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don555_gw

My peppers for 2013

don555
11 years ago

Last year we had a hot summer (for here) and I grew Firecracker and Charleston Hot peppers. They were OK, but I had to use every trick in the book to extend the season and even then lots of peppers never ripened. So this year I wanted something earlier and more tolerant of cool weather. I read that a company has grown out the hybrid "Super Chili" to de-hybridize it and market the stabilized plant as "Matchbox Chili", claiming to keep the same cold-tolerant and heavy yield characteristics as the original, with a Scoville rating of 40,000. So I'm putting all my eggs in one basket this year, hope it works out.

So here they are... I planted 18 seeds (2 per cell) and hoped to thin them to 9. As it turned out, only 9 came up so that solves the thinning issue :)

Has anyone grown these who can tell me how large the plants get? My plan is to put them on my deck in 3 large pots, 3 plants per pot.

I planted them on March 9, here they are today (March 26):
{{gwi:1155650}}

I realize they are tiny compared to the pictures I'm seeing on this forum, but hey, I've still got a long wait before I can plant them out... here's what my veggie garden looks like today:

Comments (20)

  • ottawapepper
    11 years ago

    They're kind of cute at that young age ain't they ;-)

    We've had some melting so I'm sitting with half of that white stuff you have right now.

    Hope you have as much success this season as last! Even with the shorter season you had great results.

  • cjohansen
    11 years ago

    I'm looking at about half the amount of snow as well. I'm curious, what kinds of temps are you guys looking at throughout summer? I looked into historic data for my area earlier today, and discovered lower temps than I'd expected, and got a little worried...

  • don555
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    In Edmonton, at 53.5 degrees North, average daily high for June, July, August is 21C (70F), 23C (73F) and 22C (72F), respectively. Nightime lows those months average 10C (50F), 12C (54F) and 11C (52F). 30C (86F) is a hot summer day.

  • DMForcier
    11 years ago

    Cheeez. It gets down into the 20s here tonight. Come Spring and Winter suddenly arrives. Something ain't right.

  • jifjifjif
    11 years ago

    Yup, Here In Central Florida, We Have Overnight Lows Of 40F And In A Week, Its Supposed To Be 82/70

  • greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
    11 years ago

    Off to a good start, Don!
    I expect these'll do as well as yours did last year! :-)
    Looking forward to updates.


    Josh

  • hillseeker
    11 years ago

    They look great! I'm in Alberta and have another good foot or two more than your pic in my backyard still from last week. Temps are really supposed to climb by the weekend though.

  • northerner_on
    11 years ago

    Hi from Ontario, Don. We got a little sun today and I had a little melt in my backyard, but there's still lots of snow around the house. About the chillies, I have only ever grown them in the ground. Mine got about 2-3 feet high, not very wide, and produced peppers continuously throughout the summer. They were always the first to turn red. They are prolific producers.

  • Cuda911
    11 years ago

    Re: " My plan is to put them on my deck in 3 large pots, 3 plants per pot."

    I think you will do much better with one plant per pot. Yield and quality boils down to great root development. If I were you, I'd either get six more pots, or eventually thin down to the 3 best ones.

    P.S. We don't permit crappy weather here, by law.

  • cjohansen
    11 years ago

    Here's my plants looking out into the cold white garden where I hope to eventually grow them:

    {{gwi:1155652}}

    At 59.79 degrees North, our summers are colder than yours, Don. 30C is a rare temperature seen around here. I guess 25C is a very hot summer day here. Some of you already have that next week I see :)

    People growing in cold areas, what are your tricks? Green houses? Do you grow in the ground? I'm planning on a raised bed, maybe a makeshift green house, but nothing big/fancy.

  • don555
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    cjohansen,
    you don't mention where you are, or what peppers you are growing, but it's awesome that you are growing hots at 60 degrees North. Here at 53.5 N, we get 17 hours of sunshine per day at the summer solstice, you must get several hours more than that. Those long days help make up at least in part for the short growing season and cooler temps.

    Soil temps are an issue in the North, so a raised bed like you propose is definitely a plus. I choose instead to plant in pots on my deck -- the pots essentially acting as a raised bed and allowing the roots much warmer temps than they would get if planted directly in the garden.

    If you have a greenhouse or access to a greenhouse, that's much better for hot-weather crops up north than any open garden will ever be.

  • cjohansen
    11 years ago

    Days aren't that much longer - almost 19 hours at the summer solstice.

    I am going to put some plants in pots, but the "problem" is that I've been way more successful than I'd ever imagined so far, and still have 50+ healthy plants :) So I can't afford nor do I have the room for so many pots.

    Like I said, I'm considering some greenhouse MacGyvering - my main concern here is that we live in row houses. Neighbours are pretty close, and any massive construction in my garden will most likely attract some complaints ;)

    I'm just south of Oslo, Norway.

    Christian

  • John A
    11 years ago

    Have either of you considered Manzanos? They like the cooler temps. The down side is that they are a very long season pepper. I raise mine in pots and usually have to bring them inside before they are fully ripened.
    John A

  • don555
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I just looked up Manzano peppers... interesting. But if you have trouble getting them to ripen in zone 6, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't work for me. I can't plant peppers out until around June 1, then killing frost usually comes in the second half of September. I don't bring plants inside anymore, too many past issues with spider mites and aphids. Thanks for the suggestion though.

  • cjohansen
    11 years ago

    Haven't really considered Manzano, but might next year. Really though, I set out to grow chillies because I wanted a steady supply of e.g. Poblanos, which I can't buy where I live. Same with Hungarian Hot Wax. While I was at it, I threw in some other types as well :)

  • don555
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    The first photo at the top of this thread was 17 days after sowing. Here they are another 17 days on, recently moved to 2" pots. So far so good. Outside garden is still snow-covered, with another spring snowstorm set to move in this weekend, bah.
    {{gwi:1155653}}

  • woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a
    10 years ago

    You guys way up north might want to consider building something like in the link below. Looks a hell of lot more economical than a greenhouse. I've seen some pics of some of his larger tunnels...pretty impressive. He grows beautiful vegetables out of them at times of the year when one "shouldn't" for his frost dates and climate.

    Kevin

    Here is a link that might be useful: jrslick's grow tunnels

    This post was edited by woohooman on Tue, Apr 30, 13 at 16:31

  • don555
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Update -- plants developing a bit faster than I had hoped. Although still short, they are all getting flower buds. They shouldn't really be planted outside until June 1 (though last year I went a bit earlier).

    Weather is doing crazy swings this time of year -- I was wearing shorts on Friday and Saturday. Wet snow fell all day today (Monday) with some accumulation and winds gusting to 80 km/hr (50 mph). In 3 days it is supposed to be back to shorts-weather.

    This pic is of my peps today (in 2" pots). Two of the tallest ones had been clipped over the past week or two and seemed to be branching well, so after taking this pic I clipped all the others. I expect to move to 4" pots before hardening off in a few weeks time. Flying by the seat of my pants really.

  • don555
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Woohooman, those grow tunnels look pretty good. Probably not ideal for a city-guy like me, but if I ever buy a property outside of town...

  • greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
    10 years ago

    Coming along just fine!

    Josh

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