Stickman's 2015 - That's All She Wrote...

Hi All! It's been an incredibly busy winter dealing with one thing and another, and it's only about half over here.   Still, it's time to get on the stick and put my seeds in the dirt in preparation for plant-out in another 12 weeks or so. I have a Manzano over-wintering inside that's going on its third year. It's next to a sliding glass door with a great southern exposure but the light it gets here this time of year is pretty paltry... I expect it'll start to perk up sometime in March. I have a couple of MoA Scotch Bonnets over-wintering at a friend's house because there wasn't space in front of the sliding glass door for them and my wife's indoor plants... the deal is that if they both survive the winter, we'll split the plants. If not, he'll keep the one that lives. That seems fair since he did all the work.
 
The rest of the list is looking like this...

Pubiscens Varieties
Total bust this year... nothing that germinated survived.

Baccatum:
Ditto

Frutascens:
Tabasco
Hawaiian Bird chile
 
Chacoense:
Ditto

Chinense:
7-pot Yellow Turned out to be a red "Not"
MoA Scotch Bonnet
Beni Highlands... Also turned out to be a "Not"... maybe a Mako Akokrosade cross?
Ja Hab
Trinidad Perfume
Zavory

Annuum:
Cabe Rawit (mouse turd pepper, in Singapore where the seeds were collected they're called Cili Padi)
Red Thai
Biggie Chile Anaheim
Poblano Gigantia
Jalapeno Ciclon
Jalapeno Tormenta
Serrano Tampiqueno
Hungarian Hot Wax
Almapaprika
Ethiopian Brown Berbere
 
I'll also be planting a sweet Criolla de Cucina plants and about 20 sweet Kurtovska Kapijas. The Kapijas have the longest growing and ripening times of any Annuum I know, but they're big, meaty sweet peppers that average around a half a pound apiece... just the thing for making that eastern european condiment called Ajvar.
 
Too tired to say more now, but will pick up later... Cheers!

 

[stickman]

It's always a pleasure to take a walk through your garden Rick. Everything is looking so fresh and alive I'm hankering for a really good salad now!
 
Thanks for posting up the Jerk recipes. I'll have to make 2 versions though and substitute some nonhots in for the rest of the family You don't add any oil to them, or maybe rub down the chicken with some Olive Oil before putting the rub on or in the Marinade? 
 
BTW, those green tomatoes get a little bigger they'll be great for frying up
 
Happy 4th Brother!

 
Howdy brother Bill, glad to have you drop by! Cool that you can use the Jerk recipes... I don't use any oil because the Jamaican recipe I have doesn't use it and at my age I should do without the fat. I've made it several times, and it always pleases the crowd, so I think I'll keep rolling with it.
 
I'm Jonesin' for some vine-ripened tomatoes brother... fortunately it won't be much longer.   Happy 4th to you as well, and all your tribe!
 

Looks like you've got the right lighting for the pics. I like morning and evening pics, when the sun is just coming up or down. Prik is branching out well. Would make a nice Bonchi.

 
That's what I think too Chuck. Great minds think alike, eh?   I tried to make a  Bonsai some years ago but found I didn't have the patience for it. Oh well... there's room for all of us on the bus.
 
The more I look at what's supposed to be a Bhut Jalokia, the more it looks like a Naga King to me as far as color when green. It has the ghostly, luminescent quality to it.  The pod shape looks more like a 7-pot though

 
The "not" Orange 7-Pot is too long and skinny, and the surface too irregular for a Mako Akokrosade I think. Still don't know what I have yet... waiting for the first pods to ripen so I can get some idea... The plant sure is loaded with pods though!

 
Cheers all!

 

[randyp]

   Filling up nicely with poddage Rick.Nice save on the Lilac(talk about an all day job)That kinda move would have killed me off.
Hope your family and you have a good 4rth weekend.

 

[OCD Chilehead]

I wish my plants looked like yours. It's hard to manage a garden when your out of town. I tried Bonsai last year. The lights went out and they froze. I would love to OW/Bonsai all my plants. LOL. I hate putting so much effort every year into my babies just to watch them die. It's heartbreaking every year. I'm seriously thinking a hand full of Bonchi in the window sill. Then I can pot them up in February when I start my seeds. Just a thought. Do you dig your OW's up and put them inside? I can't remember, I know it was somewhere in the log.

Have a great day/weekend Rick.

Happy Fourth of July.

 

[stickman]

   Filling up nicely with poddage Rick.Nice save on the Lilac(talk about an all day job)That kinda move would have killed me off.
Hope your family and you have a good 4rth weekend.

 
Cheers Randy! As long as you didn't have a bad back and had some friends to help, I'm sure you could have handled the transfer. We had a cool spring this year but the ratio of sun to rain in June was just perfect for vegetative growth. I just hope it warms up enough now to favor poddage and ripening. Have a good 4th yourself buddy! Will you be spending the day with your family?

I wish my plants looked like yours. It's hard to manage a garden when your out of town. I tried Bonsai last year. The lights went out and they froze. I would love to OW/Bonsai all my plants. LOL. I hate putting so much effort every year into my babies just to watch them die. It's heartbreaking every year. I'm seriously thinking a hand full of Bonchi in the window sill. Then I can pot them up in February when I start my seeds. Just a thought. Do you dig your OW's up and put them inside? I can't remember, I know it was somewhere in the log.

Have a great day/weekend Rick.

Happy Fourth of July.

 
I hear ya Chuck! I think you could pull it off with good soil prep, plasticulture or good mulching, and timed drip irrigation. The biggest obstacle then would be extreme weather like wind squalls or hail. I did OW my Manzano plant last winter. This is its third growing season. I did have it planted in-ground the first two seasons and dug and potted it up at the end of the growing season. The first time I OWed the plant I pruned it back to a stick and put it down cellar. It never got cold enough to freeze down there, but the Manzano can take a light freeze even so. Last winter I kept it upstairs in the living spaces where it was warm all the time. I had to spray a couple of times for aphids and it dropped most of its leaves when I did. It dropped most of its leaves again when I transplanted it outside this spring, but quickly bounced back and is now one of my most productive chiles. Good luck with your Bonchi experiment... I'll be interested in finding out how it works for you next spring.
 
Hope you have a happy Holiday and do some grilling. Will you be spending it with your son?

 

[randyp]

    Yea Rick we are having a get together.I made them some sweet dippin sauce for the weaklings.And pulled out some 2year old Trinidad puree for the tough guys in the crowd.

 

[stickman]

    Yea Rick we are having a get together.I made them some sweet dippin sauce for the weaklings.And pulled out some 2year old Trinidad puree for the tough guys in the crowd.

 
Yowza! I bet it's good! My wife wants a little vacation from the hot stuff this weekend so I'll be brining and smoking a Salmon filet, and for myself, I'll break out the peach-MoA Bonnet sauce...

 

[randyp]

  Funny thing about making the dippin sauce Rick is if you heat the sugar too much it turns into Jolly Ranchers in a bottle.lol

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Cheers Randy! As long as you didn't have a bad back and had some friends to help, I'm sure you could have handled the transfer. We had a cool spring this year but the ratio of sun to rain in June was just perfect for vegetative growth. I just hope it warms up enough now to favor poddage and ripening. Have a good 4th yourself buddy! Will you be spending the day with your family?

 
I hear ya Chuck! I think you could pull it off with good soil prep, plasticulture or good mulching, and timed drip irrigation. The biggest obstacle then would be extreme weather like wind squalls or hail. I did OW my Manzano plant last winter. This is its third growing season. I did have it planted in-ground the first two seasons and dug and potted it up at the end of the growing season. The first time I OWed the plant I pruned it back to a stick and put it down cellar. It never got cold enough to freeze down there, but the Manzano can take a light freeze even so. Last winter I kept it upstairs in the living spaces where it was warm all the time. I had to spray a couple of times for aphids and it dropped most of its leaves when I did. It dropped most of its leaves again when I transplanted it outside this spring, but quickly bounced back and is now one of my most productive chiles. Good luck with your Bonchi experiment... I'll be interested in finding out how it works for you next spring.
 
Hope you have a happy Holiday and do some grilling. Will you be spending it with your son?

Thanks Rick. I'm going with the plastic mulch next year. I think it will work well for me with a drip system. I will be spending the weekend with my son. I'm off work today. Going to get a motorcycle ride in this morning. It's been way to long. My sons birthday is Monday. Going to celebrate Sunday, due to me having to go back to work. Have a great weekend. Don't work to hard.

 

[maximumcapsicum]

A break from hot stuff!? How unfortunate.

Cool updates. I am glad you are getting some good pod growth. I like all the shape changes at this point. Waiting for them to ripen when they're full size is the hardest part for me.

 

[Pulpiteer]

Wow your plants look great!
Great score on the Lilac - and glad it could have a good home.  Also, those are interesting marigolds you've got.  Are they a variety that brings in the beneficial nematodes? 
 
The not orange 7 has a shape that reminds me of the cili goronongs that I grew a few years ago.  Yellow and funny shaped like that.  Good pepper.

 

[stickman]

  Funny thing about making the dippin sauce Rick is if you heat the sugar too much it turns into Jolly Ranchers in a bottle.lol

 
Heh, heh... how much sugar is in that sauce?
 
 

Thanks Rick. I'm going with the plastic mulch next year. I think it will work well for me with a drip system. I will be spending the weekend with my son. I'm off work today. Going to get a motorcycle ride in this morning. It's been way to long. My sons birthday is Monday. Going to celebrate Sunday, due to me having to go back to work. Have a great weekend. Don't work to hard.

 
I think you'll like the system Chuck. I tried to get Bonnie (highalt) to try a few this way, and even sent her some of the solar mulch, but life seems to have taken her in another direction and she's dropped out for now so I have no idea if she ever tried it. Instead of using black poly, I use the solar mulch developed by University of New Hampshire professor Brent Loy that I get from Johnny's Selected Seeds in Maine.
 
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/p-5448-solar-mulch-4-x-50.aspx
http://hortsci.ashspublications.org/content/25/6/625.6.abstract
Enjoy your weekend!
 
 

A break from hot stuff!? How unfortunate.

Cool updates. I am glad you are getting some good pod growth. I like all the shape changes at this point. Waiting for them to ripen when they're full size is the hardest part for me.

 
It's my wife's request... and I don't want to completely overpower the taste of the smoked salmon anyway. I still have my peach-scotch bonnet sauce if it needs to be punched up later.   Now that it's warmed up enough, soil prep is really paying off, and I am in love with Azomite in that regard. The plants need the macronutrients to get size, but the micronutrients provided in the Azomite make them the greenest and healthiest-looking plants I've ever grown. They're producing more blossoms too. As long as they get enough water to prevent blossom end rot I think it'll be another exceptional harvest this year. http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/727/
 

Wow your plants look great!
Great score on the Lilac - and glad it could have a good home.  Also, those are interesting marigolds you've got.  Are they a variety that brings in the beneficial nematodes? 
 
The not orange 7 has a shape that reminds me of the cili goronongs that I grew a few years ago.  Yellow and funny shaped like that.  Good pepper.

 
Looking at this thread, I think you're right Andy... http://thehotpepper.com/topic/18235-goronong-chile/#entry386623 If it isn't a true Goronong, it's at least a cross I think. Thanks for the heads-up buddy! Interesting how life conspired to make my grow this year much milder than it was last year, but I've got plenty of heat dried and stored so it's no hardship.
 
I grow the "lemon gem" marigolds to call in the Lacewing and Lady Beetle friendlies, but instead of attracting beneficial nematodes, I understand that like the French Marigolds, they exude substances in the soil that kill non-beneficial types like Root Roundworm. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/marigolds-varieties-attracting-beneficial-insects-30387.htmlI don't have enough space in my garden to plant a whole row of them along the edge, so I grow individual plants scattered inside it for the benefits they give.
 
Gotta head off to work soon... I hope everybody has a great 4th with friends and family!

 

[randyp]

      2C wht vinegar
      2c apple cider vinegar
      4c water
      2c orange juice
      4c wh sugar
      1c br sugar
      2tbls fish sauce
     1tbls mango extract
     20 oz processed pineapple and juice
      3tbls minced garlic
     1tbls red pepper flakes
     1tbls kosher salt
     1 or 2 of the pepper of your choice.
corn starch or gel to thicken
  This is a sweeeeet,dippin sauce for all kinds of stuff that catches that void of people I deal with that cant handle the heat.I cant keep this stuff in stock.

 

[stickman]

Very cool Randy! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Pulpiteer]

 

 
Looking at this thread, I think you're right Andy... http://thehotpepper.com/topic/18235-goronong-chile/#entry386623 If it isn't a true Goronong, it's at least a cross I think. Thanks for the heads-up buddy! Interesting how life conspired to make my grow this year much milder than it was last year, but I've got plenty of heat dried and stored so it's no hardship.
 
I grow the "lemon gem" marigolds to call in the Lacewing and Lady Beetle friendlies, but instead of attracting beneficial nematodes, I understand that like the French Marigolds, they exude substances in the soil that kill non-beneficial types like Root Roundworm. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/marigolds-varieties-attracting-beneficial-insects-30387.htmlI don't have enough space in my garden to plant a whole row of them along the edge, so I grow individual plants scattered inside it for the benefits they give.
 
Gotta head off to work soon... I hope everybody has a great 4th with friends and family!

 
If it is a Goronong, I think you'll enjoy it.  They were a good pepper.  They're an eastern habanero - and judging from your cooking skills you'll only have a gazillion cool ways to use them!
 
Yeah, I read it is only the french marigolds that put in the good nematodes, but I don't know how to tell which ones are french.  The ones you have look pretty cool and that's great that they draw in those bugs.  I've really grown to appreciate flowers because they can do a lot for my garden.
 
I hope work goes well.  Have a great 4th!

 

[OCD Chilehead]

Thanks a bunch Rick. You've got a plethora of info. You have me rethinking my 2016 grow altogether. I'm going to have to rename it Stickman's 2016 Rocky Mountain grow. I need to get a soil sample of the garden area. It's clay with some fine rock every once in while. I heard clay has minerals of different sorts in it. I just need to find out what. I should bust out the posthole digger and get some samples. Thanks for the wealth of information. I just thought the plastic mulch was a catchy name for black poly. WRONG! It's a good price for the benefits it provides. Interesting read on the Rock Dust and Marigolds. Like I said, I'm rethinking everything. Hope you don't mind me narrowing your technique's next year.

Enjoy a awesome day on a wonderful holiday.

 

[tctenten]

Happy 4th Rick.  Hope you have a great weekend and look forward to watching your pods ripen up for you.

 

[stickman]

Yeah, I read it is only the french marigolds that put in the good nematodes, but I don't know how to tell which ones are french.  The ones you have.  look pretty cool and that's great that they draw in those bugs.  I've really grown to appreciate flowers because they can do a lot for my garden.
 
I hope work goes well.  Have a great 4th!

 
Maybe this will help Andy... the latin name for French Marigolds is tagetes patula http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/homegardening/scene6cc9.html
I don't think that the Marigolds attract beneficial nematodes so much as they help manage some of the harmful ones. http://www.lsuagcenter.com/en/lawn_garden/home_gardening/flowers/Marigolds+Effective+Against+the+Southern+Rootknot+Nematode.htm   The quality that seems to attract the Ladybugs and Lacewings is the aromatics the plant exudes. French Marigolds have a somewhat mawkish, chemical smell to them that is quite strong... the "Lemon Gem" Marigolds I planted have a very strong lemony/ citrus aroma that you can smell when standing next to the plant, and it becomes much more intense when you brush your hands over the foliage. The picture I posted was of the "Red Gem" Marigold (tagetes tenufolia)... the "Lemon Gem" has similar foliage nearly identical lemon yellow flowers. https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/style/2014/06/11/lemon-gem-marigold-offers-unusual-foliage-and-flowers/o6TVQner8U0JWHi4ayneEO/story.html
 
All this is probably more than you wanted to know on a holiday weekend, but I hope you find it useful.

Thanks a bunch Rick. You've got a plethora of info. You have me rethinking my 2016 grow altogether. I'm going to have to rename it Stickman's 2016 Rocky Mountain grow. I need to get a soil sample of the garden area. It's clay with some fine rock every once in while. I heard clay has minerals of different sorts in it. I just need to find out what. I should bust out the posthole digger and get some samples. Thanks for the wealth of information. I just thought the plastic mulch was a catchy name for black poly. WRONG! It's a good price for the benefits it provides. Interesting read on the Rock Dust and Marigolds. Like I said, I'm rethinking everything. Hope you don't mind me narrowing your technique's next year.

Enjoy a awesome day on a wonderful holiday.

 
You make me blush Chuck   Just trying to share what seems to work for me since your altitude seems to make for conditions similar to our latitude here. If you can use it, great!

Happy 4th Rick.  Hope you have a great weekend and look forward to watching your pods ripen up for you.

 
Cheers Terry! I appreciate the good vibe... how's this look... I picked these Biggie chiles to put into supper tonight. Hope you had a happy July 4th!

 

[tctenten]

Nice sized pods Rick. It would be nice if they were all that big, then we could grow fewer plants. Enjoy!

 

[stickman]

Hi all, hope errybody had a great 4th yesterday! I had to pull up some of the basil plants I set at the margins of the raised bed behind the house because they were shading the peppers. I made pesto with them, and now have a better view of the chiles on that side of the garden.
 
The 2 JA Habs are really swinging into action now...

 
Bonnets looking pretty much like this now

 
The OW Manzano has about a dozen pods on it now... the largest is the diameter of an old-fashioned silver dollar.

 
First of the Naga King pods

 
Here's a pic of the Lemon Gem Marigold for Andy

 
The whole plant is a low mound that's at least 3 feet across.

 
That's all for now... gotta get some yard work done. Cheers!

 

[Plantguy76]

Hi Rick things are looking good for ya hope it keeps going that way.
I ordered form Judy & Baker creek today all but one will be saved for next year that's right planning 2016 while working on 2015 lol  
I am going to plant these in my empty bed Amarylla Tomatillo they only take 60 days have some green ones but they are in the junk area don't know if they will pan out .
i wanted these earlier but they was sold out.