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Things I've learned this year.

dug up a thread from 2 years ago very similar to this one...

http://www.thehotpepper.com/topic/4768-mistakes-made-in-08/page__p__75559__hl__mistakes__fromsearch__1#entry75559
 
1: DO NOT use concentrated dishwashing detergent for soap spray to kill off aphids...It kills the leaves and many of the plants as well. Use SOAP not detergent!

2: Need more shade for afternoon sun/heat even up here in the PNW.

3: Plant earlier (jan/feb) and NOT SO Many, they end up filling the grow tent before I can put them outside!

4: Use my water satuaration meter more often instead of trusting how the soil "looks" on the surface.

5: Try to locate a "good" soil ph kit or meter! The one I have is CRAPTASTIC!
 
1. Using Sevin to kill fungus gnats will stunt seedlings if you use too much. BTi is the way to go.
2. My Sevin sprays during early June 'til early July prevented Pepper gnats. Or so it seems thus far.
3. Planting super small seedlings into big containers works. They grow a lot faster than if I wait for them to be rootbound.
4. More Habanero-types. They grow very well in my fire escape. If it so happens I can't find a yard next year.
5. Cayennes are far larger plants as compared to Orange Habaneros. Plan accordingly.
6. Miracle gro is f trash. The gnat issues associated with it mean that it's better to buy cheap crappy hyponex potting mix and mix in some extra nutes/compost or just plain fertilizer.
7. Scott's directions on their granulated fertilizer as extremely conservative. I applied twice to three as much as they said to apply without burning my plants.
8. A river flows through half of my fire escape. Plan accordingly.
 
1-Plant more of what works and less variety.

2-Grow a single plant in a container less than 20 gallon.

3-Less is more as far as care.

4- Pigeons like to feast on small seedlings and starts :hell:
 
For me for next year:

* Less Variety.

* More of the Varieties that grow well for me.

* Probably still in pots but bigger pots. (5 gallon +)

* Only one plant per container.

Other than that, things went/are going fairly well for me this year! :-)
Just waiting for the Damn pods to ripen :hell: .... they've been hanging there taunting me for weeks now!!!
 
* Plan accordingly with amount of pots for the amount of seeds sown. I have approx. 30-40 Naja Jolokia PC-1s growing in a large nursery pot, no lie!

30nagas.jpg


* 1 seed per cell in 72 cell trays is more work than necessary

* fertilize less

* use the bark, perlite and a 50% peat/ 50%compost mix on more plants next year if things turn out well this year

* makes sure grass is cut far enough back from my pots as the grass started rooting in my containers!!!! The roots were so deep in the pots I basically had to uproot a few of my large established pepper plants.
 
1. Plantout no later than Mid-April...here in North Texas, I lose July and August chinense production (most) because of the high night time temperatures...it is 88F right now at 5:15 am...planting out earlier will give me a small wave of pod production before the heat hits...

2. Start seeds in waves instead all at one time...chinense grow slower than annuums so start Chinense a month before Annuums/tomatos...

3. Stockpile seed starting mix during the off season so I won't have to use something I don't want to when January comes...

4. Sterilize recycled containers (seed starting trays, 3" containers, and 5 gallon containers starting January 1...

5. Do NOT use "green" compost in your potting mix...it burns the seedlings...

6. Continue to learn what the plants are telling me and how to alleviate their fears...

may edit this as time passes and add new things...
 
patrick said:
Getting some great info here folks, thanks.

SS what's the "sweetest finest tasting dessert chili" you've found so far? I always heard the Jimmy Nardello was. Grew them last year and was kind of disappointed.

Thanks man.
Click to expand...

Umm, read it again. ;)

Manzanos - Red, Orange, Amarillo. If you've never grown pubes you have no idea what you're missing. :)

Jimmy Nardello, can't hold a candle to these. Nice medium burn offset with the sweetest fruity flavor of any chile I've ever put in my mouth. Enough of these to make fried pies is my goal for next season as well as some tasty preserves. They're that sweet!!!
 
The biggest thing I learned this year is that I grow more types of peppers than I actually use. I don't need six types of scorpions and morougas, etc. Going to grow less varieties next year.

For the first time in like ten years, did not grow orange habanero this year. Will definitely bring it back next one. Probably pretty boring to most folks now, not one of the new sexy superhots- but I miss it. A great all around every meal pod... Dropping all Bhuts and Nagas, prefer a 7 Pod or a Scorpion.
 
Pot up sooner and harden off sooner than I did this year.

Include a place in the kitchen rehab for plant starting.

Start all my chinenses together.

Include some milder peppers (manzanos, poblanos? suggestions?) in my grow list.

Start a compost system (perhaps a worm bin)

Get a rain barrel. we get ridiculous amounts of rain, but all at once-and then bouts of drought. Might as well save it- it seems like they perk up better after rain water than tap.

Talk to a couple of local pepper guys I've met about the best soil and fert schedule to use in this area. Like, the guy at the garden shop who grows peppers.

Dont pinch flowers in June!

Plants that get more sun get peppers on them sooner than plants that get more shade.

Spend more time reading other folks grow logs on THP.

Free seeds are cool- even if they are mystery pepper hybrids. I dont actually care what it is- its was the last to sprout and the first to give me ripe peppers and they taste good! :onfire:

Growing peppers is exciting!
 
No matter how boring it may seem...keep growing orange habaneros because they are more disease resistant, prolific, and practical than many other chinensis, at least where I am! They are the only plants that did not lose a significant amount of leaves due to BLS besides my C. frutescens.

Soil compaction causes significant loss of vigor in all pepper plants.....need to find a way to keep 1-3" of driving rain within an hour from compacting soil in my containers! This year was an odd year as we had 2 or 3 such storms PER WEEK from late June through the first week of August! Maybe stone mulch? But that would be a mess to clean up after a storm with 60-70mph winds (not unusual) knocks everything over!

You can literally give too much care to your plants to the point of harming them. I thought I was doing something good by spraying a mixture of foli-cal and epsom salts on my chinensis when they were about 6-7" high...The next morning I woke up to see burned foliage and dead terminal buds! They ended up being nice bushy plants though...phew!

Going back to the first topic...I need to go back to basics! The patio has rapidly become a chile pepper collection instead of a flower garden with a few pepper plants to spice our dinners up with. My wife asks every week "Why don't we have any more flowers?" "Do we really need that many chiles?" I just need help figuring out which chiles to keep, and restrain myself from trying 10 new varieties next year and end up asking myself why I didn't grow any jalapenos this year (again)?

I'm sure there is more but that's it for now!
 
Thus far I've learnt:
1. Not to wait too long before potting up
2. Be more vigilant with my nute changes in Hydro (13 inches for 4 weeks is no good!)
3. No matter how many Super hot varieties you have don't forget the Jalepenos and Habs
4. Raise seedlings outside it saves the hardening off stage (I can grow all year round)
5. Less is more!!
 
Silver_Surfer said:
Umm, read it again. ;)

Manzanos - Red, Orange, Amarillo. If you've never grown pubes you have no idea what you're missing. :)

Jimmy Nardello, can't hold a candle to these. Nice medium burn offset with the sweetest fruity flavor of any chile I've ever put in my mouth. Enough of these to make fried pies is my goal for next season as well as some tasty preserves. They're that sweet!!!
Click to expand...


SOLD!!!!! :) Definatly on my list for next. Only grew one pube and yet to taste it. Equadorian pepper from hell.
 
Start earlier.
All peppers will be in the ground and other plants will be in pots.
Put up shade cloth for pubescence varieties.
Overwinter more plants, start less seds.
 
Getting a hand held vacuum like a Dust Bustor
to suck up those stink bugs. Just learned from
this thread too much heat can kill a manzano. I
only have 1 red that survived because I put it
under a table outside. Will overwinter it and
try some kind of protection for it next summer.
 
1. Grow everything in pots. Almost all my plants in the ground did horrible. Mostly due to 1 month of storms with bad drainage and very hot and humid weather for 2 months straight, but I'm not risking it again.
2. Start seeds in January. Will be using a 400W HPS starting in a few days here to keep plants over the winter.
3. Go with organic ferts.
4. FIND PROMIX BX for new plants, seems impossible here though.
 
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