windchicken 2015

coachspencerxc · Jun 10, 2015

Beautiful yellow Nagabrain!

Roguejim · Jun 11, 2015

Gary, you said that your RCW was actually "shredded oak", I think. Is there any way to know if your particular RCW is from the smaller branches, and not from milled logs? Is doesn't really matter as far as your own plants are concerned, i.e., they continue to thrive.

Also, just for fun, have you ever had the soil tested?

Trippa · Jun 30, 2015

Hey Gary ... Just checking in to see how things are growing?. Hope you are well!

gnslngr · Jun 30, 2015

Hmmm-Whatever the turns out to be, it looks good.

Justa note as to the avians- birds do not have capsaicin receptors, just spell check apparently doesn't either!

Trippa · Jul 20, 2015

Hey Gary... Long time since I have seen an update... Hope you are ok bro... Cheers

windchicken · Jul 23, 2015

coachspencerxc said:
Beautiful yellow Nagabrain!

Thanks Coach!

Roguejim said:
Gary, you said that your RCW was actually "shredded oak", I think. Is there any way to know if your particular RCW is from the smaller branches, and not from milled logs? Is doesn't really matter as far as your own plants are concerned, i.e., they continue to thrive.

Also, just for fun, have you ever had the soil tested?

Thanks for asking, RJ! It's hard to know exactly what part of the tree my oak chips come from, but it's safe to assume that they are from "tops," as the sawlogs are more valuable for lumber and paper production. Most timber contractors consider the tree tops as a waste product, and simply leave them laying on the ground...The other thing that makes me think my chips are mostly branch wood is the dark color and lots of visible bark in the stuff...

No, I've never tested my soil or attempted to adjust anything about it. My philosophy around soil building, right or wrong, is that the forest knows far better than any scientist or grower how to make fertile earth…She was doing so for hundreds of millennia before the first "cultivation" (ruination) of the soil by mankind….

Trippa said:
Hey Gary ... Just checking in to see how things are growing?. Hope you are well!

Thanks Trippa!

gnslngr said:
Hmmm-Whatever the turns out to be, it looks good.

Justa note as to the avians- birds do not have capsaicin receptors, just spell check apparently doesn't either!

It was awesome Dave! Thanks! Seeds were saved….

Trippa said:
Hey Gary... Long time since I have seen an update... Hope you are ok bro... Cheers

Thanks for checking on me Trippa! I finally got everything in the ground and/or 10-gal nursery containers a couple weeks ago. Now to start back mowing my lawn regularly and hanging with my THP friends.

Trippa · Jul 23, 2015

Good to see you back !

windchicken · Jul 23, 2015

I took these photos yesterday to post in an RCW FB group (forest soil-building), so the focus is on the beds and plants, rather than the fruit….

Spring and early summer here in NW Louisiana were quite rainy, with everything growing fast and big. However, the rain stopped in mid-June, and the daily very high temperatures and cloudless skies set in...Since then it's been a struggle to keep the C. chinense chile plants from burning up in the extra-rich forest soil. Lots and lots of flushing of the beds with fresh water has been effective, but tends to lessen the flavor and heat levels of the fruit. Not an ideal solution, but until I figure out how to deal with the excessive nutrient content produced by my using far more than the recommended amount of RCW, that is what I must do...

My original RCW-and-river-clay-bed, a.k.a. the "pilot bed," now in its fifth season. On the left are 7 plants of Bonda Mahala, on the right are 7 plants of Bhut Orange Copenhagen (both C. chinense).

My original RCW-on-top-of-clay bed, now in its third year. The plants are California Wonder TMR 300, except for the rightmost plant, which is Zapotec Jalapeño. Capsicum annuum plants seem far less sensitive than C. chinense to the high nutrient levels produced by very high ratios of RCW to native soil.

Siam Queen Thai Basil in a three-year-old RCW-on-top-of-clay bed. The basil forms a backdrop for Lavender of Provence, one plant of which can be seen on the left.

Butch Taylor's Mississippi Scorpion (C. chinense), growing in a 3-year-old RCW-and-sand-gravel-clay bed. Butch's plants seem unique among the C. chinense varieties I am growing in that they are relatively unaffected by the extremely high nutrient content of the forest soil. In fact, they seem to relish the heat....

Mississippi Scorpions:

Troy Primo's 7 Pot Primo (C. chinense), the super hot chile of Louisiana, growing in a 3-year-old RCW-and-alluvial-terrace bed (oak chips, sand, ironstone gravel, and clay)

F4 NagaBrain Red and F2 NagaBrain Yellow (C. chinense), bred by James Hill and stabilized by me, growing in my newest RCW-and-alluvial-terrace bed, built just last summer.

Lumbre, a New Mexico pod type (C. annuum), bred by Faron Lytle of Hatch, NM (www.chileseedusa.com), growing in a two-year-old RCW-and-alluvial-terrace bed. I believe this cross is New Mexico 6-4 x Chile Pequin.

And lastly, a shot from my trip to Lafayette, Louisiana last weekend for the Louisiana Hot Sauce Expo:

Chemical engineer Maci Renee' Gauthreaux is pioneering new capsaicin measurement methodology at the University of Louisiana Lafayette. This new technology, along with Louisiana's own world-class super hot chile, Troy Primo's 7 Pot Primo, and Butch Taylor's Butch T Trinidad Scorpion, from South Mississippi, are shifting the focus of the super hot chile culture back to Louisiana, where it belongs.

Trippa said:
Good to see you back !

Thanks Trippa! It's good to be back

romy6 · Jul 23, 2015

Bodacious plants G man . Master Gardner for sho !

capsidadburn · Jul 23, 2015

Smokin' beds Gary!

I thought HPLC has been around awhile, and was becoming the preferred norm.

Great to see!

JoynersHotPeppers · Jul 23, 2015

Super nice grow! Do you trim the lower stuff on your plants? It seems my ones that have wood mulch naturally get rid of the bottom by yellowing leaves and drop

windchicken · Jul 24, 2015

romy6 said:
Bodacious plants G man . Master Gardner for sho !

Thanks Jamie! There have been some disappointments this year, but far fewer than the brutal lessons of years past….

capsidadburn said:
Smokin' beds Gary!

I thought HPLC has been around awhile, and was becoming the preferred norm.

Great to see!

Thanks Mike! I'm just learning about this stuff….

JoynersHotPeppers said:
Super nice grow! Do you trim the lower stuff on your plants? It seems my ones that have wood mulch naturally get rid of the bottom by yellowing leaves and drop

Thanks Chris! No, I'm not trimming them at all. The Primo plants especially seem to prune themselves naturally of all growth below the first fork. I assumed it was the combination of extremely rich soil and intense summer sun that was causing that? Whatever the cause, it makes for some cool-looking plants...

GA Growhead · Jul 24, 2015

Your mountain rows always amaze me! Looking good Gary!

chocolatescotchbonnet · Jul 24, 2015

Daaaaaannnggg! Nice growing!

windchicken · Jul 27, 2015

GA Growhead said:
Your mountain rows always amaze me! Looking good Gary!

Thanks Jason! I finally have a decent grow of BOC this year—7 plants in-ground, and one in a ten-gallon nursery container. They got off to a slow start because I transplanted from little 5-inch Jiffy pots, but they've finally hit their stride in the last week or so. Just beautiful plants, with the dark green leaves and the heavy set of orange pods, and wow, what a great eating pepper! :dance:

One of my old skate buds was asking me how that documentary is going?

chocolatescotchbonnet said:
Daaaaaannnggg! Nice growing!

Thanks CSB!

GA Growhead · Jul 28, 2015

windchicken said:
Thanks Jason! I finally have a decent grow of BOC this year7 plants in-ground, and one in a ten-gallon nursery container. They got off to a slow start because I transplanted from little 5-inch Jiffy pots, but they've finally hit their stride in the last week or so. Just beautiful plants, with the dark green leaves and the heavy set of orange pods, and wow, what a great eating pepper!

One of my old skate buds was asking me how that documentary is going?

Thanks CSB!

The premier is on Wed Evening. Went ahead and took the next day off work. :beer:

After it is a local sk8 vid with some big heads in it. Should be a crazy night!

Will work on getting you a copy!
I designed the cover, logo and layed out the booklet w/the DVD... So they owe me.

Was a crash course to get it done in time, but pulled it off.

I love those BOCs. I have 6 or 7 myself.
The color is just amazing, much like the flavor.
I keep selecting for better pod shapes each year. I think this one is this season's winner!

PIC 1 · Jul 28, 2015

Gary your garden looks meticulous !............as usual.

Nice article by the Chem Eng......enjoyable read

Looks like a bumper to bumper crop for you this year..........nice

windchicken · Jul 29, 2015

GA Growhead said:
The premier is on Wed Evening. Went ahead and took the next day off work. After it is a local sk8 vid with some big heads in it. Should be a crazy night!

Will work on getting you a copy!
I designed the cover, logo and layed out the booklet w/the DVD... So they owe me. Was a crash course to get it done in time, but pulled it off.

I love those BOCs. I have 6 or 7 myself.
The color is just amazing, much like the flavor.
I keep selecting for better pod shapes each year. I think this one is this season's winner!

Wow, that pod is gorgeous, Jason! If you can reproduce that you will have the ultimate BOC variant

Have fun at the premier…I'm excited to hear how it goes! And I can't wait to see your work :cool:

PIC 1 said:
Gary your garden looks meticulous !............as usual.

Nice article by the Chem Eng......enjoyable read

Looks like a bumper to bumper crop for you this year..........nice

GREG!!! It's so good to hear from ya dude! You are far too kind, but thanks, you really made my day

The plants on the shady end of the 7 Pot Primo bed (50 feet long) seem to be doing better than the plants on the other end, which get 8 or so hours of full sun every day. I'm learning...Snapped this pik a few minutes ago:

GA Growhead · Jul 30, 2015

Gary, scored you a dvd. Send me your address. The premier was insane! Four generations of heads to see it along with the local vid afterwards! Pulled so many people out of the woodwork, people I haven't seen in forever! The documentary is so sick. Lots of killer footage!

windchicken · Jul 30, 2015

GA Growhead said:
Gary, scored you a dvd. Send me your address. The premier was insane! Four generations of heads to see it along with the local vid afterwards! Pulled so many people out of the woodwork, people I haven't seen in forever! The documentary is so sick. Lots of killer footage!

Wow, Jason, all that after all those years...Sounds magical! I can't thank you enough for thinking about me. I sent you a PM...

Gary