pepperhead212's 2021 garden

zendog
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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#21

Post: # 44926Unread post zendog
Thu Apr 15, 2021 5:38 am

I'm curious with your SIPs, how many plants do you put in an 18-gallon, or is it just one eggplant per? I have a few 6 gallon buckets I'm making into SIPs and was hoping to use them for eggplants, but maybe they're too small. If they are, I guess I can use them for peppers.

I love your bigger SIPs and may have to give those a try at some point.

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#22

Post: # 44951Unread post pepperhead212
Thu Apr 15, 2021 3:46 pm

[mention]zendog[/mention] I put 2 tomatoes or 2 eggplants in those large SIPs. The smaller type tomatoes, and ones that didn't seem to get as many roots, back when I grew a lot in 5 gal buckets, like cherry tomatoes (seemed strange, given the large plants!), I put in the smaller buckets. Cucumbers do well in the buckets, too, and last season I did an extra Neon eggplant in a smaller bucket - 4 gal into 5 gal - and it did well. Peppers I put various numbers in the Earthboxes - slightly smaller than the 18 gal ones: 2 habaneros, and other chinense peppers; 4 poblanos, and other larger ones, like numex; and 6 smaller, but not too small, like jalapeños, Hanoi Markets, Thai, and similar peppers. The good thing about the 18 gal for the larger tomatoes and eggplants is the larger reservoirs, so you don't have to water as often. Buckets are similar, with larger reservoirs, compared to the amount of soil mix. With original Earthboxes, before I started making them, the 2 gal reservoir would dry up in 12 hours or less with 2 tomatoes or eggplants! 4 cucumbers in one (Earthbox.com recommends 6!) Would dry them up even faster! I use drip emitters on timers, to fill all of them.

The things I used for the wicking chambers of the bucket SIPs were simply 1 qt Chinese soup containers. They fit almost perfectly, in the space between the 5 and 6 gallon, and 4 and 5 gallon buckets, but I had drop it into a hole cut perfectly, so the ridge of the container stopped it. I don't recall the exact diameter, but I used a flywheel, set to the diameter, and that worked great. Only problem was the drilling of all those side holes - I had to put one inside another (I re-used the backer container several times, until it was too cracked), and drill carefully, to prevent cracking.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#23

Post: # 44971Unread post pepperhead212
Thu Apr 15, 2021 8:37 pm

I re-potted my 6 largest pepper plants today, and they were definitely getting rootbound. These plants were all started on 3-7, just over 5 weeks ago! And chinense varieties are usually the slowest - the reason that I started them a little over 3 weeks early. And that Death Spiral was one of the slowest seeds to sprout, yet look at the size!
ImageLarger Death Spiral, the most rootbound of the 6 plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageGold Bullet - tallest plant, but the least rootbound. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageNew chocolate hab - earliest seeds to germinate, and some of the most rootbound plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageThe six re-potted peppers, 4-15 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageMost of the tomatoes, most with at least one set of true leaves. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageThe rest of the tomatoes, the eggplants, plus some of the peppers. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#24

Post: # 44973Unread post pepperhead212
Thu Apr 15, 2021 8:42 pm

I re-potted my 6 largest pepper plants today, and they were definitely getting rootbound. These plants were all started on 3-7, just over 5 weeks ago! And chinense varieties are usually the slowest - the reason that I started them a little over 3 weeks early. And that Death Spiral was one of the slowest seeds to sprout, yet look at the size!
ImageLarger Death Spiral, the most rootbound of the 6 plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageGold Bullet - tallest plant, but the least rootbound. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageNew chocolate hab - earliest seeds to germinate, and some of the most rootbound plants. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageThe six re-potted peppers, 4-15 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageMost of the tomatoes, most with at least one set of true leaves. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageThe rest of the tomatoes, the eggplants, plus some of the peppers. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#25

Post: # 45136Unread post pepperhead212
Sun Apr 18, 2021 12:04 am

I did a bunch today! I mowed and weed-wacked my lawn, then started working with those SIPs again, first pulling off the covers that I wouldn't be using again, then cutting some plastic to replace them. Funny thing - as I was gathering all that trash together, I realized that I could use those heavy plastic covers for the bales of peat moss! None of them had holes in them, like many of the lighter bags for other things, and the white is probably better for the tomatoes. The plastic did not allow much light through, when I held it up to the sun, unlike thinner white plastics I've seen.
ImageCheap cover for Earthboxes - peat moss bag! I got 2 out of the plastic cover for each bale. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

I got 2 covers off each cover. I mixed a bunch of peat mix, for "refreshing" the SIPs, and got 7 of them done, so far. Still a lot to go, and I'm sure I'll have to get another bale of PM, but not tomorrow.

Nothing new in the seedlings, though one pepper is up enough that it can be transferred in the morning. All of my zinnias are up - I planted only one in half the pots, and two in the other half, and the two came up in each pot! Not sure if I'll pull them, or split them, and put them in more pots.

When I went out on my deck this morning, I noticed that my chives looked "dirty". Turns out, they were covered with what I believed to be black aphids - something I have never seen on chives! I sprayed them with pyrethrin spray, then an hour or so, after it had dried off, and it looked like none of the aphids were moving any longer, I hosed it off. Then, after drying, I sprayed it again, including the area these things could have dropped onto the ground under the container. Hopefully, this was a one time thing.
ImageBlack aphid infestation on chives. :( by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#26

Post: # 45216Unread post pepperhead212
Sun Apr 18, 2021 10:02 pm

I got a lot more done today, starting with something that didn't get done - changing the blades on my lawn tractor. A while back, a friend (who has the same model) suggested that I change the blades, since they were over 2 years old, and he told me that Amazon had a deal on the blades, so I got them, when snow was on the ground, and he would change them for me, come spring. He jacked up the tractor, tilted it, and got under there, with his gun ready, to remove the nuts, and he told me they didn't need changing, or even sharpening! He was right - they were sharp enough for me to cut myself on! I pointed out that this is probably due to the fact that I pick up almost all of the branches, while he uses the mower to grind them up! Last week he came over and got those blades from me (and ordered me another set), because he had hit something that had bent one of his blades - he definitely doesn't take care of it!

I got some more SIPs refreshed today - still have 15 large, and 12 buckets to do. The buckets go faster, fortunately. I already have one 32 gal trash can filled with the mix I removed - that goes into the raised beds, eventually.

I got my larger 'tiller started today, and changed the oil in it, plus a few other maintenance things. Ready to go, once the plants are!

Both of those Ichiban eggplant seeds that finally sprouted, and I planted in the pots, have popped up now. So if those do well, I'll have 1 extra of each of the others (which I planted in the original ichiban pots), which some friends will get. Now, of all of the varieties of tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers I planted, the only one I have yet to get a sprout from is the Portugal fire pepper - new seeds this year! Funny thing - the other peppers that took the longest, and I got the lowest % with, were also new!

No more black aphids anywhere out there - I was checking the other 2 clusters of chives, as well as all those garlic chives I have, and no signs of them (fingers crossed).
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#27

Post: # 45342Unread post pepperhead212
Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:20 pm

I totally finished the SIPs in the back - only a couple left that I refreshed, but then I went around and leveled all of them. The buckets are easy, but the larger ones can be a pain. Fortunately, many were very close to level, and only needed a very small tweaking. Always important to level these things, though the homemade ones have 4 drain holes, so it's not as critical as with the EB. With the EBs, I try to get them level, or just barely tilting towards the drain side - if it tilts away, some of the soil mix could be constantly under water, which is not good, as we know with pots sitting in a tray, filled with water.

I got a couple more seedlings today, of those really late peppers, though most of their pots I have already filled with similar peppers, that I had extras of.

I had my second Moderna shot today - nothing yet, but if I have side effects the next two days would be the right times. Rainy tomorrow, and very cold Thursday!
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#28

Post: # 45351Unread post asmx92
Wed Apr 21, 2021 1:50 am

Great!
Anneliese

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#29

Post: # 45417Unread post pepperhead212
Wed Apr 21, 2021 11:14 pm

Lemongrass is already rooting!
ImageFirst roots started on the lemongrass, on 4-21, 8 days after starting. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

No side-effects from the 2nd vaccine shot, so far, KOW.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#30

Post: # 45487Unread post pepperhead212
Fri Apr 23, 2021 1:14 pm

I'm thinking of putting one of those lemongrass stalks in a bucket SIP, since I have an extra one, to see how it grows. Everything else has done great in the SIPs, and the region where this is normally grown is wet, like rice growing areas, so it should do well.

Those chinense peppers, that I started early, will need hardening off soon! There are some slower ones, but even those are getting large. The smaller peppers, started on 4-1, are to the right on the first photo. Not that large, but taking off now, and they still have 3 weeks to go out, normally.
Imagechinense peppers on 4-23, started on 3-7 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageSlower chinense peppers, on 4-23 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

Fortunately, the weather is supposed to get warm for a while now, but I'll still have to see what May is supposed to be (though, of course, that is a long shot).

Here are the tomatoes - started on 4-5 - and eggplants - started on 3-27. Many of the eggplants sprouted slowly, and some of the tomatoes simply grow slower, depending on the variety. But the tomatoes are doing well, for just planting on 4-5! This is why I can't imagine planting them as early as some do, unless they will be in a pot like those large peppers, by the time they go out!
ImageTomatoes on 4-23, started on 4-5 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageEggplants in front, a few peppers in back, and more tomatoes on the right. 4-23 by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#31

Post: # 45645Unread post pepperhead212
Mon Apr 26, 2021 3:34 pm

I started hardening off my tomatoes today - just 90 min, in somewhat cool (56° when put out) and breezy, but I have had an oscillating fan, on and off on a timer for a while, to help strengthen the plants against the wind.
Hard to believe these were only planted 3 weeks ago! Pinky Blast (a compact variety) was the smallest - only about 3", hidden in this somewhere, and a few other smaller ones, but most grew very well.
ImageBeginning to harden off the tomatoes, on 4-26 by pepperhead212, on Flickr

The extended forecast shows no signs of cold weather in the beginning of May, like last season. Still a couple of nights in the high 40s left in April, but most nights are well into the 50s, or even the 60s - even maybe ok for slightly early peppers.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#32

Post: # 45654Unread post pepperhead212
Mon Apr 26, 2021 5:59 pm

I just planted some bottle gourd seeds, that sprouted very quickly (actually, less than 36 hours in the petri dish), after soaking overnight in a 250 ppm solution of GA-3. The seeds of the one variety I bought in 2016, and 4 of the 6 have already sprouted! I bought the new variety Alok this season, because the "long" variety (a generic term on the seed packet) I grew last season produced nothing but female flowers early on, with no male blossoms! The opposite of our usual winter squash - too bad these aren't edible. When males appeared, the females were scarce. Hopefully, I won't see that again.
Image5 year old Dhol bottle gourd seeds, sprouting in 36 hours after soaking 12 hours in GA-3 solution. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

ImageNew Alok bottle gourd seeds, sprouting in 36 hours, after soaking 12 hours in GA-3 solution. by pepperhead212, on Flickr

These, and similar cucurbit seeds, I plant in Jiffy pellets, placing the sprout down, and in a couple of weeks, when roots start growing through the surface of the pellet, they get planted outside. Soon, I'll be doing this with the winter squash, as well.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#33

Post: # 45679Unread post pepperhead212
Tue Apr 27, 2021 11:48 am

Those 2 trays of tomatoes are out again this morning, almost no wind, but intense sun! I'll leave them for 2 hours today, and maybe take those large peppers out briefly.

This morning I found 2 bitter melon seeds sprouted in the petri dishes, in under 2 1/2 days. These seeds are notoriously slow, and difficult to germinate, due to the thick hulls - I've gotten some packets that say they are "overpacked", due to the low % germination, warning people about this problem. Some people actually sand off part of the hull, to help the water permeate them! I soaked these for 24 hours in a 250 ppm solution of GA-3, and in under 2 1/2 days, 2 of 4 of the new variety had sprouted. I have 2 other varieties - these are 1 and 2 years old, and I'll see if this helped them.
Image2 bitter melon seeds sprouted in under 60 hours, after soaking in GA-3. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#34

Post: # 45692Unread post pepperhead212
Tue Apr 27, 2021 2:05 pm

I cut the first asparagus because it was just getting too tall, with just a few very small ones finally popping up. I put those large peppers out, to start hardening off, and they are getting large! Some are larger than some varieties get the entire year!
Imagechinense peppers hardening off, 4-27. First large asparagus stalk in front. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#35

Post: # 45715Unread post pepperhead212
Tue Apr 27, 2021 11:28 pm

Today I 'tilled a bunch of paths in my garden, to turn the weeds under, plus the row for my squash, which I covered at the end of last season to solarize it. I re-used the landscape fabric for the 3rd season - will probably be the last time, and it doesn't owe me anything! I put a smaller length in the front, and added some more irrigation line and emitters, to fill the space - this year I will have even more plants!
ImageRow for squash, and a couple of gourds, tilled, covered, and set up with irrigation. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#36

Post: # 45717Unread post mama_lor
Wed Apr 28, 2021 2:54 am

pepperhead212 wrote: Tue Apr 27, 2021 11:48 am This morning I found 2 bitter melon seeds sprouted in the petri dishes, in under 2 1/2 days. These seeds are notoriously slow, and difficult to germinate, due to the thick hulls - I've gotten some packets that say they are "overpacked", due to the low % germination, warning people about this problem.
For me they were also slow. That GA3 must have helped quite a bit. I just remove the hull completely, sanding off sounds like a pain. They are very easy to crack and remove, almost like a melon seed, and it definitely helps a lot, I think the hull is very poorly penetrated by water.

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#37

Post: # 45733Unread post pepperhead212
Wed Apr 28, 2021 11:12 am

Thanks for the tip, [mention]mama_lor[/mention]! I wouldn't have thought of that - I would have been afraid I'd to damage the seeds.

So I took one of those soaked ones, and carefully, with a single edge razor blade, and an eye loupe, separated the husk around the edge, and it worked! I'll find out how it speeds things up. I can see how this might work with watermelon seeds, too.
ImageA bitter melon seed, with half of the husk taken off. I'll see if it works! by pepperhead212, on Flickr
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#38

Post: # 45964Unread post pepperhead212
Sat May 01, 2021 5:47 pm

My asparagus is still slow - only a few harvestable stalks, and a number are bolting while very skinny, instead of of forming thick stalks. This is just the 3rd year after planting.

The wind died down considerably today, so I planted most of my tomatoes, plus 2 tomatillos. I planted 23 of the tomatoes - the ones that had thick stems. A few grew slower, so I didn't want to risk wind damage to those thinner plants. I still have at least 8 tomatoes to plant.

Still some nights forecast in the high 40s, so too cold for planting peppers and eggplants.

I only noticed flower buds starting on one of those plants - one of the two 42 day cherry tomatoes. It wasn't gets as rootbound as some of the others, but one was just starting to show flower buds. I pulled them off, but it will be interesting to see when they start producing flower buds again.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#39

Post: # 45974Unread post Amateurinawe
Sun May 02, 2021 12:44 am

I think this is year 4 or 5 for my asparagus and there are lots of thick ones [mention]pepperhead212[/mention] . However, I did read that the female plants tend to have fewer and thinner stalks. They are the ones that seed. I think it probably too early to tell but when you let them grow out for summer note which ones seed. But they do take time to establish.
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Re: pepperhead212's 2021 garden

#40

Post: # 46101Unread post pepperhead212
Mon May 03, 2021 4:26 pm

Yesterday, I planted 3 of my large chinense peppers - they were just getting too large for hauling in and out every day. Unfortunately, the stalk on one snapped - the reason I always grow extras! I figured that with some night-time lows around 48-49° late this week, I might cover with Agribon, but already the the lows are going up some - I'll see if it's necessary. The rest of the peppers will be ready in mid-May, so it should be warm enough then.

I also planted - later than normal - some greens started indoors, because the ones I direct seeded did not cooperate; about the only things that germinated quickly were radishes. The brassicas simply took forever, and the same with lettuces, yet all of the seeds germinated quickly inside. I saw a few kohlrabi popping up, as I was planting the seedlings - I don't know why it took them so long.

I re-potted my last indoor plant - the 20 year old kaffir (a.k.a. makrut) lime tree, the largest of the plants, which is why I procrastinated with it for so long. I let it dry out considerably, then moved it to the deck, and did the re-potting there, as I didn't want to be moving it far, once re-potted! I filled it halfway, then put it in its final place, and finished filling.
Woodbury, NJ zone 7a/7b

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