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Slade122's 2014 Greenhouse GLOG

I update the following spreadsheet pretty much daily with information about the plants, etc. This also allows me to keep track of when to expect/allow flowering to occur. This is the first generation of my spreadsheet designed by myself.
Download My Veggie Tracking Spreadsheet
 
Sprouting Setup Overview. I’m using a 2ft 2bulb T5HO shop light with a pair of 14 watt Warm White bulbs. I’m considering picking up another one of those lights to match so that I have a total of 56 watts to make strong seedlings with heavy-duty stems.
 

 
From left to right: Ring of Fire Cayenne, Hungarian Hotwax, Scotch Bonnet, Super Sweet 100 Tomato, Super Sioux Tomato, Yellow Pear Tomato, Calico Pepper, Fish Pepper, Bell Mix
[SIZE=10.5pt][/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=10.5pt]Peppers I plan to sprout ASAP: Carolina Reaper, Atomic Starfish, Fatalii, Datil, Giant Jalapeno.[/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=10.5pt]Peppers I already have: Early Jalapeno, Thai Super Chili, Hatch Chile. I also have Bells, but they will most likely be culled.[/SIZE]
 
Let the Growing Begin!
 
Click to expand...
Looking good Slade. Love the green house. I'd have one too but heating them is too expensive in Ohio.
 
Have you used those hydrofarms before? If not, you will figure out that the air line tends to get clogged at the very bottom where the bubbling action starts. For some reason, the salts from the nutes tend to clog it up there. Don't know why. If you see a decreased flow, check that first.
 
On the flood table, are you just using that as a nursery for small plants before you plant them in soil? I switched to perlite this year instead of hydroton. If I do decide to put some of my hydro plants in soil, I won't have to disrupt them near as much trying to salvage the hydroton from their roots.
 
Those hydrofarms have been in use for 4 years or so continuously. They do occasionally get plugged or the airline has to be tweaked, or the dripper holes have to be drilled out again for the 50th time...

Right now I am using the 2x2 flood table as a nursury for my small plants to get them going. I transfer most of my plants to dirt and usually just end up planting a certain amount of g he hydroton that gets stuck in the rootball. Overall, I have pretty good sucess with transplanting from hydro to soil.
I will admit that my method is a bit unorthodox compared to many hydro growers, but it has worked well for me in the past. The flood table is on for 15 minutes at the beginning of every hour, and 45 minutes off until the next hour. I actually just planted another clone in a rock pot and it took just a day for the plant to adjust to the new conditions.

Thanka for your comment penny! Most of them went in to a giant pot of salsa which was a hit at my little get together last night.
 
Yet another Update…
 
Firstly, an Update on the sprouts that just popped.
 
I’m still [0 / 4] on both Ring of Fire Cayenne and Hungarian Hotwax. Patience is a virtue… I guess.
 
Calico [0 / 4] and Fish [3 / 4] popped.

 
Scotch Bonnet [3 / 4] and Sweet 100’s [4 / 4] popped.

 
New Seed starting trays from Gardener’s Supply. 24 Cell Fast Start is the product name.
48 more slots for babies!

 
Next, an Update on the Greenhouse! We have light!
 
The electrician came out yesterday to wire up the whole greenhouse. They ran a 60A circuit to a panel that is in the greenhouse, which is split in to 3- 20Amp circuits. One circuit is for lighting, one for heating, and one for everything else. The circuit with lighting has a light switch to make turning the HPS/MH lamps a breeze. I plan to use the light to control photoperiod, as well as to provide some extra heat and light on those cold, cloudy days here in the Texas winter. I will most likely only need to run the lights from November in to March.

 
Some shots at night, both inside and outside the greenhouse.


 
Very nice Slade. You've got a penny or two invested there. Looks like the perfect place to grow chilies all winter.
 
After a state of complete depression from the loss of my multitude of seedlings  as well as my 2 adult Jalapenos when I was away on a trip, I've decided to come back for round 2 on THP.
 
This summer I had a great harvest of Super Thai's, as well as some Ring of Fire Cayennes and Hatch Chiles - but with the loss of my Jalapenos, this summer just wasn't the same.
 
Anyways, Here is my restart. Timing isn't that important to me, due to my setup - but I don't like to start peppers in the hottest part of the summer here in Texas. Pots just dry up too fast for small plants, but I think I have found a way around that - more details to come later on dealing with the Texas heat.
 
Also, I began using PRO-MIX BX as a starting and transplanting soil for any plants that start in 2" - 6" containers. I'll just state this, that stuff is AWESOME. The weight and water retention seem perfect, plus is has good bacteria. However, it is INSANELY expensive, but does go quite a ways when only using it to start seeds. It is well worth the cost IMO when you are using rare, exotic, or expensive seeds that can be difficult or impossible to obtain again.
 
Technically I guess I'm not overwintering, but winter growing as my greenhouse stays above 55, even at night. All of the plants I currently have, except for the 2 Hatch's have earned their place in the greenhouse. The Rocket chile's are definitely a prolific plant when you consider the weight of fruit that they produce - I'll get some pics as they are about to flower again now.
 
Plants I currently Have:
1x - Rocket Chile
2x - Hot Banana
1x - Piquin Type "A" (The common one)
1x - Purple Prince (Bonzai of plant in profile picture)
3x - Hatch Chile (2 never seemed to do well)
1x - Super Thai (Short and Fat variety)
1x - Ring of Fire Cayenne
 
Seeds Just Planted:
3x - Bhut Jolokia - 9/21
3x - Arroz con Pollo (Baker Creek) - 9/21
3x - Lemon Drop - 9/21
3x - Pepperocini  - 9/21
4x - Orange Habanero - 9/23
4x - Rojo Morado - 9/23
4x - Guajillo - 9/23
4x - Chile De Arbol - 9/23
4x - Tobasco - 9/23
4x - Piquin Type "B" (short and fat) - 9/23
4x - Piquin Type "C" (long and pointy) - 9/23
4x - Orange Manzano - 9/23
 
Seeds yet to be planted: 
India Jwala
Red Mini Bell
Yellow Mini Bell
Craig's Grande Jalapeno (to replace my devastating loss)
Criolla de Cocina (Baker Creek)
Moshi
Trinidad Scorpion
Maule's Red Hot
Datil
Scotch Bonnet
Hungarian Hot Wax
Long Thai chili
Tepin
 
There are more, but I've got to go through the seed drawer and make decisions!
 
Oh - and here is an updated link to my veggie tracking spreadsheet for those who requested it.
http://www.octopas.us/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Vegetable_Spreadsheet.xls
 
Pictures to come!
 
Liking the greenhouse!
 
I too live in Tejas, but 35-40 miles sw of San Antonio. I would just love a greenhouse. But here, in some years the peppers will survive all winter without intervention, if just left in the dirt, and the weather is mild. But not every year :D
 
Devv said:
Liking the greenhouse!
 
I too live in Tejas, but 35-40 miles sw of San Antonio. I would just love a greenhouse. But here, in some years the peppers will survive all winter without intervention, if just left in the dirt, and the weather is mild. But not every year :D
Click to expand...
 
I'm in the DFW area, so we get a bit more than you. I've even heard that people in Austin can get away with some kinds of citrus, but not here. We still get a few freezes that will wipe stuff out in a single shot.
 
However, I do know that you can just cover peppers with plastic, and generally they make it as long as we don't have an extended cold spell. Good to see some Texans on the forum!
 
Anyways. I'll showcase some of my selections that have earned their place in the greenhouse.
 
Piquin Type "A"

 
Dragon Cayenne

 
Rocket Chile

 
I've got a few more, but they need to be re-photographed.
 
Last night I got motivated to make some hot sauce, due to a recent harvest of  Dragon Cayennes, Super Thai's, and Rocket Chiles.
 
First I sauteed the peppers, and then added water to thoroughly cook them. This is about half. The big red ones are rockets.

 
With my eyes, nose, throat, all burning, as well as causing me to cough. I moved the peppers in to the food processor, added some water, a touch of sugar, salt, black pepper, as well as some garlic and onion. I let this blend for about 15 minutes.

 
Wallah! 2 good size jars of hot sauce. I'll be giving one away for a co-worker's birthday - she's a pepper fanatic.

 
Because of the Thai chili's, the burn is one that does not fade very quickly, it tends to linger. I wanted a hot sauce that I could eat a decent amount of, but still get that satisfying sense of "Dang, this is pretty hot"
 
Anyways, more to come.
 
Yesterday when I got home, I had some very promising little hooks, and this morning when I woke up, the Manzanos had already broken out of the hook stage. They sprouted in record time - 2 days! Unfortunately I have a bunch of helmet heads, but we shall see how that turns out. I probably should have soaked the seeds beforehand to help prevent this.

 
From left to right we have: Arroz con Pollo, Bhut Jolokia, Pepperocini, Lemon Drop, and Manzano Habanero's (Yes, Manzano x Habanero) To be honest, out of this group I'm most looking forward to the Manzano x Habaneros

 
Here is my tray full of seeds that were planted on the 23rd.

 
And finally, a few kinds of basil and tomatoes for fun. 2'x3' and 8 inches depth filled with expanded clay pebbles. Filling the system takes about 2 minutes, the auto-siphon empties the entire volume in about a minute. This means that a cycle takes approximately 3 minutes to complete, which is 20 times an hour. The entire 20 gallon volume of water is pumped about 6 times per hour. I have sucessfully done green onions in this system as well, they had very strong roots. Overall, the system is incredibly dependable, but really burns through water due to evaporation and more or less forced uptake of water and nutrients. The higher the nutrient level, the higher the water uptake. I have not burned a single plant in this system, even though I have mixed plants with totally different nutritional needs. This is just a test system to prove the concept and test performance - I will likely be creating one on a much larger scale next, probably 8' x 2' and at least double the depth. 8 inches of depth isn't enough to hold the tomatoes when they get to bearing a decent load of fruit.
 
Looking like a great start off there, buddy!  Manzanos in 2 days?  What's the secret?
 
Here is exactly my method and materials:
 
Materials:
3 Tier wood shelf from IKEA - $40
4' x 2' seedling heat mat
Standard black tray
Soil: ProMix BX
2" x 2" x 1.9" Round pots.
Temperature in house: 73F
 
Method:
Step 1: Filled the pots with ProMix BX
Step 2: Thoroughly watered each pot several times in the sink with slightly warm water so all of the material was saturated.
Step 3: Used toothpicks to make tiny holes in the soil, a tiny bit less than 1/4" in depth, pulling the soil mix towards the top, without disturbing the natural packing of the soil.
Step 4: Put the seeds in the holes
Step 5: Covered the seeds with the material that was pulled out.
Step 6: Label or chart everything so you know what is what.
Step 7: Watered again with warm tap water to make sure the seeds were moist and warm, plus to make sure all of the material was saturated.
Step 8: Moved the tray containing the pots to the top tier of the shelving unit with a heat mat (Which sits directly above a 2'x4' (4 bulb) T5 HO lamp from Envirogrow.
Step 9: Waited.
 
Here is where I am sprouting my peppers at the moment. Sorry the contrast is so high from the light, but you still get the idea. The shelf below the one with the light is where I am going to move the taller plants. Therefore, they start on the top shelf, and move down as the plants get bigger. 
 
From everything I have read, it is a cross between the two.

However, from crossing tables it appears that it should not be possible.

Perhaps it is only possible to cross this one way - either male hab to female manzano or male manzano to female hab.

I have planted both, If I get both to grow well, I will do extensive testing by hand pollinating them myself. Then I will do seed viability testing.

Because this is likely a multi-year project, I will likely call on others to test viability and help stabilize the cross.

Anywho, here is a thread with great pictures on the variety.

http://thehotpepper.com/topic/11257-manzano-habanero/[
 
Manzano Sprouts - 9/26. This was immediately after they came out of the seed, they have really greened up since that photo. The seedlings seem very strong.

 
I planted some new varieties on the 26th as well.
4x - Golden Marconi
4x - Long Thai Chili,
4x - Scotch Bonnet
4x - Tepin
4x - Fish
4x - Calico
4x - Cherry
4x - Hungarian Hotwax
4x - Early Jalapeno
4x - Ring of Fire Cayenne
 
Hooray!
 
We've got hooks or sprouts for all 3 of 3 on the Manzano Habaneros, Arroz con Pollo, and Pepperocinis today.
 
It looks like we may have a few more popping up soon, Chile de Arbol and Piquin "C" are not quite to the hook stage, but I can see the green sneaking upward toward the surface!
 
3x - Manzano Habs! So excited about these.

 
3x - Pepperocini'

 
3x - Arroz con Pollo

 
Manzanos are getting closer to forming their first true leaves. Fertilized with a touch of liquid earthworm castings and bat guano.

 
I also acquired an adult Tequila Sunrise Pepper plant. Organic Certified.

 
Pods forming on my hot banana's

 
And finally, some of my Thai Long Beans. These things are huge.

 
Pics to come!
 
I had quite a number of sprouts emerge today from several different varieties. I expected the Bhuts and piquin types to take longer, but I'll take what they gave me! There are several more poking through, so I expect to see more by the end of the day, or tomorrow.
 
Sprouted 10/1/14
2x - Bhut Jolokia - 10 days
1x - Lemon Drop - 10 days
2x - Orange Habanero - 8 days
1x - Rojo Morado - 8 days
4x - Chile De Arbol - 8 days
1x - Tobasco - 8 days
4x - Piquin Type "B" (short and fat) - 8 days
4x - Piquin Type "C" (long and pointy) - 8 days
 
My space is starting to fill up. I had to move an entire tray do because I didn't want to label the small pots quite yet and needed to keep the ones that have not sprouted warm. I'll probably end up getting another light for my second shelf soon.

 
A small harvest of Super Thai's and Dragon Cayenne's for a pot of chili.

 
I'm just getting started! Stay tuned! 
 
Beans, beans, the magical fruit...
 
I wish I haden't loved mine to an early grave :D The neighbourhood bean fairy leaves bags of them on our doorhandle during the night. He's inspired me to become the neighbourhood chili fairy, and soon afterwards to be known as "the jackass with the f**king hot peppers".
 
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