Stickman's 2013 Glog - Time To Pull The Plug on 2013

meatfreak · Mar 5, 2013

Hey Rick, Is that mold on your seedtray? Hopefully those other Urfa Biber will pop up for you as well, they did 3 out of 3 here so good germ rates.

DocNrock · Mar 5, 2013

Lots of good looking seedlings there, Rick.

I've been thinking about the air pot/solo cup comparison. I think there is a difference that will be seen between the two well before the air pruning starts occuring, and I think this effect would be even more pronounced when considering larger air pots versus regular pods, ie., 5 gallon sizes. The aeration of the soil, particularly in the lower third, will likely be much better with the air pots, with less compaction as the holes in the sides will allow for more efficient evaporation of moisture in the soil in the lower third of the air pot relative to a regular one. I'm thinking the same effect probably occurs with the root pouches and Wally bags, as well.

For this reason, you might get a more healthy root system deep in the pot. The better deep oxygenation may account for the greener plants you are observing. Then again, I may be all wet! Just a thought.

stickman · Mar 5, 2013

meatfreak said:
Hey Rick, Is that mold on your seedtray? Hopefully those other Urfa Biber will pop up for you as well, they did 3 out of 3 here so good germ rates.

I did see a little mycelium at first, but when I took off the dome lid it dried up and disappeared. I think what you're seeing is the Dolomitic Lime I sprinkled on top of the growing medium to get more Mg into the plants. Had another Urfa Biber hook up today for 4/6. I hope to get at least one more. Also had another Krimzon Lee Paprika hook up for 2/3 and a Jalapeno Zapotec for 1/3.

DocNrock said:
Lots of good looking seedlings there, Rick.

The better deep oxygenation may account for the greener plants you are observing. Then again, I may be all wet! Just a thought.

You could be right Doc. All I know is what I see.

I up-potted the second Criolla Sella seedling into a Solo cup... when it gets its second set of true leaves I'll move it down cellar with the other one.

Stefan_W · Mar 5, 2013

I love curry dishes, and your entry in the throwdown looks mighty tasty!

meatfreak · Mar 5, 2013

stickman said:
I did see a little mycelium at first, but when I took off the dome lid it dried up and disappeared. I think what you're seeing is the Dolomitic Lime I sprinkled on top of the growing medium to get more Mg into the plants. Had another Urfa Biber hook up today for 4/6. I hope to get at least one more. Also had another Krimzon Lee Paprika hook up for 2/3 and a Jalapeno Zapotec for 1/3.

Nice, glad you got the mold under control. Today at work I was thinking about the Urfa Biber and since I couldn't find a lot of information about it I decided to ask a Turkish colleague if he knew the variety. He didn't actually but he could tell me it's region in Turkey that's called Urfa. If it's from that region it must be hot we're his words. So it's a local pepper that's mostly locally grown in the Urfa region.

stickman · Mar 5, 2013

Stefan_W said:
I love curry dishes, and your entry in the throwdown looks mighty tasty!

Thanks Stefan, it was... I especially liked the Kodi Koori...all gone now though.

I guess I need to work on my photography skills to bring them up to scratch for the next throwdown. Other constructive criticism was that the plate was too busy for any one dish to shine.

meatfreak said:
Nice, glad you got the mold under control. Today at work I was thinking about the Urfa Biber and since I couldn't find a lot of information about it I decided to ask a Turkish colleague if he knew the variety. He didn't actually but he could tell me it's region in Turkey that's called Urfa. If it's from that region it must be hot we're his words. So it's a local pepper that's mostly locally grown in the Urfa region.

Thanks for checking up on it Stefan, I appreciate it! Did you get the seeds from a commercial source or somebody you knew? I had another of the Urfa Bibers hook up this afternoon, so they're at 4/6 now. Cheers!

KiNGDeNNiZ · Mar 5, 2013

Hey Rick. Good to see a different list of peppers from the others. Any luck with the manzaNOs?

stickman · Mar 6, 2013

KiNGDeNNiZ said:
Hey Rick. Good to see a different list of peppers from the others. Any luck with the manzaNOs?

Hi DeNNiZ
Still no love from the ManzaNOs... I lost my Hungarian Hot Wax too. the cotys rotted on it, so I'll have to re-sow. I had a Jalapeno, Mucho Nacho and a Chinese 5-color hook up last night, so the list of Annuum seedlings looks like this:

Koreans: 6/14
Hungarian Tomato pepper "Greygo" 1/3
Hungarian Sweet Paprika 1/3
Krimzon Lee Paprika 2/3
Urfa Biber 4/6
Kurtovska Kapia 14/14
Kapia "Belcanto" 3/3
Jalapeno, Zapotec 1/3
Jalapeno, Mucho Nacho 1/3
Serrano Tampiqueno 1/3
Chilhuacle Negro 1/3
Numex 6-4 Anaheim 1/3
Chimayo 2/3
Chinese 5-Color 1/3
Peruvian Purple 1/3

WalkGood · Mar 6, 2013

DocNrock said:
Lots of good looking seedlings there, Rick.

I've been thinking about the air pot/solo cup comparison. I think there is a difference that will be seen between the two well before the air pruning starts occuring, and I think this effect would be even more pronounced when considering larger air pots versus regular pods, ie., 5 gallon sizes. The aeration of the soil, particularly in the lower third, will likely be much better with the air pots, with less compaction as the holes in the sides will allow for more efficient evaporation of moisture in the soil in the lower third of the air pot relative to a regular one. I'm thinking the same effect probably occurs with the root pouches and Wally bags, as well.

For this reason, you might get a more healthy root system deep in the pot. The better deep oxygenation may account for the greener plants you are observing. Then again, I may be all wet! Just a thought.

Interesting thought or theory and makes sense the way you explain it ...

stickman said:
… … You could be right Doc. All I know is what I see. …

An additional interesting test would be to drill mini holes at strategic locations around the sides of normal nursery container pots (large black plastic) to see how they fair in comparison to the more expensive air pots. Has anyone ever tried this?

Edit: This wouldn't be a good idea with the bags as it would certainly compromise their integrity.

meatfreak · Mar 6, 2013

stickman said:
Thanks for checking up on it Stefan, I appreciate it! Did you get the seeds from a commercial source or somebody you knew? I had another of the Urfa Bibers hook up this afternoon, so they're at 4/6 now. Cheers!

I got them in a trade with someone last season. 4/6 is great, the rest will probably follow the next few days

Funny about those Chinese 5-Color, I didn't know the seedlings have darker stems and leaves. I thought I burned them with the light. Why are you growing them? I'm having them for the wife, when she saw me looking it up she liked it a lot so, gotta keep them happy

stickman · Mar 6, 2013

WalkGood said:
An additional interesting test would be to drill mini holes at strategic locations around the sides of normal nursery container pots (large black plastic) to see how they fair in comparison to the more expensive air pots. Has anyone ever tried this?

I don't know if they have, but the results would probably look pretty much like a net pot used in hydroponics.

meatfreak said:
I got them in a trade with someone last season. 4/6 is great, the rest will probably follow the next few days

Thanks for the info Stefan. If they turn out to be exceptionally tasty peppers, I'll probably get back to you about the source...

Funny about those Chinese 5-Color, I didn't know the seedlings have darker stems and leaves. I thought I burned them with the light. Why are you growing them? I'm having them for the wife, when she saw me looking it up she liked it a lot so, gotta keep them happy

I'm growing the Peruvian Purple and Chinese 5-Color for my wife too. Hopefully she gets a bit more interested in chiles as a result. That's one of my on-going experiments...

Came home from work and found 3 more Korean hooks and another Krimzon Lee Paprika hook, so that makes the Krimzon Lee 3/3 and the Koreans 9/14. It's interesting that the Koreans, Krimzon Lee and Kapia peppers seem to grow the fastest and have the best germ rates as well as being alliterative...

highalt · Mar 6, 2013

I'm growing a Peruvian Purple too, and the Zapotec Jalapeno. We'll have to compare notes as the season goes along.

I looked up that Criolla Sella on your list. Looks very similar to the Aji Chinchi Amarillo I'm growing. Need to do a pod to pod comparison on those when we both have ripe ones.

Your chinense and baccatums are way ahead of mine. I guess a drawback to the Root Riots is that there are no nutrients in them. I should have either potted up sooner, or gave them a drink of something other than water. They still have plenty of time before plant out though, so I'm not too worried. Just a lesson learned.

stickman · Mar 6, 2013

highalt said:
I'm growing a Peruvian Purple too, and the Zapotec Jalapeno. We'll have to compare notes as the season goes along.

I looked up that Criolla Sella on your list. Looks very similar to the Aji Chinchi Amarillo I'm growing. Need to do a pod to pod comparison on those when we both have ripe ones.

Your chinense and baccatums are way ahead of mine. I guess a drawback to the Root Riots is that there are no nutrients in them. I should have either potted up sooner, or gave them a drink of something other than water. They still have plenty of time before plant out though, so I'm not too worried. Just a lesson learned.

From what I read on Peppermania the Aji Chinchi Amarillo is a smaller version of the Aji Amarillo with smaller pods but the same flavor. The full-sized version ripens in about 120 days. I hope yours is a bit quicker. Like the Aji Amarillo, the Criolla Sella is supposed to be pungent... say around 150k to 300k Schovilles and have citrus overtones in the taste. The Aji Amarillo may be a touch sweeter. If you're up for it... we'll have to do a pod or powder swap when they ripen.

I definitely fortified the growing mix before up-potting into the Solo cups. I used the Espoma organic potting mix which had mycorhyzae mixed in, and added bone meal and pelleted rock phosphate. Some of the peppers had a bit of a yellowish cast until I foliar fed with Epsom Salts and water, so I've been mixing in some Dolomitic Lime as well. One thing I found out though... don't get any lime on the leaves and try to wash it off with water. I ended up burning them a little bit. The plants will definitely survive, but I'll try to avoid that in future.

The peppers down in the cellar are starting to bud up, and the largest Criolla Sella is branching and budding.

The Kurtovska Kapia peppers are budding too, and they're gonna be monsters!

A few shots of the tails

stickman · Mar 7, 2013

Looking in on the seedlings this morning I see another hook from the Jalapeno Zapotec and Chilhuacle Negro, so they're both 2/3. I moved aside a small mound of soil and see a hook from an Almapaprika underneath, so that'll probably hook up by tonight.

stc3248 · Mar 7, 2013

You got this down to a science Rick! You TD grub was awesome...I was so torn on who to vote for, and in the end I voted for Greg. That lobster tail kept dancing in my head. Hope to see you in another soon this one was one of the most amazing across the board that I have seen!

meatfreak · Mar 7, 2013

stickman said:
I'm growing the Peruvian Purple and Chinese 5-Color for my wife too. Hopefully she gets a bit more interested in chiles as a result. That's one of my on-going experiments...

Funny thing because I'm trying the same here :lol:

and it's working. Especially since I've sowed less hots and more the mild varieties this season she's showing a lot more interest. She likes poppers but it's just to hot for her, so I got a couple of Jal's that don't have heat at all. Looking forward to see if they actually still have a good taste. Your seedlings look great, Rick! That Kapia is gonna be huge like your typical bell pepper.

highalt said:
I'm growing a Peruvian Purple too, and the Zapotec Jalapeno. We'll have to compare notes as the season goes along.

I looked up that Criolla Sella on your list. Looks very similar to the Aji Chinchi Amarillo I'm growing. Need to do a pod to pod comparison on those when we both have ripe ones.

Your chinense and baccatums are way ahead of mine. I guess a drawback to the Root Riots is that there are no nutrients in them. I should have either potted up sooner, or gave them a drink of something other than water. They still have plenty of time before plant out though, so I'm not too worried. Just a lesson learned.

I'm growing the Zapotec Jalapeno as well, always interesting to compare notes indeed!

DocNrock · Mar 7, 2013

Great looking update, Rick. Can't wait to see those guys all planted out. Glad to see you are growing the Chinese 5-color. I love that plant.

stickman · Mar 7, 2013

stc3248 said:
You got this down to a science Rick! You TD grub was awesome...I was so torn on who to vote for, and in the end I voted for Greg. That lobster tail kept dancing in my head. Hope to see you in another soon this one was one of the most amazing across the board that I have seen!

How 'bout that... Why do you suppose people crave seafood after a long winter? It must be the way we're wired. My grandfather used to order a barrel of Oysters at mid-winter to tide the family over until spring greens made an appearance. It was shipped rail freight from Baltimore.
The TD was fun, but I obviously have a lot to learn to do well at it. I especially have to work on my food porn pics.

meatfreak said:
Funny thing because I'm trying the same here and it's working. Especially since I've sowed less hots and more the mild varieties this season she's showing a lot more interest. She likes poppers but it's just to hot for her, so I got a couple of Jal's that don't have heat at all. Looking forward to see if they actually still have a good taste. Your seedlings look great, Rick! That Kapia is gonna be huge like your typical bell pepper.

I'm growing the Zapotec Jalapeno as well, always interesting to compare notes indeed!

Hi Stefan, Glad to know the experiment is paying off for you... maybe it will for me as well... I'm looking forward to growing out the Kapias. They look like such sweet, meaty peppers, and if they make ajvar as well as I've heard, that'll be reason enough to keep growing them! I'm amazed that they're beginning to bud up after 8 weeks. They're only about 20 cm tall... I'll clip the flower buds until they get to at least 30 cm, and by then it'll probably be time to plant out.

DocNrock said:
Great looking update, Rick. Can't wait to see those guys all planted out. Glad to see you are growing the Chinese 5-color. I love that plant.

Hi Doc, This week turned out to be as busy for me as I suspect it was for you. Had to work, tend seedlings, deal with my pickup truck's engine light (which turned out to be spark plug wires and plugs, but choking the information out of the on-board computer was fraught!) and help the wife clean up the place before houseguests come tomorrow night. They'll be staying overnight tomorrow and Saturday, so I've got to move the grow shelves down cellar before they get here. Maybe this weekend I can catch up on y'alls blogs... It's all looking good though. I had 2 more Hungarian Tomato Peppers hook up today, so they're at 3/3.

stickman · Mar 7, 2013

I've gotten a lot of chile love from my Annuum planting, but there's still a lot of holes... I'm going to have to do some re-sowing this weekend.

stc3248 · Mar 7, 2013

Those dang manzanos...grrrrr. Did you grow Mucho Nacho last year??? If not you're going to love those plants! Hope to see some more blue and green on that list by week's end!