
 
I hope so too Paul - thanks for checking in!

It’s been hard to keep up with the updates. Things are actually moving along rather well. The raised beds are working great, but so is the early hot weather. The peppers are happy. The only real challenge has been water. I think I need to move to an irrigation system next year. That will cut down on work and on water.

Anyway, here’s a shot of the garden tonight. Things are coming along very nicely.
 
2016-06-29_4614.jpg


The tires are filling in. I’ve got tons of peppers on the plants and they are really doing well.

2016-06-29_4617.jpg


2016-06-29_4618.jpg


The rectangle raised bed is doing great as well. There are a lot of baccatuums in there.

2016-06-29_4615.jpg


Including these bishop’s crowns

2016-06-29_4616.jpg


Some non-peppers
Pink Champagne Currants – wonderful taste and beautiful berries

2016-06-29_4619.jpg


We had a raccoon kill two of the four of our chickens, so I got some baby chicks to replace them. Here is one of them with my younger daughter.

2016-06-29_4613.jpg


The raccoon, unfortunately, caught a bad case of something when it drank from some coke out by where it found the chickens. I don't think he made it. I really don't like those things.
 
Anyway, things are really going well.  The heat is helping, but so are the raised beds.  I think it'll be a great year come harvest time if everything continues.
 
Thanks for stopping by!

[
 
Great results with your raised beds Andy! I forget... what Baccatum varieties have you got planted? I'll be interested to hear your opinion of how they taste when they ripen up. They grow great here, but the ones I've grown before seem to have a somewhat soapy taste I'd rather avoid.
 
Looking good, Andy. Sorry to hear about the chicks. I wish I had a bigger spread, so j could have some chickens. They really beat down the insects. Plus, I love fresh eggs.

Beds are looking great. They'll start branching out soon.
 
PaulG said:
Glad to see those raised beds coming along so well, Andy.
 
Thanks Paul! They are rockin' now.
 
stickman said:
Great results with your raised beds Andy! I forget... what Baccatum varieties have you got planted? I'll be interested to hear your opinion of how they taste when they ripen up. They grow great here, but the ones I've grown before seem to have a somewhat soapy taste I'd rather avoid.
 
Thanks Rick - I have Aji Cito, Aji Habanero, Aji Melocoton, Aji Peruvian, Bishops Crown, Brazialian Starfish, Orange Starfish, and Aji Fantasy.  I had some Aji Citos just last week, mixed with pasta.  I love them.  I haven't had the soapy taste in the ones I've grown.  I've enjoyed the taste of all the varieties I've had - and some of the fatter ones make for great poppers.  If you do that and taste soap, just add more bacon  ;)
 
OCD Chilehead said:
Looking good, Andy. Sorry to hear about the chicks. I wish I had a bigger spread, so j could have some chickens. They really beat down the insects. Plus, I love fresh eggs.

Beds are looking great. They'll start branching out soon.
 
Thanks - part of the reason I've not been on here much is I've been so busy with chicken stuff.  We got more birds and now have to house them.  So I recently finished a coop and a chicken run.  I am enjoying having the chickens much more than I thought I would.  They are fun to have and give you eggs.
 
 
 
Alright - things really are going well so far this year.  The raised beds plus the crazy heat we've had, have worked together so for the first time in this new place I have some growth I'm proud of!  Here's a shot of the garden as a whole:
 
2016-07-20_4660.jpg

 
A closer shot of a raised bed.  The plants are really doing well
 
2016-07-20_4661.jpg

 
I had an extra couple pallets, so I cut them in half, screwed them together, and filled it up for a new raised bed. These are pepper plants that were left over that didn’t get drafted that I couldn’t throw out. They look scrawny now, but much of that filler is rabbit manure, so I expect them to grow.
 
2016-07-20_4662.jpg


If I remember correctly, these are Trinidad Scorpion Moruga Blend Oranges. They look like they’ll be mean ones…

2016-07-20_4663.jpg


Here’s a new one for me that I’m excited about – an Aji Fantasy. There are several on this plant.

2016-07-20_4664.jpg


I believe these are FDA red Scotch Bonnets. Great shape to them.

2016-07-20_4667.jpg


And I think these are my 7 Pot yellows

2016-07-20_4668.jpg


I harvested some biker billy jalapenos and hot cherry peppers, stuffed them with goat cheese and wrapped them with real bacon from a place down the road - it's cajun spiced bacon. They were wonderful.

2016-07-18_4672-1024x678.jpg


Here is a shot of the new chicken coop and run. I got a lot of help on this, since I haven't built anything before. It cost more than I initially hoped, but it turned out to be a better building than I was planning on, so hopefully this works for all my chickens. Now I've just got to wait until the chicks are big enough to mix with the adults and hope they don't all kill each other... Anyone with experience mixing chickens?

2016-07-20_4669-1024x678.jpg


Finally, a giant pumpkin. My squash are on a mini-hugel bed. I buried some wood, then covered the pile with the garden plastic weed mulch/barrier stuff. The squash, cucumbers and pumpkin have gone crazy.

2016-07-20_4666-1024x678.jpg


alright, I'm going to try to catch up with some other glogs.

Thanks for stopping by!
 
Looks fantastic Andy. Thanks for the update. I love the garden. The tractor tires are awesome looking.

Bonnets are looking great. Nice foody pic. Yum!

I like the chicken pen. I had chickens once. They were great for insect control. The only problem j had was the rooster. The rooster would crow anytime you turned on the bathroom light, light from a neighbors car, anything that lit up. LoL! It was crazy and comical. Neighbors didn't like it, and we had to part ways.
 
Great update Andy pleased your garden has really taken off .... Bonnets have a good shape and I am looking forward to a black river update. Plus one with Chuck on your chicken pen hopefully its construction will keep the racoons at bay
 
OCD Chilehead said:
Looks fantastic Andy. Thanks for the update. I love the garden. The tractor tires are awesome looking.

Bonnets are looking great. Nice foody pic. Yum!

I like the chicken pen. I had chickens once. They were great for insect control. The only problem j had was the rooster. The rooster would crow anytime you turned on the bathroom light, light from a neighbors car, anything that lit up. LoL! It was crazy and comical. Neighbors didn't like it, and we had to part ways.
 
Thanks! Yeah, those tractor tires are really working out.  I think they will be a good long term solution for me.
 
I think with the chickens I'll be able to use them more for insects in the fall and spring - once stuff is either put away for the winter or not in yet.  If we get a rooster out of those chicks, he's going in the freezer.  Hopefully they'll just be hens.
 
Trident chilli said:
Great update Andy pleased your garden has really taken off .... Bonnets have a good shape and I am looking forward to a black river update. Plus one with Chuck on your chicken pen hopefully its construction will keep the racoons at bay
 
Thanks!  My plants are coming nicely this year, which is a nice change.  I didn't get a shot of the black river SB tonight, I need to do that for next time...
 
 
 
Alright, some pictures from tonight

Here is a ground level shot looking down a row of Baccatums 
2016-07-23_4729-1024x678.jpg


7 Pot Primo (Pepperlover)
2016-07-23_4730-1024x678.jpg


These are the (not) 7 Pot Peach from Sawyer that are actually brown, fruity, and not too hot.

2016-07-23_4731-1024x678.jpg


Here is a 7 Pot Bubblegum Brown from Romy6

2016-07-23_4732-1024x678.jpg


Some funky shaped Brazilian Starfish from pepperlover

2016-07-23_4733-1024x678.jpg


I think this is the one I had pictured yesterday - it isn't a yellow 7, it's actually a NeBru7 from Trident Chili. Pretty looking peppers!

2016-07-23_4734-1024x678.jpg


Here is a Uruguay Seasoning (pepperlover)- very cool shape and look to these. I was excited about these last year and couldn't get any. That won't be a problem this year.

2016-07-23_4736-1024x678.jpg


I'm growing some amaranth for the chickens to eat - just trying it out. This is a variety called Hopi Red from Baker Creek Heirloom seed.
2016-07-23_4735-1024x678.jpg


Finally, I'm also growing ground cherries again this year. Here is a little bed with some of those and some Moonglow tomatoes.
2016-07-23_4739-1024x678.jpg


Thanks for stopping by!
 
Your raised beds are looking extremely productive this year Andy, and your outdoor projects too. Definitely no moss on you. ;)  Thanks for your impressions on the Baccatums you've tried, I'm still looking for the best varieties to grow here. Keep up the good work!
 
I've been missing your posts!
 
I really like what you have going on, chickens, I used to raise them, loved the natural eggs, but too many critters like the chickens more than we did. Maybe again when I retire, and can watch them better. Good luck with them!  They are kind of mean to each other though..
 
Your garden has improved immensely since last year ;)  Glad to see all the pods in the wings!
 
Mine was a late start. I wasn't really into it after the health issues last spring, but now I'm back and I can eat heat again! And I have the fall season to look forward to; 3 to 4 weeks and I should start to see good things ;)
 
Wishing you continued success!
 
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