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

I'm pulling things together to get ready for my next growing season. I bought NuMex variety seeds from Sandia Seed company in New Mexico, Hot Paper Lantern Habaneros and Antohi Romanians from Johnny's Select Seeds in Maine and Korean varieties from Evergreen Seeds in California. Due to the unbelievable generosity of a number of THP members I've also gotten seeds to a wide variety of chiles from around the world. Special thanks to BootsieB, stc3248, romy6, PaulG, SoCalChilehead, joynershotpeppers, highalt, cmpman1974, smokemaster, mygrassisblue, Mister No, chewi, KingDenniz, orrozconleche and most recently and spectacularly, Habanerohead with a great selection of superhots and peppers from Hungary!

There are eleven varieties of Hungarian peppers in here, mostly the early, thick-fleshed, sweet ones that range from white through yellow to purple and red.., plus Aji Lemon Drop, BJ Indian Carbon, Naga Morich, Bishop's Crown and TS CARDI Yellow! Now I just have to go through my seed bank and match the space available to what I want to grow. Thanks Balázs!

 

[PrimeTime]

Great stuff! I spotted Butch Ts at my garden plot today! Go Baby!

 

[JoynersHotPeppers]

Hi Chris... similar I believe, but not Japanese beetles. Those have bronze wing cases and metallic green head and thorax. The ones we have now have a tan background color with darker brown mottling over that... sorta like a pinto bean coloration. It looks like they are actually Oriental Beetles...   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_beetle
 
I'd rather avoid using chemicals to knock them down, but I see they make traps to lure them in with sex hormone, and they can't get back out to eat, so they die. I'll have to get some to hang near the veggies and peppers.

Yeah you know what is funny I know exactly what the Japanese beetle is but always thought that was the female. I have seen the two having relations. Now we both need to figure out what they are..I have tons of them. 

 

[stickman]

 

• Javanese Red Devil Chicken on the grill looks awesome, lucky me I ate before seeing hehehe

Curses... foiled again!  

• I squish dem beetles if I can get to them before the lizards, lol
• Wow dat jungle's looking great!

Thanks Ramon, I'm pretty happy with things as they are ATM, but now that I know what to do about those @%$# beetles, I'll be even happier when I've done it. Have a great trip!
 

Great stuff! I spotted Butch Ts at my garden plot today! Go Baby!

Thanks Alan, and welcome to the Zoo! Glad to hear you got things kickin' in your patch too. How big is your plot?

Yeah you know what is funny I know exactly what the Japanese beetle is but always thought that was the female. I have seen the two having relations. Now we both need to figure out what they are..I have tons of them. 

 
Believe it or not, it really is called the Oriental Beetle. Latin name is Anomala orientalis. The Japanese Beetle is Popillia japonica. From what I read, the sex pheromone secreted by the females of both species are so similar that using it as a lure for the traps catches the males of both species (and explains why you saw the two different species going at it). I'm definitely gonna get half a dozen of those traps tomorrow and hanging them up a little way away from the veggies and peppers.

 

[Stefan_W]

Looking great! Your butch-t and yellow 7 look like they are about a week ahead of mine, which give me hope. 
 
I really hate beetles. I had cucumber beetles infest my garden last year, and it was brutal to try to deal with them. Good luck keeping those critters contained as much as possible. 
 
The chimayo is ripening nicely! Great to see pods ripening on your plants. Aside from seeds popping, IMO the ripening process is the most exciting gardening time of the year.

 

[stickman]

Looking great! Your butch-t and yellow 7 look like they are about a week ahead of mine, which give me hope. 
 
I really hate beetles. I had cucumber beetles infest my garden last year, and it was brutal to try to deal with them. Good luck keeping those critters contained as much as possible. 
 
The chimayo is ripening nicely! Great to see pods ripening on your plants. Aside from seeds popping, IMO the ripening process is the most exciting gardening time of the year.

Thanks Stefan... Barring catastrophe, I think we'll both do very well this season. Neither of us had everything we planted get to this point for one reason or another, but it's all part of the learning curve. I got a lesson recently about beneficial insects, and found that this species... the Feather Legged Fly is a nectar-eating pollinator as an adult, but the larva parisitize Squash Bugs. I'd call that a win/win situation.

Now I just have to find out what goes after Striped Cucumber Beetles
 
Small harvest this morning, but good enough for now...

 
Have a good Thursday all!

 

[PrimeTime]

Thanks man. I have about 11 peppers in pots at my girls house and my public garden is a 4x20 bed. Interesting to watch the differences in grow conditions and location. Oh and one pot at work and one lonely guy outside my condo! ahh condo life....

 

[Devv]

Rick,
 
Love the plant shots, growth is lush and they're getting big!
 
Glad about the Butch-T and Yellow 7 podding up, they'll all be loading up soon.
 
Please post info about the traps you are trying out and the results, hopfully it's too hot here for them...
 
The Javanese Chicken plate sounds delicious!

 

Thanks man. I have about 11 peppers in pots at my girls house and my public garden is a 4x20 bed. Interesting to watch the differences in grow conditions and location. Oh and one pot at work and one lonely guy outside my condo! ahh condo life....

 
Where in LI? I was just there for the 4th.

 

[PrimeTime]

South shore about half way out

 

[MGOLD86]

Looking great Rick, had to do a bit of catchup!  Really good early shape on the Alphanerdz Douglah and the other Chinenses that are setting are looking great, especially that Yellow 7 and ButchT.  I really like the idea of steaming THEN frying, sometimes that oil just gets soaked up like a sponge.  I even bake mine when I do Eggplant Parm, that cuts down on all the oil.  But either way, really tasty looking food and I may have to give some of it a shot! 
Oh, and the wife has a ORIENTAL beetle problem on her roses and uses one of those beetle bags.  Doesn't get rid of them all, but it is definitely filling up quickly and it is not expensive and organic cuz it doesnt go on the plants!

 

[stickman]

Thanks man. I have about 11 peppers in pots at my girls house and my public garden is a 4x20 bed. Interesting to watch the differences in grow conditions and location. Oh and one pot at work and one lonely guy outside my condo! ahh condo life....

I hear ya guy... at least my condo comes with enough common land that I get to have a 21x30 foot plot. 6x30 of that is for peppers

Looking great Rick, had to do a bit of catchup!  Really good early shape on the Alphanerdz Douglah and the other Chinenses that are setting are looking great, especially that Yellow 7 and ButchT.  I really like the idea of steaming THEN frying, sometimes that oil just gets soaked up like a sponge.  I even bake mine when I do Eggplant Parm, that cuts down on all the oil.  But either way, really tasty looking food and I may have to give some of it a shot! 

Oh, and the wife has a ORIENTAL beetle problem on her roses and uses one of those beetle bags.  Doesn't get rid of them all, but it is definitely filling up quickly and it is not expensive and organic cuz it doesnt go on the plants!

Thanks Matt, I'm definitely getting pumped looking at the progress of the chiles. The supers ended up being about a week behind the Habs, but now that they've started, they're getting down the the serious business of reproduction...
 
I appreciate your info on the scent traps for Oriental Beetles. I was gonna do it anyway, but it's nice to know that I can reasonably expect them to work as advertised.
 
If you like baked Eggplant, you aught to try making Baba Ganouj with smoked Eggplant. Your smoker/grill combo would be perfect for doing it. You don't need to oil the grill grate first, but you do need to puncture the eggplant several times with a fork to let out the steam, or it could explode on you in the smoker. Put the whole, unpeeled Eggplant on the grill grate above the burning charcoal or gas burner. and roast until the skin looks black and blistered. Turn with tongs and repeat until the entire outside of the eggpant is uniformly blackened. Remove from grill and scoop out the soft pulp. Discard the skin and stem. Put the soft pulp in a food processor or blender with a peeled and coarsely chopped clove of garlic, 1/4 cup of good extra virgin olive oil, 2-3 tbsp tahini, the juice of a lemon and salt and pepper to taste. You can process it smooth or chunky as you prefer. Taste again and add lemon juice and/or salt to taste. I use less salt and lots of lemon juice for the tang. Use as a dip or sandwich spread, and it tastes even better still warm from the grill.
I got a few more pics from the garden this noontime...
 
My Aji Panca chiles are starting to blossom!

 
Marconi Rosso has stalled at this size... I hope that means it's getting sweeter before it begins to ripen up

 
Just a few more days for this Krimzon Lee paprika

 
This Antohi Romanian frying pepper looks like it's about full sized. From here it should continue to sweeten as it ripens to a soft red

 
Came home for lunch to find a SFRB from my cousin (many times removed) coheed196. Thanks Vince... I purely love how you roll! it looks like you just opened up the hurt locker! Are any of these from the plants you got from SilverSurfer?

 

[MisterNo]

Seems like you have everything under control Rick. Lots of great peppers coming your way!

Congrats

 

[meatfreak]

Those Javanese dishes looks amazing, wouldn't mind the recipe for making those Good to see you plants are loading up and some are about to ripen. How's the weather over there, a lot of rain or dry at the moment?? It has been very good weather since last week over here and they say it keeps for at least another 2 weeks. You can just see the plants growing each day. Those Bahamian Goats (the 2 orange pods, 2nd picture) will go perfect with the Jerk marinade, Rick

 

[stickman]

Those Javanese dishes looks amazing, wouldn't mind the recipe for making those Good to see you plants are loading up and some are about to ripen. How's the weather over there, a lot of rain or dry at the moment?? It has been very good weather since last week over here and they say it keeps for at least another 2 weeks. You can just see the plants growing each day. Those Bahamian Goats (the 2 orange pods, 2nd picture) will go perfect with the Jerk marinade, Rick

Sure Stefan... which ones interest you? Let me know and I'll pm them to you.
 
The weather last week was hot and humid with less than a cm of rain. This week has been a few degrees cooler with the same amount of rain and humidity. It's seasonal for here though. +1 on the degree to which the plants grow in this weather! Some of the chiles I despaired of, like the Yellow 7 and Douglah now look like they're going to be beasts!
 
I took your advice and chopped the Bahamian Goat peppers into the blender with a Douglah, a Jonah and a couple of Madballz pods... the last 4 from Jamie.

Also added an onion, a few scallions and a tablespoon of fresh Thyme from the garden, salt, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon and black pepper and processed it into a paste and scraped it into a pint jar with a tight-fitting lid. It'll keep in the 'fridge for up to a month, and act as a base when I make the Jerk Marinade later. This'll give the ingredients time to get all happy together!

 

[Devv]

Dang Rick!
 
Congrats on the pepper haul from coheed!

 

[Stefan_W]

That jerk paste looks and sounds really good. Great call letting it sit first, those things just aren't as good if you rush them.

 

[MisterNo]

This bottle looks delicious Rick!
 
As always, you're making a good use of peppers
 
Are your Kapijas close to ripening?

 

[Pr0digal_son]

Hi Chris... similar I believe, but not Japanese beetles. Those have bronze wing cases and metallic green head and thorax. The ones we have now have a tan background color with darker brown mottling over that... sorta like a pinto bean coloration. It looks like they are actually Oriental Beetles...   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_beetle
 
I'd rather avoid using chemicals to knock them down, but I see they make traps to lure them in with sex hormone, and they can't get back out to eat, so they die. I'll have to get some to hang near the veggies and peppers.

Plants are looking stout! I love annuums,they don't get a lot of love on this forum. Anything besides your Thai varieties and Jalapenos don't exist here. I basically never include mine into my Glog.

The best way I have found to deal with Japanese or any other beetle, is to never let them get out of the ground. I have never seen an adult Japanese beetle on my property. Anytime I see a random brown patch in my yard,it gets dug up and inspected. Usually if you knock them out as grubs,you don't have to do it for a few years. The beetle that you linked is becoming prevalent down near where I work. Thankfully I have yet to spot them at my place.

 

[stickman]

Hi Robert!
   No, not yet, but then I don't have the climate that DocNrock has in southern California. They're big plants though, and while not as tall as the Marconi Rosso, they have twice the pods. The plants are about 47cm tall by 35cm wide in the leaf canopy. The pods are about 15cm long and a light to medium green. You can be sure I'll post pics when they ripen up!

 
Nothing really new to report this morning, except for a few new chile types in the pull. The Not Jalapeno Mucho Nacho is increasingly looking like it was crossed with a Bell pepper. I haven't let any fully ripen yet since I've been using them as chopped green peppers in my cooking, but while there's a hint of Jalapeno flavor, there's no heat. The rest are from left to right... Chimayo', Krimzon Lee Paprika and a Korea Winner Gochu. Chopped up the Paprika for an omelette this morning and sampled some of it raw... Sweet heat, with most of the heat in the placenta and ribs. Very nice flavor and aroma... this would be great in stir-fry.

 

[MisterNo]

Hey Rick, I forgot about different climate you have!
 
Judging by the looks - they are at their full size, they should start ripening very soon.
 
Over here people usually start them in March/April, and pick them in late September, even October.
Due to an early start you should have fully ripe KK in mid August.
 
Yeah, SoCal weather is out of our league

 

[stickman]

Dang Rick!
 
Congrats on the pepper haul from coheed!

 

That jerk paste looks and sounds really good. Great call letting it sit first, those things just aren't as good if you rush them.

 
Thanks guys! I'm really psyched to try some of the SS pepper love courtesy of coheed. By all accounts he grows some killer chile plants.
I'm definitely sold on slow food rather than fast Stefan... anything worth having is something you need to work for.
 

Plants are looking stout! I love annuums,they don't get a lot of love on this forum. Anything besides your Thai varieties and Jalapenos don't exist here. I basically never include mine into my Glog.

The best way I have found to deal with Japanese or any other beetle, is to never let them get out of the ground. I have never seen an adult Japanese beetle on my property. Anytime I see a random brown patch in my yard,it gets dug up and inspected. Usually if you knock them out as grubs,you don't have to do it for a few years. The beetle that you linked is becoming prevalent down near where I work. Thankfully I have yet to spot them at my place.

Thanks for checking in and the good vibe Pr0d! Annuums get lots of love from me... they have lots of variety, and up to now, they were the only chiles I could get to grow reliably this far north. It's only exposure to growing info on THP that got me started on Chinense and Baccatum chiles.
   You're right about knocking out the grubs as a way of keeping beetle damage down. Usually I'm much better about weeding and mulching than I've been this year. At first things were so dry and cold that the weeds weren't growing enough to bother with. That was followed by heavy rains for a number of weeks and steamy, hot weather after that, so I let things go a bit. Usually when I weed I find the grubs and adult soil-dwelling beetles and crush the ones I find. That knocks them back enough that they don't get to be such pests. Now that it's cooled down enough to actually get started on the weeding, I'm finding the beetles that are actually doing most of the damage. Yesterday I was weeding a couple of my wife's flower beds, and I found loads of Asiatic Garden Beetles... typically, about 10 or 15 per sq. ft.
http://extension.entm.purdue.edu/CAPS/pestInfo/asiaticGardenbtl.htm
There were just as many in the veggie garden when I weeded the Beans and Beets. I had another large infestation about 3 years ago, but we had half the garden space we have now and it was easier to deal with them then. I still think the Oriental Beetles are responsible for the skeletonizing of the Sunflower leaves, but even more damage is being caused by the Asiatic Garden Beetles, and their M.O. is different. So I guess I'll hang up a few beetle traps for the one, and get caught up on my weeding and cultivation to deal with the other.
 
Cheers all, and TGIF!

Hey Rick, I forgot about different climate you have!
 
Judging by the looks - they are at their full size, they should start ripening very soon.
 
Over here people usually start them in March/April, and pick them in late September, even October.
Due to an early start you should have fully ripe KK in mid August.
 
Yeah, SoCal weather is out of our league

Thanks for the heads-up Robert! I'll be keeping an eye on them, but won't expect them to begin ripening until mid-August. Cheers!