Steve,
Again with me not knowing your area it is hard for me to suggest dates. And then our weather cycles and dates change. Up till 5-6 years ago I had my early tomatoes in by April 20th and a few years set out peppers by May 15th. The last 3 years I have had freezes from May 12th-15th. Like some corn farmers I was talking too. Up till the last 4-5 years they always had their corn planted by mid April. Now after having to replant a crop or two many aren't planting till after May 1st. The soil temps were high enough to plant by April 1st last year but the early morning air temps were too low. If I want to plant peppers early I plant chile types from higher elevations. They are adapted and acclimated to the cooler morning temps. And most sweet peppers will tolerate some coolness. I have to be very careful though when I select varieties. So most years just wait and plant them all at the same time. The last several years it has been the last week of May for the 1st ones and up until early July on the others. I can pick a nice crop here even planting that late. I always keep a watch on the long range forecasts and consider the recent trends when deciding when to plant. But basically I put out a few seeds and if they germinate before I have transplanted then I go ahead and transplant. Jay

The care package arrived today. Those participating in the 3rd Annual I.E. Pick-A-Peck of Peppers Swap are in for a real treat! Thanks, Jay, for the donation!!!

We have a winner! It was a race between three different peppers.
#1 Aji Yellow (Sorry the picture is a bit blurry, camera was not cooperating today)

... and here are the runner ups - Aji Picante and Aji Angelo

That only took 18 days!!!! I realize that a heat mat would have sped things up considerably, but I have mainly grown annums in the past, and they have always come up in 10-14 days even without heat. Glad I started the chinense and baccatums as early as I did. Hoping to get the annums sown sometime this week.

How's everyone else's grow coming along?

Bonnie

I started planting a few last night so obviously nothing has come up yet. Last year I did too many hot peppers. Trying to find a better balance this year. I'm probably scaling back some this year on the nightshade family as I like to have at least a 2 year rotation. I'll see how that scaling back works.

So far what has been planted is:

Lemon Drop
Serrano
Fresno Chili
Pimento L
Sweet Red Cherry
Sweet Pickle
Ancho San Luis Poblano
Sandia Hot
Hungarian Hot Wax
Red Cheese

Probably more to come soon.

Greg

Hi Greg! I wondered about all of those hots on your grow list last year, LOL! The hottest thing on my grow list is a habanero. Not brave enough to try any of the super hots yet.

Today, I sowed all of the annums, 34 varieties. If you add that to the list of chinense and baccatums that I started 3 weeks ago, I'm growing 56 different peppers this year ... so far.

Here's what I sowed today:

Alma Paprika
Ancho San Luis
Barker
Biker Billy Hyb.
Black Hungarian
Bulgarian Carrot
Chile de Arbol
Chile Hidalgo
Chilhaucle Amarillo
Chilhaucle Rojo
Chimayo
Cochiti
Cosa Arrugada
Costeno Amarillo
Fish
Fresno
Guajillo
Hawaiian Sweet Hot
Jaloro
Japone
Melrose
Mulato Isleno
Piment d'Espelette
NuMex Pinata
Pusztagold
Sandia
Santa Fe Grande
Sucette de Provence
Tollie's Sweet Italian
Jimmy Nardello
Espanola Improved
Big Jim
Patio Red Marconi

A few more of the ones sown in the last round have sprouted - Cachucha, Cajamarca, and Rain Forest.

Here's a shot of all of them:

With 2 of everything sown, I could potentially have over 100 plants in a few weeks!

My Jalapeno, Bulgarian Carrot, Gypsy, Gypsy off-shoot, Wonderbell Hybrid and egg plant, are all up and running. Today I planted Earlired, Negro Chile, Carlo Putini, and Lipstick, seeds of which arrived Friday from Sandhill Preservation. All of those packets had 80+ seeds, except Lipstick, which only had 20. Who knows.

anyway, here's my set up -

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and a close up of the Bulgarian Carrot

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Wow, David, that's like a little miniature pepper forest! Do you separate all those little guys into their own pots? That looks like way too much work for me.

This year, I'm doing one seed per cell, but in the past, when I used 1L bottles to start my seeds, I put 2 - 4 seeds per container, and even that was a pain to separate. Can't imagine doing a clump as big as the one in your photos!

I do the same thing with tomatoes and onions, Bonnie. They're not that difficult to separate, I just slip the whole cell out of the six-pack and then swish it around in a bucket of warm water, most of the soil just washes out, then its pretty easy to pull the plants/roots apart. The trick, if there is one, is always hold the plants by the leaves or the roots, never the stem. I try and wait until at least one true leaf shows up, by then they're a bit more sturdy.

Then I transplant them into 4x4x5"deep pots, bury them up to the leaves, and off they go, and they should be a foot high and flowering in late May.

Hmmmm ... still sounds like work to me, David. I'll be popping those individual plugs in some 3" pots already ready with potting mix. I'll let you know how long it takes me, LOL! We'll compare notes later : )

I sowed a couple of Joe's Long aka 'Whippet's Tail' seeds today. Not that I needed to add any more to my growlist, but I couldn't resist entering the Longest Chile Competition over at THP.

I've also received several items on my wishlist as a result of hosting the Pick-A-Peck of Peppers swap. Still trying to decide if I can wait until next year to grow them, or if they "need" to be sown now. Haha!

Here are some pictures of a few of my pepper babies.

Fish - Has anyone grown this one? It's supposed to have variegated foliage, and I'm just wondering when that will start to show.

Sandia

Biker Billy Hybrid Jalapeno - the only hybrid I'm growing this year. Hey, check out the fused leaf on the right.

Chocolate Habanero - this is the hottest pepper I'm growing this year, and it was one of the last things to germinate, so it's a little behind the rest.

Big Jim

This one was taken earlier in the week, Black Hungarian. Love the coloring on this one, including the pods!

I have half a dozen overwintering pepper plants enjoying a day out in the sunshine. I'll be checking them closely for passengers before I bring them back in tonight.

Sigh - this will be my first summer in CO after moving from MI late last summer. I am renting an apartment right now (but kept my home in MI) and my balcony is completely shaded, really doesn't even get filtered light with the trees, so even peppers in containers are out of the question for me. Although I know they will not get the sun they need, I couldn't resist starting a few tomato and pepper seeds. I started Santa Fe peppers and some tumbler tomatoes, both of which are going strong. I have met a neighbor who has full sun on her balcony, and she is excited to take over the seedlings once they are ready to put into pots. Nothing like the common love of gardening as a way to meet new friends!

That is a very positive message, Zinnia.

Far down the scale is this little bit of information: Just a few days ago, I had decided that my Takanotsume did not germinate because the seed was old. But they did, too! The little bent heads of the Takanotsume are showing above the soil!

Some of The Big Early bells were taken out of their common cookie boxes and transplanted into flats, yesterday. I've got more of them to move and should be moving the Thai Hots, as well. Then, here are the Takanotsume. The seeds for all were sown at the same time.

I don't think those little, hot Japanese demons will be too late. They mature quickly but, obviously, start off slowly. Thirteen varieties of peppers and they are weeks behind everything else. I must have contributed to their delay by putting all the seed in only 2 containers and needing to move them out of the warm darkness of the kitchen to the cool light of a window.

Oh, but they are hot!! Too much so for me make much use of them as I learned when Takanotsume was in my garden in 2010.

Steve

My big project this year, assuming I get another great pepper harvest, is to make my own hot sauce, fermenting the peppers the same way one makes sauerkraut.

That way, I can dilute those really hot peppers down to something thats edible.

David, I've thought about trying this too! Do you have already have a recipe in mind?

Bonnie, I've done it several times, its pretty easy. Similar to cabbage, just chop up the peppers, sweet and hot ones, mix with salt, mash all that down, seal the mash with a doubled plastic bag full of water, then let it ferment in a covered, sealed crock for a month or so.

Then when its ready - smells really good - I run it through a food mill to get rid of the skin and seeds, then mix it with white wine vinegar and/or cider vinegar, mango juice, bit of ginger, and so on, then can it.

The last time I did it, I filled a 3 gallon crock with peppers, and by the time I was finished, had about 3 gallons of sauce. Which lasted some time.

Peppers are coming along really well. It's been about 6 weeks since I planted the seed. Almost all are on their 5th set of true leaves. Going to pot them up tomorrow which is one of my least favorite tasks but it must be done.

I love growing peppers. I have a lot to learn, but I had great success with jalapenos and serranos last year, they seemed much more fiery than I expected them to be. I am looking forward to growing bhut jolokia, which has just sprouted this week (yes I got a very late start); I also have my starts of italian sweet red pepper, pasilla bajio, chocolate sweet bell; all ready to go and growing strong. Was last year a stellar year for peppers and tomatoes or was I just getting lucky doing things "right"?

Hmmm ... where I live, last year was a decent year for peppers, but a lousy one for tomatoes, so you must have been doing something right! Not trying to be funny, but just curious why you would want to grow Bhut Jolokias if you think Jalapenos, and Serranos are hot? Glad to see another pepper enthusiast around here! I host a pepper seed swap here on GardenWeb every spring that is a great way to expand your inventory, if your interested.

Here are a couple of recent pics:

The annuums

Aji Chinchi Amarillo (new to me)

A couple of Cachuchas (also new this year), very short, but bushy.

The half dozen overwintered pepper plants have been spending a few hours outside most days, are putting out a lot of new growth. I have been pinching the buds off until I can put them in their permanent homes.

Bonnie

Bonnie,

they sure are pretty!

Steve

Peppers are doing decent for this time of year :-)

{{gwi:228042}}

Wow, yours are already in gallon pots? You are way ahead of me. When did you sow those?

They look great! Congratulations on a healthy pepper crop! Will those go in the ground, or in containers?

Yes, some are already in gallon containers and quite a few of the others are ready to be potted up. I've upgraded some of my lights to T5 high output and added a few CFLs which has seemed to help and the weather has been warm enough to bring the trays outside most days.

The seeds were sown about Feb. 15th. I think I'll be putting most of them in the ground but maybe keep a couple in containers and see if I can overwinter them.

Greg

The plants look great. You are way ahead of me. I haven't finished my greenhouse so only have the light stands and the lean to till it warmed enough I could use the cold frames. So I planted mine a little later than you. And didn't pot up as soon as I could have. Mine look good but not near the size of yours. I won't put anything in the ground till around May 15th I imagine. If temps hold and no sign of a cool down I may plant a few the first week of May. Jay

highalttransplant, To answer your question simply; I like a gardening challenge, even if that means babying the bhuts. I plan to smoke/roast/grill and dry the ghost chilis/bhut's for sauces....and someone I know really wants fresh ghost chilis to put in hamburgers, and I'm down to try it out, even if I cry for an hour afterward :) I've always liked it hot, but I understand that flavor is a better thing to have than simply seeringly spicy food.

Last year I had some critters digging in the boxes I grow chiles and tomatoes in...I made my special sauce/soil drench of ground up garlic and serranos, I have yet to see an animal anywhere near these beds. I plan to use the chiles in this manner as necessary to keep scavengers at bay in my gardens; I hope I can use the ghost chilis in this manner so that I can have more serranos to myself for salsa and sauces. Does anyone see a potential problem with this method (am I killing beneficial soil organisms?)?

I already have loads of pepper plants started, and would be interested in a swap for some seeds at some point. Why is it so easy to make too many pepper and tomato starts? There always seems to be a few orphan plants that get handed out to unsuspecting friends, or friends of friends. :)

Greg, those are wonderful looking peppers!

I'm not sure if I see any problem with your "special sauce/soil drench of ground up garlic and serranos," Rockymountainkat.

I'll give you the argument that the serranos would be better to keep for the table and some of these with more pain than anything else could be used. And, I've wondered about making something like that myself.

The hot(!) pepper in my garden is Thai Hots and I can't really see picking a multitude for use as a pesticide. Harvesting the little things is a real chore. I've tried growing hananeros and the pods never even filled out in my garden climate. I've got some Japanese peppers (Takanotsume) and they are so hot that I can't eat them, really.

There was also another Japanese variety that was more ornamental than anything, both matured to red and especially that ornamental would be easy to pick.

A bunny raced out of the neighbor's raspberry jungle as soon as I started the rototiller the last time I was out there. I can't rely on loud noises and the owls or that vagabond coyote to take care of these things for me. The bunnies eliminate half the greenbeans every year!

Steve
who doesn't believe you would be killing any beneficial organisms, soil or otherwise

Wow! Everyone's peppers look great and ready for planting! Mine seem a bit stunted in comparison. Could it have been the lights?

What would anyone recommend for lighting? Right now I have hot and cool, but have read suggestions for Gro Lux (?) bulbs.

Also, those fungus gnats have arrived and I've been squishing them as best I can as I don't want to spray them with anything just yet. I'm assuming the bugs came from the soil. I've tried 'mosquito dunk', chamomile tea with cinnamon. Any other suggestions for 2013?

This year I started about 30 kinds of hot peppers. When the pods start coming in, I'd love to share some seeds.

J

TomatoZ, I assume you have T12 bulbs and if you have a mix then you are good. No need for grow lights. If you want to upgrade you can go to T5 high output which is a bit pricey but they really are very nice. Cheaper route is adding some CFLs in a utility lamp.

I have battled fungus gnats for a few years now. I use neem oil and Dawn. It smells like rotten onions for a day or so. Not so pleasant but it works.

Azamax got rid of fungus gnats and aphids for me. It took three weekly soil drenches, and then they were 100% gone. It's expensive, but an effective organic option. Got it at the local hydroponics store.

I can get rid of fungus gnats. The problem is with my system at this time of the year more get into the house all the time. As long as there's not lots of them I can deal with it.

Thanks for the info on the lighting. We have shop lights that either have T12 or T8s in them, but for next year I would like to use the higher output bulbs. Only the peppers are smaller - the tomatoes are huge even though they were planted around March 15 or later.

Thanks also for the remedies for fungus gnats. Last year I had very few, but this year I used Pro Mix peat oin the pepper transplant soil and know I got lambasted with the gnats from that soil. Those bales will stay in the shed and only be used for outdoor pots!

Next year I'll be ready . . . . and not plant so many peppers!

Finally got my sprouts outdoors to enjoy a little sunshine. We've had way too much wind to risk it up till now.

I've been pinching the buds off of both the seedlings and the overwintering plants, but I let a couple go on this Pasilla Bajio from last year.

Here' what it looks like now. It's more green, less black than the picture appears.

Tempted to go ahead and plant the ones that will be in containers, since I can always move them into the garage if necessary.

Anyone else close to planting out?

Frost is in our forecast here, Bonnie.

Besides, it has been years since my peppers have looks so baaad! *#^%$%@!

Too many days lost to darkness & clouds. They've had some okay weather lately but should really have some fresh soil by now in order to take advantage of it. Bide there time for awhile longer and then take their chances in the wider world. I guess that's true for all of us, anyway.

Builds character . . .

Steve

I'm waiting at least 10 more days before setting peppers into the ground. Too much hassle to protect everything should a frost come along.

My peppers are loaded with blossoms. I was picking them off but at this point just going to let them be.

UGH -

My inner circle - weather freaks - said weeks ago that we were "PASSED BAD WEATHER"...blah blah blah.

I was sick of tending to seedlings.

I planted - WEEKS ago; not all but most. I would have planted all but ran out of room.

I used pepper space for dwarf tomatoes and although these tomato plants are adorable, I am short on pepper space now.

AND, now I'm holding my breath that these peppers forgive me...and build character.

I have been removing buds as well - first time for me.

I know what you mean, Deb! I passed a house the other day with their peppers already in the ground, and they looked okay, so I was tempted. Of course, they could have just put them in that afternoon, LOL! The hauling them in and out is getting pretty old, but the forecast is calling for a low of 36 degrees tonight. I'm going to wait until the lows are consistently in the 40's before planting the in ground ones. I did pot up a few overwinters, but they weren't too happy with being out overnight, even on the covered porch, so I started hauling those pots in and out too, and they are the 5 gallon size, so major pain in the you know what!

Last year, I planted out too soon, because the plants got kicked out of the guest room for company, and it set them back quite a bit. They eventually recovered and I had a good year, but I think if can hold out a little longer before planting them out, they might not sulk as much.

I don't really know what to do. We had 3 recent frosts, including one yesterday morning.

My peppers look pretty darn sad and would really benefit from being in some new ground.

The forecast for tonight is 41F and then much warmer! In fact, the highs should be well over 80 for a few days, then cool off. How much off? I don't know but I wish the cooling would come quickly so we could get it behind us and then get on with the growing season!!

Steve

The weather here is at least 2-3 weeks ahead of schedule, all the trees are leafed out, lows in the low 40's. I already planted all my tomatoes out, unprotected* because they were getting too tall in the greenhouse. I'm in the process of transplanting the peppers from 4x4x6-deep pots into the bigger containers and taking them outside a few at a time. They'll all be outside here shortly. Then still have 50-odd that need to go into the garden.

*I can always heap up grass clippings if a frost is likely

Well, David, I think I may have caught up with you today, unless you already got yours in the ground. Planted 8 in Earthboxes, and 4 in large individual containers. Still have around 50 to plant in the garden beds here, and at the community garden.

Here are some pictures:

Destined for Earthboxes

Earthbox #1 = Alma Paprika, Pusztagold, Melrose, and Patio Red Marconi

Earthbox #2 = Biker Billy Hyb. Jalapeno, Jaloro, Guajillo, and Fresno

Individual containers. Sorry this first one is a bit blurry. It's Jimmy Nardello

Sucette de Provence

Cosa Arrugada. This one was super productive last year, and made a great sweet paprika, but it was in the ground. I hope it does as well in a container.

Fish, starting to show its variegation.

They will spend the night on the porch. The low is supposed to be 39 degrees tonight, but after that were supposed to have lows in the 40's for the next few days. Sure hope my babies will be okay out there!

Haven't updated in a while, so this post will be picture heavy. The in ground plants here at the house went in the ground on the 20th of May, which was a week too early. We had one more freeze warning, and high wind advisories, so everything had to be covered. Fortunately, I didn't lose anything!

Found my first bloom yesterday, on the Black Hungarian.

This past weekend, I finally got the rest of them planted down at the community garden = 48 seedlings and 3 overwinters. There's 16 in the vegetable bed at the house, and another 15 in pots and earthboxes, so that brings the total up to 82 plants this year.

This was right after planting out.

This is what went into the lucky spot of the veggie bed at the house:

Chimayo
Piment d' Espelette
Aci Sivri
Ancho San Luis
Rain Forest
Aji Yellow
Cachucha
Joe's Long (aka Whippet's Tail)
Big Jim
Black Hungarian
NuMex Espanola Improved
Chilhuacle Rojo
Pimenta Barro do Robiero
Japone
Aji Picante
Sandia

For Mother's Day I asked for soaker hoses, and I purchased a timer, so that I don't have to spend my whole summer watering down at the community garden.

Here is a shot after it was planted:

So here's what was planted by row, starting with the one on the left:

Row # 1
Tobago Seasoning x 2
Belize Sweet x 2

Trinidad Perfume x 2
Zavory
Rocotillo

Chimayo
Cachucha
Chiero Recife x 2

Pimente d' Espelette
Jimmy Nardello
Melrose
Sandia

Row #2
Aji de la Tierra
Aji Yellow
Aji Chinchi Amarillo x 2

Aji Rojo
Aji Angelo
Chile Hidalgo
Guajillo

Serrano Huasteco x 2
Chilhuacle Amarillo x 2

Costena Amarillo x 2
Bulgarian Carrot
Jalora

Row#3
Peach Habanero x 4

Chocolate Habanero
Long Chocolate Habanero x 2
Cajamarca

Inca Red Drop x 2
Pequin x 2

Hawaiian Sweet Hot x 2
Chile de Arbol
Rain Forest

I'm using a support technique normally using on tomatoes, called the Florida weave. Ran my first line yesterday.

Found a couple of blooms at the community garden. This one is Aji Angelo.

Aji Chinchi Amarillo

There are quite a few plants loaded with buds already. I was pinching them off of the seedlings until about a week ago, then I just let them go.

This one's Bulgarian Carrot.

Well, I guess that brings you up to date with this years grow!

Bonnie

Bonnie,

They look great! Nice job on your peppers this year. Mine are doing pretty well and just a few are flowering, but they need fertilizing. I got out the Jack's Classic to mix tonight, but after being out in the wind decided it could wait till morning. I sure wish this wind would quit but I think that's wishful thinking. I'm looking forward to July monsoon!

You're looking to have a great harvest this year!

Barb

Wow, what a beautiful pepper patch!

Bonnie, your finger prints are all over this year's project! I wish you could take care of my garden. Maybe I'll post a picture or 2 here in the forum to show what things look like - but, my peppers are waaayy off in the distance in the photo.

My greenhouse was 47F when I got up about 4:30. It is nearly noon and it has made it up to 49F. Only the basil in there without the furnace on and they must hate me!

The peppers? They are developing character waaayy out there in the garden, with the rain, 30mph gusts and 43F! Poor things!

Steve

Well, it's been over 3 weeks since the last of the peppers went in the ground, and some things are finally starting to take off, others just seem to be sitting there.

We've had temps in the upper 90's for the past week, plus single digit humidity levels, and constant winds, resulting in quite a bit of bud/blossom drop. Doesn't look like we'll see any break from the heat in the next week.

There are a couple of plants that manage to set pods this week, but most of the ones in the pictures set before the extreme heat kicked in.

Jimmy Nardello @ community garden

Sandia in the veggie garden here at the house

Bulgarian Carrot @ comm. garden

Aji Chinchi Amarillo @ Comm. garden

Aji Angelo @ C.G.

Melrose in Earthbox (managed to set in the heat!)

Fresno also in Earthbox and set this week! I'm guessing that being on the east side of the house with afternoon shade has been an advantage for the container plants.

Black Hungarian here @ the house

Current view of the veggie bed here at the house

And a shot of one of the pepper rows down at the community garden.

Hopefully, my next update will include a harvest shot!!!

Bonnie

Bonnie,
I haven't been on the forums much lately and must of missed this update. Great looking plants. They have done well for you. I always set mine out a little later than most. Just the way I learned growing up. Most of the chile types and those with heat are doing very well now. Almost jumping and good fruit set on many. It was very hot here for almost two weeks. Finally got a break starting last Sunday along with some rain. And it lasted till yesterday. I will try to take some pictures and post them soon. I was out amongst them around noon trimming the potato vines away from the peppers and noticed quite a bit of fruit set. Imagine I'll be picking a few before long. Need to go back with my list and see what is doing the best. I know at least one of the India varieties is setting very well. I will be saving seeds when possible. We received an inch of rain during the cool down. It at least perked things up but back to watering starting yesterday. Almost waited too long. Some of the onion varieties are maturing. Those varieties from Rocky Ford have up to 16 leaves and starting to bulb up. They should be huge bulbs judging by the number of leaves. The last planting of sweet corn is just maturing. It will help when I don't have to water either. They say another chance of moisture the first of next week with a better chance the first of the next week. And maybe a gradual decrease in temps as the month progresses. One does have a spell of a few days around and into the 100's. My garden can take the 90's ok. The 100's really puts stress on it. Overall though things look better than the last 4 years. I'm growing a few varieties of rare beans. One from Arkansas is an heirloom from a mountain region there that is a season long bearing bush bean that is also drought tolerant. I hope to save seeds for anyone wanting to try it. Hope to see more pepper pictures soon. Jay

Hi Jay,

Good to hear from you! Lots of growth here in the last couple of weeks. I had a lot of bud/blossom drop during the heat wave, but noticed a good bit of pod set when I was down at the garden earlier today.

This picture was taken a week ago, so things look even fuller and taller now.

Here's a couple more pod shots.

Bulgarian Carrot, loaded with pods.

Aji Chinchi Amarillo. I have two of these, and they are heavy producers. They start out upright, but as the pod gets bigger, they kind of flop over to the side. Can't wait to taste one!

Belize Sweet bloom. Love the purple stems on this one!

I'll try and get some more recent pics soon ...

Bonnie,
Overall my plants look very similar in size to yours. I just came in from spending about two hours out in the garden. I did some watering. Most by soaker hose. I really hate to water at this time of day but had some that needed it. Most of the older plants I have fed liquid bone meal too( high in P) too looked fine. They have developed a good root system and are fine. Those plants that have germinated over the last 2-3 weeks some I haven't fed yet grew too much foliage during the cool down and were hurting this afternoon. It is a normal occurrence on young plants after a cool down this time of year. I used to have the same issue with tomatoes and peppers to some extent before I started feeding them a liquid bone meal starting right after transplant or usually at around 3 weeks of age. I had to trim the potatoes back big time. Have never had potato plants as big as these and still showing no signs of quitting. I was hoping they would be done by now. A few of the pepper plants they had grew into stretched out a little to get above them. I went through and checked each plant for fruit set. Overall they are setting well. Some better than others. Should have a good harvest in 6-8 weeks. I won't make any promises about pictures. But hopefully soon. I try to take pictures through the growing season so I can compare and see how they performed from start to finish. The big Jim WC plant is setting very heavy. Will see what kind of size I have on the fruit when it is mature. I have a few minor issues with a few plants. I planted them next to my onions which I know better than to do. Peppers will do better next to onions than tomatoes but they will still develop a few issues because of it. Jay

What kind of issues? I have never heard this, but you have a lot more growing experience than I do. I do have that companion planting book 'Carrots Love Tomatoes', which says not to plant the onions near beans or peas, but I don't remember any mention of peppers not doing well near onions. The reason I ask is if you look at this photo of the community garden, you will see a row of onions right next to the first row of peppers.

Here's a few more pepper pics:

Chile Hidalgo (@ the comm. garden)

Chilhuacle plants and a pod shot (@ C.G.) Also, a good picture to show the Florida weave support technique I'm using this year.

Jaloro, a yellow jalapeno type (this one's at the C.G, but I have one in an Earthbox doing about the same here at the house)

Here's my tallest plants, at least 3' in height, Costeno Amarillo, and a close up of the latest pods.

A couple of Chilhuacle Rojo pod shots (here at the house)

Patio Red Marconi loading up with pods (in an Earthbox here at the house)

Sandia, looks good from the photo, but this plant has me worried. Showing signs of some kind of wilt. Had to cut a couple of lower branches off, but am worried it will spread to the whole plant. At least I have another one down at the community garden if I have to rip this one out.

... and finally, an old favorite, Alma Paprika. (In an Earthbox here at the house)

Sure with the peppers would start ripening soon. It would be nice if I could get a couple harvests processed before the kids go back to school, and the schedule gets all hectic again!

Bonnie the main issue I have is with thrip vectored diseases when I plant next to the onions. The onions are a magnet for thrips. I've had some minor thrip damage to the onions this year. And from the looks of a few pepper plants I'm afraid they are showing early signs of disease. I will leave them long enough to confirm whether they do or not. If they do they will be yanked quickly. With the heat and hot dry winds stress issues can fool a person early on. It seems if I plant a least one crop in between the onions and my tomatoes or my peppers I see very few problems. The year that it became apparent I plant two tomato rows 4 ft apart with the south row 3 ft north of the onions. I had 19 plants in that row if memory serves me correctly and I lost 18 of them to thrip vectored diseases. So have been careful with where I plant the tomatoes since and haven't had that severe of a problem since. One extension service said it is best to keep them separated in areas where the thrips are a problem. When I planted my peppers I felt the onions would be out by now so thought I could squeak by. Another mistake I made is I planted them on the north side of the onions. With our SW winds if you plant them on the south side they usually move to the NE when they move. Jay

First pepper harvest of the season!!!

It's supposed to be a Costeno Amarillo, but I'm guessing it's actually a Costeno Rojo ...

AHHH!! Did I send that Costeno Amarillo?

I just looked up my source and usually she is very accurate.

Sorry - I haven't grown that one yet.

Just realized it's been quite a while since I updated this thread.

Deb, a couple of people in that swap sent that one in, and I didn't make a note who's seed I sowed.

I have been getting some small harvests for about a month now, and they are starting to get bigger. All the plants have pods on them now, except Aji Rojo, which is just now flowering. That one won't be on next year's grow list!

When the weather was really hot and dry, I had a lot blossom drop, but some set pods in spite of the conditions. So far, the stand out varieties have been:

Jaloro. Just about every bloom set a pod. They are loaded with thick yellow jalapenos. Make excellent poppers too!

Aji Chinchi Amarillo. I grew Aji Yellow last year, and loved the flavor, but it needs a long season. The Aji Chinchi Amarillo has a similar flavor with slightly less heat, but what it really has going for it is that it's super early, and very productive. They are on the left in the photo below.

Another early and productive variety has been Jimmy Nardello.

Not far behind it is Patio Red Marconi.

... and Inca Red Drop. Little bite sized morsels of sweet heat.

Biggest disappointments so far:

Bulgarian Carrot. It's early, and somewhat productive, but the skin is tough, and the flavor is lacking. If all you're looking for is heat, it will do the job.

Big Jim. Lots of BER on this one! Sandia has pods that are just as big, but without the BER, and it has way more pods on it than the Big Jim.

Chile Hidalgo. The plant looked so cool with all its fuzziness, and the pods were all nice and shiny, but the one ripe one that I tasted was tough skinned, not tasty, and lacking in heat. Hoping that the later pods will be better.

I have quite a few varieties that are just starting to show some color, so I'll try to remember to report back as I try them out.