Trippas Organic story of 2012/2013....things could be worse ...

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

Well the monties are natives as well which makes them the most likely predatory mite to have. And i haven't used any chemicals ever in my grow area so its possible they have established themselves over the 3 years I have been growing plants on my balcony. Must have come in on the wind or from the surrounding garden area downstairs??

gasificada · Jan 13, 2013

This: (on Montdorensis) "Relative humidity is critical for egg hatching, and 70% humidity is needed for a high hatch rate."

Maybe the high humidity we've been having is not so bad after all.

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

Just saw your pic gas ... yeah that's them ... always tucked right in by the main vein usually near the first main branching of the vein and quick when disturbed will scuttle away quickly

gasificada said:
This: (on Montdorensis) "Relative humidity is critical for egg hatching, and 70% humidity is needed for a high hatch rate."

Maybe the high humidity we've been having is not so bad after all.

I read that too gas ... and I have been seeing alot more of them as well. I have been picking quite a few lower leaves off to increase air flow lately and every third leaf or so has had one or two of them on it. Trying to get them off the picked leaves is not easy though and a few have perished in my clumsy attempts. I have always had quite a humid environment as well due to my grow area and weekly weak foliar feed.

megamoo · Jan 13, 2013

Ah ha!.... mite talk, just what I need to read about.

Got to ask your advice Trippa if you don't mind. The place that breeds the good mites said they think I have broad mite and to spray the plants with sulphur first, then get some predatory mites later.

I take it this is the stuff?

I got it a year ago for something. can't remember what for.

If I spray this how long will it kill off everything, good and bad? I've been kind of hoping not to have to use anything at all and let nature do its thing but the mites have me worried.

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

http://m.yates.com.au/products/pest-control/insects-concentrates/yates-lime-sulphur-spray-fungicide/

That's what I use mega. Your product is more a soil amendment/ pH adjuster then a pest product. Just head into bunnings there are a whole host of sulphur pest products in there. (Dust etc) Biggest thing is to watch the heat (try to do it on a few days that stay below 29 degrees) and use some dish soap to ensure it sticks and spreads on the leaves.

Basically I think it stays on for a few days until the weather elements or you wash it off and then you would be good to go in about a week I think (maybe 2 to be safe)

It will smash your plants around a bit though regardless

Ok a couple of pics and then I need to get to bed.

I will post more tomorrow if I have time

3%2520Douglahs%2520starting%2520to%2520ripen.JPG

Douglahs Ripening

7%2520pot-pod%2520yellow%2520bumpity%2520pod%2520ripening.JPG

Yellow 7 pot/pod ripening

TS%2520Morouga%2520Blend%2520bumpy%2520pod%25202.JPG

TSMB Old plant (I have my suspicions this never was TSMB and is in actually simply a large phenotype of a 7 pot/pod??)

DocNrock · Jan 13, 2013

I learn so much from reading these glogs. This time it's about mites. Since the little bastages are world-wide, the info is helpful anywhere and everywhere.

That Yellow 7 looks great. It's so cool to look at a green pod every day for what seems like an eternity, then one day see a little splotch of color. With the heat you have been having, that Douglah should be ripe in no time. And regardless if the TSMB is true or not, it's one gnarly looking pod!

stickman · Jan 13, 2013

Love that pic of the Douglah Trippa... is that the AlphaNerdz strain you sent me seeds from? It looks like the last seeds of mine to germ will be the Douglah and Manzano Amarillo.

Stefan_W · Jan 13, 2013

megamoo said:
Ah ha!.... mite talk, just what I need to read about.

Got to ask your advice Trippa if you don't mind. The place that breeds the good mites said they think I have broad mite and to spray the plants with sulphur first, then get some predatory mites later.

I take it this is the stuff?

I got it a year ago for something. can't remember what for.

If I spray this how long will it kill off everything, good and bad? I've been kind of hoping not to have to use anything at all and let nature do its thing but the mites have me worried.

This is similar to what I use. We typically use it as an end of year garden ammendment up here, and I remember being told to avoid using it during the growing season unless I have to (I am not sure why). Anyway, I cover the ground with this stuff before my end of year till when I add aged sheep manure. Then the ground is good to go again when the snow thaws a fw months later.

romy6 · Jan 13, 2013

Trip. Here in Florida we get uo to almost 90% humidity in the summer. My plants almost shut down from July til September. The aphids, mites and every other pest known to man have a non stop fiesta on my pepper plants. :confused:

Keep the pod pics coming. Maybe even a video if you dare

gasificada · Jan 13, 2013

Trippa said:
I read that too gas ... and I have been seeing alot more of them as well. I have been picking quite a few lower leaves off to increase air flow lately and every third leaf or so has had one or two of them on it. Trying to get them off the picked leaves is not easy though and a few have perished in my clumsy attempts. I have always had quite a humid environment as well due to my grow area and weekly weak foliar feed.

Yeah, they've established themselves well on a lot of my plants. Look under the leaves and "hey there little guys!

" Unfortunately though, they don't seem to want to move to the plants I didn't release them on and they're the ones that are getting slaughtered by broad mite ATM (the ones that were still babies at the time of the last release). For some reason I never thought about trying to transfer them! :crazy:

You know, that might just be the ticket!

romy6 said:
Trip. Here in Florida we get uo to almost 90% humidity in the summer. My plants almost shut down from July til September. The aphids, mites and every other pest known to man have a non stop fiesta on my pepper plants.

Keep the pod pics coming. Maybe even a video if you dare

Yeah, humidity seems to be ideal for a lot of bad guys also. Even though good guy mites thrive in it, so do broad mite. It kinda evens out.

(Wish it wasn't the case for your sake

) but actually glad to hear we here in Australia aren't the only ones with every pest under the sun! :party:

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

DocNrock said:
I learn so much from reading these glogs. This time it's about mites. Since the little bastages are world-wide, the info is helpful anywhere and everywhere.

That Yellow 7 looks great. It's so cool to look at a green pod every day for what seems like an eternity, then one day see a little splotch of color. With the heat you have been having, that Douglah should be ripe in no time. And regardless if the TSMB is true or not, it's one gnarly looking pod!

Thanks Doc! Yeah they are amazing looking pods and have a fearsome heat so I don't really mind either way. I had actually called it a TSMB based on what I thought they looked like but then I got a TSMB from a pack of mystery seeds which certainly looks nothing like it really (much smaller pods, with a more pronounced mushroom cloud shape), I believe it was simply a rogue seed I got from a pack of seeds back when I found this place (I say rogue because I know everything else I grew was bang on the money of what it was supposed to be and I have no doubt the other seeds in the pack will grow true as to what they were supposed to if I grew them out now) Yeah the first douglah should be all ready to pick within a week I would think?? Depends I don't really know how long they take to ripen as I have only had 1-2 pods off this plant at the start of the season.

stickman said:
Love that pic of the Douglah Trippa... is that the AlphaNerdz strain you sent me seeds from? It looks like the last seeds of mine to germ will be the Douglah and Manzano Amarillo.

Thanks Rick!! Yeah that is the "AlphaNerdz" strain ... I hope those Douglahs do pop for you as I know that chocolate coloured pods (from personal experience and other peoples issues) can often have fickle germination rates and take a long time to pop even if they are viable. If they don't pop for you I am happy to throw a bunch of fresh ones your way in a week or two (I know it may be a little later by then) but fingers crossed they do. I have no reason to think they won't as they were from a fully ripe pod and the seeds looked mature to me.

Stefan_W said:
This is similar to what I use. We typically use it as an end of year garden ammendment up here, and I remember being told to avoid using it during the growing season unless I have to (I am not sure why). Anyway, I cover the ground with this stuff before my end of year till when I add aged sheep manure. Then the ground is good to go again when the snow thaws a fw months later.

Hey Stefan thanks for stopping by!! The soil amendment thing may be to do with your soil pH in your area rather then pests though Stefan?? I don't believe that form of Sulphur is designed for pest control (although I may be mistaken)

romy6 said:
Trip. Here in Florida we get uo to almost 90% humidity in the summer. My plants almost shut down from July til September. The aphids, mites and every other pest known to man have a non stop fiesta on my pepper plants.

Keep the pod pics coming. Maybe even a video if you dare

Hey Romy!! Well its nice to know we aren't alone down here in our subtropical climate issues!! Yeah from about Jan to End of Feb our plants here generally don't set a hell of a lot of pods either but the pests and diseases increase plenty ... bastages!!

If I posted a video it would no doubt be a 10 second clip saying ... here is my balcony ... and these are my 25 plants ... and then the Aussies would come on here once it was posted and mock my accent

gasificada said:
Yeah, they've established themselves well on a lot of my plants. Look under the leaves and "hey there little guys! " Unfortunately though, they don't seem to want to move to the plants I didn't release them on and they're the ones that are getting slaughtered by broad mite ATM (the ones that were still babies at the time of the last release). For some reason I never thought about trying to transfer them! You know, that might just be the ticket!

Yeah, humidity seems to be ideal for a lot of bad guys also. Even though good guy mites thrive in it, so do broad mite. It kinda evens out.

(Wish it wasn't the case for your sake ) but actually glad to hear we here in Australia aren't the only ones with every pest under the sun!

By transfer gas I generally mean accidentally squish 5 out of every 8 attempts of a move ... they squish easy too

my latest idea is simply to leave the plucked leaf on top of the plant I am trying to transfer to for the day or in the pot at least and wait for the mite to move on its own accord as I lose too many of them trying to get them off the leaf otherwise!!)

Ok time for the rest of my outdoor photos from the weekend ... I transferred and tweaked them at 1.30am this morning in a dozy state so excuse the quality of some of them!!

TSMB%2520Trip%2520of%2520pods%2520in%2520the%2520afternoon%2520sun%25202.JPG

TSMB showing some bumpy/lumpy goodness!!

TSMB%2520Trip%2520of%2520pods%2520in%2520the%2520afternoon%2520sun.JPG

a Trio of TSMB

A shot of a very special pod of mine ... its not what it is so much but whats in it

Cili%2520Goronong%2520Ghost%2520face.JPG

Ghost face (now ripened up and fast disappearing under a chilli canopy this used to be near the top of my plants and is now only half way up them... nice to see I am getting some growth anyway!!)
Cili Goronong

gasificada · Jan 13, 2013

Trippa said:
By transfer gas I generally mean accidentally squish 5 out of every 8 attempts of a move ... they squish easy too my latest idea is simply to leave the plucked leaf on top of the plant I am trying to transfer to for the day or in the pot at least and wait for the mite to move on its own accord as I lose too many of them trying to get them off the leaf otherwise!!)

That is what I had in mind.....

Having experience with releasing them though, I do know how fragile they can be.

(Why aren't bad mites as fragile????)

Trippa said:
A shot of a very special pod of mine ... its not what it is so much but whats in it

Ooooh.... who are the parents?? Or is it a secret? :shh:

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

TS%2520Morouga%2520Blend%2520Peering%2520through.JPG

Peering through the chilli forest into the eye of future heat!!

gasificada said:
That is what I had in mind..... Having experience with releasing them though, I do know how fragile they can be.

(Why aren't bad mites as fragile????)

Ooooh.... who are the parents?? Or is it a secret?

I don't want to jinx it Gas

... I will let you know once I have some seeds from it as its the only pod that took from about 6-7 other attempts and I am not sure what the seed count will be in it even now!! You may have even crossed it yourself already ... its not all that exciting but I do have another few ideas of some crosses but until it cools down its not really worth wasting my time

Baby%2520self%2520seeding%2520explosive%2520embers.JPG

Self Seeding Explosive embers galore ... I just let them go I have the main plant and now about 15 seedlings of varying ages ... its funny you can see that its simply a fallen pod and then they all pop up in these perfect little mini rows

7 pot Primo ... (only have 3 pods currently on this plant) ...frustratingly low yielding at the moment although I am hopeful this week I might get a few more set with slightly cooler days

7%2520Pot%2520Primo%2520from%2520Below.JPG

And the shot from below exposing her stinger!!

gasificada · Jan 13, 2013

I have a few more crosses in mind, but yeah, I haven't even been bothered trying at the moment.

Go the volunteers! :party:

WalkGood · Jan 13, 2013

As always great pics and I didn’t know there were good mites, I’m not sure we have anything good here

Well we do have ladybugs and they certainly help

Sanarda · Jan 13, 2013

Wonderful pod pics. Love pod porn. It gives me something to look forward too in a few months

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

gasificada said:
I have a few more crosses in mind, but yeah, I haven't even been bothered trying at the moment.

Go the volunteers!

Seems like today the temp has dropped again gas might be worth a shot in the next few days until friday anyway ... I am just struggling to find many flowers out there today on the varieties I am interested in crossing anyway ...

WalkGood said:
As always great pics and I didn’t know there were good mites, I’m not sure we have anything good here Well we do have ladybugs and they certainly help

Thanks WG!! Yeah there are a whole host of good bugs out there ... hence why I stick to the organic goodies only ...keeps the good bugs around to do your work for free!! I wish we had more ladybugs here ... I wonder if being on the 2nd story limits my insects somewhat because of the height above the ground (not above sea level but relative to the ground may be a deterrence for some bugs??)

Sanarda said:
Wonderful pod pics. Love pod porn. It gives me something to look forward too in a few months

Thanks for Stopping in Sanarda!! Thanks for the compliments ... while my glogs are never info heavy they certainly can't be accused of being picture light

Stick around and you will see I don't post much but pods ... my garden/balcony just isn't impressive enough to post much else

You look like you will be rolling in pods in no time anyway judging by the early start and great seeds you have received. Best of luck!!

gasificada · Jan 13, 2013

Trippa said:
Seems like today the temp has dropped again gas might be worth a shot in the next few days until friday anyway ... I am just struggling to find many flowers out there today on the varieties I am interested in crossing anyway ...

Yeah, the temp isn't too bad today! I will have to look around and see if any of my planned crosses are good to go.

Trippa said:
I wish we had more ladybugs here ... I wonder if being on the 2nd story limits my insects somewhat because of the height above the ground (not above sea level but relative to the ground may be a deterrence for some bugs??)

I have like 10 different types of ladybug here.... you can take my bad ones if you want? :party:

I don't even know if they're a real ladybug species but one ladybuggy thing here feasts on leaves. Thankfully they're not a huge problem but I still don't like 'em! Had some nightshade weeds of some type here that they absolutely loved and were working awesome as a distractant plant until someone here went and ripped 'em out. :mad:

Why can't everybody just leave my garden alone??

Other than that, I've seen red ones, orange ones, yellow ones, spotty ones, stripey ones and got piles of them little "twice-stabbed" ladybugs. :party:

Trippa · Jan 13, 2013

Think I might get some lacewings from bugs for bugs as well .. just killed 2 adult thrips out there today ... and I wasn't even really looking ... lacewings are cheap as well 10 bucks for 100 eggs and 3-4 little boxes to hang in your garden

How much do you pay for freight for your bugs for bugs orders gas??

Spicegeist · Jan 13, 2013

Trippa said:
Yellow 7 pot/pod ripening

So beautiful, very nice. I decided to cut out the Y7 from my 2013 grow, your pic made me reconsider for a moment... must not give in...