Pepper co-op seed starting chat thread (all welcome)

There is an interesting article on fish peppers, one of Critter's favorites and a variety that she has generously shared with us, in the April/May issue of Mother Earth News. I hope the author isn't here because I don't think it was that well written, but the information is welcome and worth reading.

There is also a good article on their website about Aji Limo peppers.

www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2006-02-01/Aji-Limo.aspx

Z

Do you have a link for the Fish Pepper article? I searched, but couldn't find it.

I think that other one is probably the "Hot Lemon" pepper that I've grown and enjoyed before. My seeds from it are slightly crossed, so I need to find some pure ones again for next year. :-)

Did you ever notice a "growth spurt" when you transplant into larger containers? I just transplanted a couple of days ago, and the seedlings were in the cotyledon stage with true leaves barely showing - but now they're really taking off.

It seems like moving the plants would make them pause for a while to get over the shock and rebuild root systems, but nope, it seems like they went into high gear as soon as they were moved. Good.

Jill, I don't think the fish pepper article is available online, at least yet. I read it in the magazine. I don't know what how or when they put the content on their website. Z

Thanks, Michael!

Fish Pepper is one of my very favorites, and I'm intrigued by it's history, although I've never seen more than the bare bones -- seems it was an African-American heirloom variety from the Chesapeake Bay area and was so named for its usefulness in seasoning fish or shellfish dishes. I wonder where it originated?

How fast do your peppers grow? Fun time lapse of peppers starting.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJH2Rb_GfnM&feature=channel_page

Z

Wow, that was neat, Michael! I had to call my kids over to watch. Funny how I became so fixed on whether that one seedling would manage to pop free of the seed coat, and how aggravating that the clip ended before it did! LOL

How cool! Anybody know the name of the artist/song used? One poster mentioned 'Adamf'???

Yes, I think it is by AdamF, called "Circles."

Thanks, BookerC, I love jazz!

Hey, critter - does Aji Dulce 2 have a compact growth habit, a small plant?

I'm wondering because my Aji Dulce seedlings are healthy-looking little guys. They're fine, but they're about half the size of the hybrids and of Big Red. Will they be smaller than the others when they're full grown?

Mine were the size of any bell pepper that I've grown, but less than half the height of my monster habaneros (some of which grew over 6 feet tall LOL).

My Aji Dulces are very small too and the only ones I've lost are the habaneros. Marconi, Feher Ozon, Pimento L, Holy Mole and Big Red are the most vigorous this year.

Everything is still struggling to overcome the aphid attack 2 weeks ago and now it's something else taking big chunks out of the leaves. I think I'm having an uncommon lot of problems because I started them earlier this year.

Today was the "day of reckoning" for my unsprouted cells. I poked around to see it the seed was still there, and what it was doing. A few had tails, or were solid and swollen, and were replaced, two were sprouts just under the surface, the rest were either MIA or squishy.

Many of the hots had nearly 100% germination. Two of the sweets, Mandarin and Lilac, only had one and two plants respectively, out of 6 germinate, but the tray they were in was a little too wet for a day or two, and had lower rates of germination overall.

Here's a pic of my seedlings..my tomatoes are in the "cat-proof box" as well..I forgot how hardy those sungolds were..I had all six seeds germinate, and they are taking over already, lol.

BookerC..I agree with your earlier post on how neat the black pearls are..I even took this pic because I thought the dark cotyledons were so neat..

Wow, artemiss, those are looking great! Interesting that the first true leaves on the Black Pearl aren't purple. I guess I was assuming they'd be the same color as the cotyledons! Mine are still tiny, no true leaves yet, but I've gotten great germination this year!

I'm considering moving my lights and table full of sprouts up from the basement, onto our enclosed porch. Our basement tends toward wet and moldy, which just isn't ideal for seedlings. I'm worried about the temperature variations on the porch, though. On cold days, it is downright chilly out there, and on warm, sunny days, it really heats up. Not exactly ideal, either. I just don't have room anywhere else for my set-up! Sure wish I had a bookshelf with lights under each shelf, like I've seen so many people post, instead of one large table with 8 flats on it. Much smaller "footprint" for the same amount of space when you can go vertical!

The leaves gradually darken as it grows..but yeah..after seeing those cotyledons, I totally expected the leaves to pop out purple, too.

I think making a germination shelf like you mentioned is high on my to-do list this year. I have a couple of cats who think that anything that is green and growing is a salad, so mine are currently in a box with a piece of fence over the top. I really need more room, since it only holds 3 flats, and right now, I have that full with pepper and tomatoes. I bet I could figure out a way to put chicken wire around it, and make a door for me to tend to the seedlings as needed, yet keep those bad kitties out.

I wish we the room (and money) to put up a little greenhouse. Until, I have to make do with the space I have, with, unfortunately, is the basement.

Sometimes purple peppers and purple basil need real sunshine before the leaves will turn dark. My Black Pearl plants weren't near any other peppers, so I'm pretty sure the seeds will come true (if you got them from me).

DH ran some numbers once and decided I could run twice as many lights in the basement for the kind of $ it would cost to heat a greenhouse... since then, I've been happier with my light shelves!

My seedlings are still doing fine. I have to raise the lights a little every couple of days now. I got all my pepper seeds through the co-op this year, so I got some great varieties I'd never have ordered on my own. Thanks again for doing that, critter.

You know, I've had much better vegetable gardens ever since we moved to the country. I can't help but think it's because we have our own well and there's no chlorine, flouride, or any other additives in our water. Also, our well water comes out of limestone, and while it's hard on water heaters and faucets I think maybe all that calcium is good for plants. What do you think?

I think you're right... but since I'm already filtering water for my fish tanks and for the african violets, my seedlings will have to continue to put up with tap water! You've probably got enviable dirt there, too.

I'm going to plant out my peppers this weekend. Well, most of them. Really, there is no way we can eat all of those peppers!! I was expecting to kill all/most of the seedlings (as usual), so I over ordered. Imagine my surprise and delight when all of them sprouted and refused to die! LOL So I'm going to pot up a few of each kind and pass them out at church. I just finished cleaning out the bed in back. I was hoping we'd get a load of compost before we planted them, but we haven't been able to afford it yet. Maybe next paycheck.. So they're going in anyway and I'll top dress them later. :-)

I'll take some pictures when they're in.

Great job, Marylyn!

My seeds were also great with germination, but I managed to kill some in the meantime :o(
Living in the desert is definitely a big challenge for me. One weekend away was too much for some of my seedlings. Oh, well...

Questions from a goofy first-time pepper/veggie grower:
1. how many pepper plants should I have in order to feed myself and hubby? Right now, I have 5 sweeties and 3 hotties.
2. is it too late to start some more from seeds? At least for the next 15 days, the weather is predicted to stay in the 40-50s at night, and 65-80 during daytime. Last year beginning of June we had high 80s-100, and the weather cooled beginning of November.

Have a happy weekend!
Alexandra

I'll take the second question... go right ahead and sow more seeds. In your zone, you've got a nice long season, so even with a late start you'll have plenty of harvest time. (I just told somebody here who was planning to start seeds "maybe 2 weekends form now" that she should just get plants instead, so that she'd be able to pick a good number of ripe peppers before frost.)

The first question... I can't really answer, because although there are only 2 of us, I make a lot of hot sauce, salsa, roasted tomato-pepper sauce, and pickled peppers... so it's not unusual for me to plant at least 4 or 5 dozen sweet pepper plants and another couple dozen or so hotties, plus some misc. ones scattered around the landscaping beds. I'm not sure how many I'd need just for fresh eating.

Thanks, Critter! I just started soaking some more now...

I'd like to have enough fresh ones, canning/preserving would be a bonus. Not too much space for dozens and dozens of pepper plants here :o(

I'm glad my seedlings are safe indoors - our crazy springtime weather is going to do it again this year. That happens around here as often as not.

For weeks our high temps have been in the 60's and 70's with lows around 50. Everything is blooming of course, and I've been working outside in a short-sleeve shirt.

Tomorrow night it's going to be 25 degrees, and 20 degrees the next night - a hard spring freeze. There'll be no lilac blooms or fruit on the trees this year. At least I haven't planted anything outdoors yet, not even onions or beets - and my pepper and tomato seedlings are warm under the lights.

I was reading this thread and I started craving something spicy! So, I graded a jar of sweet pickles I made last season that I popped in a couple of hot banana peppers in it - mmmmmmmm ..... Sooo good!! Now I have a problem - I did not get any hot banana pepper seeds! : ( Does anybody have any I can steal or trade!! Thanks Dana

I don't have any hot banana pepper seeds, but I just add a few slices of any hot pepper that I like (ripe jalopenos are one of my favorites) to the bottom of the pickle jar... or a small whole pepper will work fine if you cut a slit or two into it. Adds zing to everything in the jar!

You know I tried some with jalapenos and they did not come out with as much zing as the hot bananas. I did cut slits in it two - three peppers per jar. Still the hot bananas were hotter! I am unsure why. Made great tasting pickles. I just remember last year you got anywhere near the hot banana pepper plants you could smell the heat!!

Hot Banana peppers should be easy to find locally, either on a seed rack or as plants, if you don't get a trade offer. I've got a couple of new-to-me varieties I'm going to try adding to pickles this year (Mariachi, Garden Salsa)... we'll see how they work out!

I bought the plants locally last year, but I have not seen the seeds around and I do not remember seeing the plant this year. I am going to look here again and then head to the next town to see if I can locate.

I moved the largest of my seedlings to bigger pots this weekend..and they were looking really good..that is until one of the bad kitties decided that the chicken wire around the shelving was still big enough to get a paw through..there are probably only one or two plants that didn't sustain some damage.

A Garden Salsa was *completely* gone, an Ancho San Martin had no leaves, and several others only have part of one or two leaves left. I swear the little brat tried to sample every single plant...so until we plant them out, we have moved the cat boxes upstairs and have completely closed off the basement...and boy, the cats are NOT happy about that.

I was going to get pics after the plants came out of their transplant shock..they we're looking so nice and happy Sunday night in their new homes, but now I am just hoping that they pull out of being cat-salad now:-(

Eliot keeps trying to sneak down to the basement... no way am I letting him succeed! He likes to munch green things, too. He's been enjoying his own pot of catgrass and an occasional bit of fresh catnip lately; hopefully that will keep him out of trouble.

I'm sorry about your peppers! You need to live closer to me... for many reasons, LOL, but right now because I could slide you some extra non-munched seedlings. If you get desperate, let me know, and I'll see about shipping you a selection... otherwise, my extras are going to the spring swap & to friends/neighbors (ie, this isn't a general offer to share extra plants by mail, sorry).

Aww, thanks Jill, I appreciate the offer (and the trouble we'd get into trading plants if we lived closer, hehe!)..but luckily, thanks to the varied germination times, I should have at least one replacement for each variety that was completely munched that wasn't big enough to be potted up yet- and those seedlings remained unscathed. (whew!) I also overplanted expecting that I'd lose a few..I just expected it to be damping off or transplant shock, not bad kitties, lol.

It was just so sad to see the big, healthy babies I'd nurtured from seed shredded and destroyed. *sniff*

I am pretty sure the culprit was my bengal Mal..he's very "busy" and too smart for his own good most times..I don' t think the other two would go through acrobatics it would have required to hang from the top and reach down through the mesh to get at them.
Cat grass and 'nip only last a day or two before he eats the green parts and knocks the pot over dragging dirt around the house..I long ago gave up on having houseplants for that reason. I still bring a sprig of catnip in from the patch outside whenever I go out there..but nothing growing inside lives for long if he finds it.

You've got a bengal! Ooh, we have to talk. (not wanting to take this thread O/T, but we've been considering getting a bengal... breed description of personality seems very like our much-missed Blake, and Eliot-kitty would like a playmate)

I had some peppers a few years back that got mouse-munched when they were hardening off on the patio -- remarkably, some that were just stubs came back and grew out into sturdy little plants!

I overplanted, too. LOL Got one whole shelf of peppers (12 dozen in 4 flats) plus another 30 on the next shelf down ('Sweet Pickles' and 'Pretty Purple Peppers', which got potted up in slightly smaller cells). I've probably got room for most of the sweets, but am lining up homes for the extra chiles.

I'm at work now, but I can shoot ya dmail with pics when I get home tonight..really awesome cats, but you have to be prepared for mischief, and lots of it, lol!

Thanks! Eliot is a mischief cat, too, so we're good with that. Blake was much more biddable, with an almost dog-like eagerness to make me happy... Eliot is a bit more stubborn about things, especially when it comes to things that are "No!" LOL

I hope you come home to happier looking pepper seedlings. They really will bounce back, I think... especially the ones that got munched leaves but not broken-off-low stems

Oh, Bengals are GORGEOUS, but they are pretty high maintenance cats. There is a guy from Norway on YouTube that has posted lots of videos of his Bengals, and all the contraptions and inventions he makes to keep them challenged and busy. He even built a cat door with tunnels that lead to a completely enclosed outdoor play area, with things to climb, and rocks to sun on. It's amazing, and I know my cat was jealous, just watching over my shoulder.

This one is my favorite. Their personalities really shine through!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8T1A1XKseg

There's another where they are chirping at birds outside the window that is just hilarious, too. Our cat does that occasionally.

Angie

(Sorry, I know this is OT on a peppers thread, but I do love Bengals)

Wow!!

Malachai is soo jealous!

I will agree on the high maintenance part...Mal is very vocal, and will wander around "yelling" for no good reason other than to be ornery.

And things like the peppers happen all the time...he is into EVERYTHING..they are very intelligent, and tend to get bored (and destructive as a result) pretty quickly.


this is the little heathen in a more peaceful moment:

Sounds like a Bengal would get along great with our Eliot! He's vocal, too (too funny with the birds... we got him a couple of window bird feeders so we could watch him watching Kitty TV). I'm mostly home during the day, so that makes it easier to give Eliot and any other kitty the attention they like. I've also heard Bengals are pretty trainable, which will make it easier to deal with the other stuff. :-)

Aw, Malachi matches the bedding! Now that takes color-coordinating to an entirely new level. Do you sometimes fail to notice he is there, and lie down on him? I flopped into my computer chair and gave my kitty a rude awakening the other day. He just blended in to the blanket I leave draped over it, and boy, did he demonstrate the power of his vocal chords! He declined to come visit me or sleep with me the next couple of days, but eventually got over it.

Sounds like Eliot would get along great with my cat. Kitty Kindred Spirits? He probably would really love a playmate.