Spring garden 2012

[Iluv2hunt]

Got my pepper seeds planted a couple weeks ago and some are already sprouting. Ordered some other "super hots" and didn't get them planted till a few days ago




Gonna get the rest of the garden planted this weekend. I got about 200 pounds of horse shart/chicken shart/compost/lime/fertilizer worked into it a week ago. Its ready for some seeds

[Triple Creek Reaper]

I just increased the size of my raised garden this year, installed a fence and gate to keep the dogs out and am just about ready to start turning dirt. I have had some tarps covering the ground for the last 3 weeks, everything should just about be dead now. Where are you ordering your seeds from? I was thinking about planting on the full moon in March this year.

[Iluv2hunt]

I gotta make another row somewhere else, probably on the side yard or something to plant some other stuff. My raised bed is 8x16 made out of landscape timbers, 3 high. My chickens need their own garden since they like greenery

http://merch01.siteprotect.com/midwestchileheads.com/
http://www.chilepepperinstitute.org/cart/seeds/
http://www.pepperjoe.com/shoppingcart/html/pepper.html

[Triple Creek Reaper]

Thx for the links, already have an order into Pepper Joe's. My raised bed went from a 4x16 to an 18x18. I basically cordoned off the entire end of one side yard but I had to put a path thru it to get to a gate in the fence. The path ended up being the key to getting the wife out there and involved in the project. Should of seen the old lady and son out there driving those spike nails into the landscape timbers, sounded like a bunch of woodpeckers all afternoon.

[Iluv2hunt]

If you want some ghost pepper seeds let me know. I extracted about 100 from last seasons crop and have way more than I am going to plant. Its a guessing game on how well they will germinate. I planted some but they haven't sprouted yet. They are a PIA to grow

A tip I learned on planting pepper seeds. Soak them in water with just a splash of hydrogen peroxide(like one teaspoon to a bottle of water) for 12-24 hours before planting. Supposed to really increase germination rates. So far I believe it. I am up to about 80% germination of the seeds I planted 2-3 weeks ago.

[lamehawk]

Starting the garden looks like a good start!

[Kortsman]

Did you start last years ghost peppers from seeds? That's one I want to plant this year. That pepper institute said that it can take up to 36-80 days to germinate and then up to 160 to produce pods. Is that how long yours took?
I'll have an earth box dedicated exclusively for peppers this year.

[Iluv2hunt]

Its hard to say man. Last year I planted all my pepper seeds on Jan 1. Then it was so danged cold in Jan/Feb I had a helluva time keeping them warm enough to germinate. My peppers that did germinate I had to keep floro lights going on my back porch till it warmed up enough to move them outside. Not one of my ghost peppers germinated from the first planting. Zero. I ordered more thru one of the sites and all of them came up, but are very slow to grow. Once fall came around they produced well until I battled a fungus and it killed a lot of my pepper plants. I picked the last ghost pepper just the other day before I cut the plant back(only one surviving).

I am doing some things different this year. I hope to have better survival rate

I just moved my seed tray inside and placed under floro lights. Will keep them there for a while till they are bigger and can get them outside

[deutze]

just got back from sams club. green bell peppers 1$ each. guess I'll try planting some of those. do you test the ph of your soil? to see if it really needs lime?

[Iluv2hunt]

Didn't do a test, but as much composted horse and chicken manure as I tilled in, a couple pounds of lime will not hurt anything. I have no trouble growing anything in this bed at all

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[Triple Creek Reaper]

just got back from sams club. green bell peppers 1$ each. guess I'll try planting some of those. do you test the ph of your soil? to see if it really needs lime?

At times bell peppers and tomatoes can get expensive. Bell peppers and tomatoes were the two items that were recommended to start in small planters before moving outdoors, most everything else was recommended to just throw in the ground. My luck with the bell peppers has been hit and miss, some years I have a bumper crop and the plants are falling over from the weight. Some years I am lucky if I can keep the plants alive.

[bodysnatcher]

I got my 28x3 down the back of the house, 21x3 down one side, 12x4 raised bed, 8x4 raised bed in the back yard, and on the other side of the house I'm going to put some watermelon seeds out and mow around them.

[Iluv2hunt]

I can grow just about anything, and do it well...but maters are one plant I have serious trouble with. They simply frustrate the crap out of me. I bought 2 mater plants at Wally the other day for 94c each. I will transplant them and that will be the extent of my mater experience for the year. I give up on them

[Triple Creek Reaper]

My wife picked up a few mater transplants at the farmers market two weeks ago. The old farmer she bought them from told her to plant the entire mater halfway in the ground. I have never planted one that deep before but he told her that all of the small hairs coming off the main stalk were roots waiting to take hold and sure enough that plant took off, its 4 times the size after just a couple of weeks.

[Iluv2hunt]

Yeah, maters(and peppers) can form roots from the stem. I always bury 80% of the plant when I transplant them