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Specific care for super-hots?

N

Nightmare Frog

Hi guys, I'm back.

I recently bought the following from a nearby garden center:
Trinidad Moruga Scorpion
Trinidad Scorpion Butch T
Chocolate Trinidad Scorpion
7 Pot
Dorset Naga
Carribean Red Habanero
All are about the same height (12-15 inches).
My question is: is there any specific care required for growing the superhots? I've found sources that contradict one another. Some say yes, others say no.
Thanks for replies : )
P.S. Sorry if this has already been covered, I've just come back and didn't really take part in discussions when I was here before.
 
Cal-Mag, Cal-Mag, Cal-Mag, Cal-Mag, ... except that nothing specific. Not too much fert, but it depends from one pepper to another. My Scorpions react differently to fert than my 7 pot brain strain and my Bhut Jolokia.
 
Not to go against PHB and a lot of the growers that are here, but if you go through the pages you are going to inundated with people worrying about every wrinkle, spot, misshapen leaf, and the like. A lot of these questions are met with "Well, just add Cal-mag". This is the wrong answer. I would go as far as to say that among the top reasons people accidentally kill their plants is to overfeed and give the plant something that it doesnt need.

Growing peppers, and specifically supers, takes a bit of practice and I would STRONGLY recommend that you treat this year as a learning season. You will have problems, and now is the time to hone in your techniques. There are hundreds of growers here that can help you, but you also have to realize that patience is often the best practice. Ultimately, peppers need light, water, and some food. You do not need to feed them all the time, and depending on what you are using, you can go as little as a 2 or 3 times a season, or as much as every few waterings. For this first slew of plants, I would recommend trying a few things. If you want to go organic, stay away from the synthetics (cal-mag, pro-gro, most miracle grow) and instead chose fish ferts and tomato-tone like stuff.

What I really recommend is to start a GLog and that way you can have the community help you along the way. Post your questions, your concerns, and YOUR PICTURES, and that way we can help out and recommend minor tweaks along the way.

Lastly, as a testament to patience, last season I deployed half way through the season, at that point I just left my garden as is. My wife didnt feed it, water it, or do anything but weed it and PICK TONS OF PEPPERS. 3 months of letting mother nature handle the water, letting the soil take care of the food, and she pulled at least 20 gallons of peppers off in a 2 month period. (BTW, I told her not to worry about it and just harvest when she gets time, she offered to take care of it but I wanted to see how it would do if I didnt have a chance to kill it).

Good luck, and I look forward to watching your progress.

edit: this isnt ALWAYS the case, since having plants in containers may take a bit more management. But ultimately, less is more in the gardening world. Let nature do its thing and only intervene when it is absolutely necessary.
 
I totally agree with MGOLD86 as well as the poster that said PATIENCE.

Superhots are generally very late season - they take awhile to bear fruit. Since you're in Toronto, you already have a short season. In general, growing Superhots in short season climates means one should consider overwintering.

BTW - I don't categorize Caribbean Reds as Superhots. Don't get me wrong, ~300,000 SHU is hot - it's just not in the same category as the others on your list. However, it is by far my favorite on your list and I highly recommend it.
 
I do agree with what you say, but Chinense are not like Orchids or plants like that. I mean if you do things properly, they won't probably look very good (like mine), but they will be okay and give you pods.

I mean, I'm some kind of a maniac, so I want mine to look like Gary's peppers, but that said, even my grand mother can grow chinense and get pods.

You really have to wish it to kill a chinense.
 
I have some seeds i germinated of the trinidad scorpion butch t which im super excited about. My main question is my pepper plants have shown slights of calcium deficiency and im curious to how often i should give them cal mag and how much per plant.
 
Hi joelok welcome to the forum as stated above ^*^^^^^^^ keep it simple if you that woried about calcium crush up some tums sprinkle and water em in, no BS they will give your plants calcium cheaply a little will do,, I mix egg shells in my raised beds works good,,
 
pepperhog said:
Hi joelok welcome to the forum as stated above ^*^^^^^^^ keep it simple if you that woried about calcium crush up some tums sprinkle and water em in, no BS they will give your plants calcium cheaply a little will do,, I mix egg shells in my raised beds works good,,
Click to expand...
Tums? Brilliant ! Also will stop that pesky heart burn your peppers have been complaining about.
 
I mean, dont get me wrong, there are times where it is necessary to intervene if things are going south.   Cal-Mag can be a great product, when used properly.  I was merely stating that a lot growers use it incorrectly. They see a wrinkle, and they freak out, post pics, and everyone says the same thing, Cal-Mag.  We went through a few months on this forum last year where it seemed as if every plant ailment could be cured by it.  Tons of growers here have it in their arsenal, and it can come in handy when needed. I was merely saying that you shouldn't go into your first super hot season already biased to the Cal-Mag fix.  I have seen some growers with perfectly healthy plants use it at every watering (among other things) and wonder why their plants seem to be going in reverse.
 
The bottom line, it is a good thing to have on hand to use when needed.  But I wouldnt say that you need to have that on hand more than, say, your regular fertilizer or just about any tool in your grow room.  There are tons of things that go into growing peppers, but we often get wrapped up in the little things.  If your plant is kicking off leaves that look like they are on acid, supplementing or fixing it would probably be the right choice, but a few bumps here, a bit of curls there with an otherwise healthy plant is fine. 
 
This is my first grow season and ive learned a ton!!!!  From very simple potting techniques to trying different teas and what ever problems come my way-(problems will be never ending and is just nature slapping you in the face reminding you who is the boss).  I'm absolutely addicted to growing now.  I was off work for a month and all I did was read tons of info from thehotpepper,grasscity,and google.  Grasscity,highly recommend lurking/posting there, is also a goldmine of always advancing projects just like this place,except they all grow weed. 
 
So,I'm going to give you some advice even though I'm a new fart.  Grab a brew and drink with your plants.  That's the secret!!!!
 
I know my next grow will take half the effort because of what I've learned.  A huge thanks to everyone at the hot pepper!
 
Oh, if you want to put your stock into something....TEAS!
 
If you are using synthetics, disregard, but if you aren't compost teas will make you a believer.  And the benny....it is simple, cheap, and SUPER EFFECTIVE!
 
Thanks Poop, forgot about that.
 
Other than starting them earlier (they grow slower, especially in short-season areas), there is no difference in growing superhots.
 
Thanks for the advice, guys.
The 7-pot was the first plant to produce fruit. They're now 3-4 cm across and growing fast.  
How big will they get?
628px-7_pot_green.jpg
 
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