Trent's 2014 Grow Log - COLD COLD COLD

Figure I'll keep track 2014 on here. At least then all my data will be in one place instead of scattered around on slips of paper.
 
First; PSA.
 
I'll *never* use the Jiffy starting pods / soil again.
 
I lost 95% of the plants in these two trays:
 

 
The roots wouldn't form. They couldn't get any nutrients out of the soil, whatsoever, and tried to suck what they could from the layers of paper. 
 
Burpee trays with compressed peat were planted 3 weeks later and within 3 weeks were quadruple in size.
 
Finished transplanting all sprouts on Saturday (4-5-2014).
 

 

 
I might lose a couple transplants but here's the current count (all in 3" paper cups)
 
7 pod Barrackpore - qty 6
7 pod Brain Strain, Yellow - qty 5 
7 pod Brain Strain, Red - qty 11
7 pod Chaguanas - qty 7
7-pod Jonah - qty 4
7-pod Long - qty 11
7-pod Original Red - qty 7
7-pod Primo - Qty 3
 
Bhut Jolokia (brown) - Qty 2
Bhut Jolokia (indian carbon) - qty 6
Bhut Jolokia (red) - qty 9
Bhut Jolokia (yellow) - qty 7
Bhut Jolokia (white) - qty 6
 
Brown Moruga - qty 6
 
Carolina reaper - qty 23
 
Cayenne (Sweet) - qty 3
Cayenne (large) - qty 6
Chili de Abrol - qty 10
 
True Cumari - qty 1
 
Datil - qty 3
 
Dedo De Moca - qty 3
 
Dorset Naga - qty 3
 
Fatali, Yellow - qty 4
 
Giant mexican Rocoto - qty 4
 
Goats weed - qty 3
 
Habanero (big sun) - qty 8
Habanero (chocolate) - all died / no sprouts
Habanero (orange) - qty 4
 
Jalapeno (black) - qty 8 
Jalapeno (early) - qty 14
Jalapeno (giant) - qty 15
 
Mako Akokosrade - qty 3
 
Naga Morich (orig) - qty 6
Naga Morich (monster naga) - qty 3
Naga morich (bombay morich) - qty 6
 
Pimenta de Neyde - qty 3
 
Tobago (seasoning) - all died
 
Tobago Scotch Bonnet (red) - qty 3
Tobago Scotch Bonnet (yellow) - qty 5
 
Trinidad Scorpion (butch T) - qty 8
Trinidad Scorpion (Cardi) - qty 4
Trinidad scorpion (douglah) - qty 3
Trinidad scorpion Moruga - qty 7
Trinidad scorpion (orig) - qty 3
Trinidad scorpion (PI 281317) - qty 3
Trinidad Scorpion (smooth) - qty 1
Trinidad Scorpion (yellow) - qty 4
 
PI 281429 - qty 1
 
surviving overwinters in large pots:
 
7-Pod (orig) - qty 1
Bhut Jolokia (red) - qty 2
Bhut Jolokia (giant) - qty 1
Yellow Bhut jolokia - qty 2
Carolina Reaper - qty 4
Cayenne - qty 1
habanero (golden) - qty 3
habanero (tazmanian) - qty 3
Naga morich - qty 1
naga Viper - qty 2
Trinidad Scorpion - qty 1
Butch-T Trinidad - qty 2
Trinidad scorpion moruga - qty 3
Yatsufusa - qty 1
Scotch Bonnet (red) - qty 1 (sole 2012 survivor)
 
Total 3" pot transplants: 264
Total overwinters surviving: 28
 
 

 

[TrentL]

One does not use a coffee grinder to make Carolina Reaper or Moruga Scorpion powder without a mask.
 
Ever.
 
Period.
 
Next to getting it in your eyes, or on your penis when you take a leak (forget to take the blue gloves off? BAD idea...), the next worst scenario is having your lungs fill up with fluid because you've breathed in concentrated powder that's 2 million scoville. It's like inhaling pepper spray. Totally incapacitating, coughing so hard you puke sort of thing...

 

[Devv]

I grind outside on the porch. I've already shutdown the kitchen a few times
 
And yes handling powder is risky business, been there done that with having to jump in the shower! Just keep the water cold!

 

[randyp]

     Showing off powder at work last fall,opened a jar and a fan blew just enough around to have me crying like a little school girl.

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Outside with wind at your back.  I also have a breathing mask  Learned that the hard way.

Many thanks.
 
 

 

[TrentL]

Looks like those arrived in good shape Jeff, and just in time! I have to admit I was worried about shipping on a Tuesday after a holiday.

I grind outside on the porch. I've already shutdown the kitchen a few times
 
And yes handling powder is risky business, been there done that with having to jump in the shower! Just keep the water cold!

 
Whatever you do don't run a bath.
 
First time I caught a case of "penis burn" was back in 2005 or 6, the first time I tried making salsa with habanero. Made it.. Ate it... nomnomnom... went to bathroom, took a leak.
 
Flush. Wash hands. Come out of bathroom.
 
Oh... what.. the hell IS THIS OOOH GOD OH GOD NOOO MY DICK IS BURNING HONEY!!! OWOWOWOW SONOFABITCH OOW %#@%@#^^@#$!
 
I grab a wash cloth hit the bathroom run the faucet drop the drawers start scrubbing OOH GOD OH GOD OW OW OW
 
HONEY THIS IS NOT F'N WORKING OH GOD THIS BURNS START THE BATH START THE BATH
 
She starts the bath and I fly in and promptly drop my burning junk in ice cold water.. washing with soap.. burn starts to settle down some to something that isn't making me blind with pain...
 
Rub tears out of my eyes... eyes are burning... WHAT THE HELL?!!! Noooo noooo nooo...
 
The limited water in the tub got chemically hot and now my balls are burning, my a-hole is burning, my eyes are burning because i tried flushing them with water from the tub...
 
Every mucous membrane is on fire ...
 
And I just sit there and cry until it all finally, slowly fades away.
 
I get out of the tub finally and my wife is crumpled in the corner nearly passed out, crying from laughing so damn hard at me.
 
I look down at my shrivled junk, wipe a tear from my eye, and say "Hey! Don't laugh at me!!! The water was REAL cold.."
 
I thought she was REALLY going to pass out laughing then. Her face turned a shade of purple I'd never seen before as she gasped for breath between laughs...

 

[dlsolo]

Talk about giddy today!!
 

 
Thanks Trent!  They look amazing and sure will make my salsa AWESOME!

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Looks like those arrived in good shape Jeff, and just in time! I have to admit I was worried about shipping on a Tuesday after a holiday.

 
 
I am correct that the bottom right 5 pods are the Tasmanian and the one above them is the Cappuccino?

 

[TrentL]

 
 
I am correct that the bottom right 5 pods are the Tasmanian and the one above them is the Cappuccino?

 
Yessir!

 

[TrentL]

Damn. We have two days this week with lows in the lower 50's???!!!!
 
My poor peppers. They're not going to be very happy with that.

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Low 50s aren't going to be too bad.  I heard a low of 42 on Friday.  As long as it doesn't frost it'll be okay.

 

[TrentL]

@#@^*(SDB*(#@%@
 
ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THIS AFTERNOON
AND BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD TONIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FOR DAMAGING WIND GUSTS...LARGE HAIL...
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES PER
HOUR.
 
Damnit.

 

[tsurrie]

damn man .. you got a copied weather report from our area ...
the severe storm approaching from the north tonight ...
 
hope it'll go around, huh ?
 
 
say Trent, what's your favorite way of preservation of peppers ... do you like em more dried or frozen. .. I know dried have a better taste, but maybe I'd like to collect a few seeds later on .... Bhut's are ripening really fast now and I have to do something ... they're good to eat, but I need to save some for later

 

[tctenten]

Batten down the hatches Trent!!!! Good luck, hopefully the storm is not a direct hit.

 

[jcw10tc]

@#@^*(SDB*(#@%@
 
ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THIS AFTERNOON
AND BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD TONIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FOR DAMAGING WIND GUSTS...LARGE HAIL...
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES PER
HOUR.
 
Damnit.

Already had about 4" at my house today. 2 this morning and a small cell set over us for about 2 hours from 330 to 530 or so and dumped another 2+, i thnk that one probably missed you.
Humidity was just getting nice enough to dry peppers effectively, now its gonna be all damp and nasty for several more days again.

 

[randyp]

       I am in SW Iowa Trent,I could run straight East to where you are.Saturday morning they are talking 37-39.Holly crap that's 1 month early.I am going to be going crazy with all the pods I still have to ripen.   By the way you have a bunch more rain almost on you as I type.

 

[Pepper Wolf]

Nice glog!!

Love the pictures

Hope to see more soon!!

 

[TrentL]

Already had about 4" at my house today. 2 this morning and a small cell set over us for about 2 hours from 330 to 530 or so and dumped another 2+, i thnk that one probably missed you.
Humidity was just getting nice enough to dry peppers effectively, now its gonna be all damp and nasty for several more days again.

 
My rain gauge overfilled last night - it goes to 5.5"
 
We have flash flooding happening all along the Mackinaw river, covering roadways.
 

Batten down the hatches Trent!!!! Good luck, hopefully the storm is not a direct hit.

 
You aren't joking man!
 

damn man .. you got a copied weather report from our area ...
the severe storm approaching from the north tonight ...
 
hope it'll go around, huh ?
 
 
say Trent, what's your favorite way of preservation of peppers ... do you like em more dried or frozen. .. I know dried have a better taste, but maybe I'd like to collect a few seeds later on .... Bhut's are ripening really fast now and I have to do something ... they're good to eat, but I need to save some for later

 
I dry them, for long term storage in airtight containers. I'm now using 3 gram silica bags in the jars to finish sucking any moisture out of the air trapped inside of the bottle when I close them, as well. (Otherwise the inside air is whatever the ambient humidity is at the time you close them.... which right NOW is damn near 100%....)
 

       I am in SW Iowa Trent,I could run straight East to where you are.Saturday morning they are talking 37-39.Holly crap that's 1 month early.I am going to be going crazy with all the pods I still have to ripen.   By the way you have a bunch more rain almost on you as I type.

 
Yeah I'm hoping they survive. It's not looking good though, temps below 45 have a history of causing massive leaf drop and death. 
 
I'm strongly considering bringing all 50 of the bigger potted plants and the 60-something 5" spares in to the garage tomorrow evening. Would take > 3 hours each way to haul them in and out ... was NOT looking forward to doing that NEXT month. 
 
Strongly pisses me off I have to even think of all that work this early in September!
 
Even more strongly pisses me off that this weekend might be the last pepper pick of the season. If those dirt plants drop their leaves I'm going to be fuming mad. They *just* got the first 4 forks ripened; and I have TONS of buds and little green pods on the upper branches. (e.g. they were JUST getting rolling...)

 

[HillBilly Jeff]

Your plants should be fine with 45 degrees, even colder weather with a little wind and they'll be fine.  The last two years my plants have been through 30 degree weather with just some sort of cloth covering.  All I needed to do is to keep the frost off of them.  This time of year peppers are some tough old birds.

 

[TrentL]

So far they're looking pretty good. The storm last night / this morning caused a little leaf drop and knocked some pods off, but nothing too serious.
 
Speaking of I picked up a yellow Fatali off the ground and munched on it after work....
 
.... which was (fortunately) the biggest mistake I've made so far today.
 
OUCH.
 
Those are warm.

 

[Jeff H]

@#@^*(SDB*(#@%@
 
ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE THIS AFTERNOON
AND BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD TONIGHT. THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FOR DAMAGING WIND GUSTS...LARGE HAIL...
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES PER
HOUR.
 
Damnit.

 
I just wanted to let you know that your weather finally made it to Ohio last night. Thanks for that.
 
My wife who wasn't paying any attention to the forecast looks out the window last night and sees the trees getting pummeled by the wind as the front approached. She looked at me bewildered: " are we supposed to get some rain?" I replied: "no dear, the severe thunderstorm warning and the tornado watch were just issued for no good reason."