82 replies to this topic

[GruFF]

petrolheads playing with flowers? im not sure what to think?

[siztenboots]

petrolheads playing with flowers? im not sure what to think?

Nobody mentioned flowers , must be a latent repressed ness coming to the surface.

Only killer hot chillies and tasty veg allowed here

[Spindoctor]

Only killer hot chillies and tasty veg allowed here

Yep watch out My chillis have just started producing beans. I break out in a sweat whenever I walk past them.

Now, what to do?? My pansies are shivering in this cruel weather we're having here in the south. I'm knitting them a muff

[Elaine]

is there a specific variety that only grows to be a l'il plant? i dont have a garden, but i do have a window and a shelf! i haven't tried to grow anything since my bonsai tree that died (my sister wanted to 'clean' it, so she watered it with soapy water, it wasn't happy)

There are quite a few dwarf varieties. If you click here, go to the Chili Pepper Seeds bit, then double click on the chilli pics it tells you a bit about each plant.
Or if you're feeling lazy you could just email Gaz, and ask him which types would suit you best. If you do tell him Elaine off the Airgun BBS says hello!

E.

[Jaysith]

[SAPD]

So, a bit of an update on the chilli growing front.

The wet summer mattered not a jot to my lucky, lucky chillies as they basked in what little sunshine we had, safely tucked away in my parents' greenhouse

Despite an awful lot of flower drop - I think due to the fact that the flowers seemed to not produce a great deal of pollen and so did not pollinate very efficiently - I have just made my first significant harvest of the year. I've been getting worried that the frost will get to the plants, even inside the greenhouse, so I was relieved when the fruits started to turn from green to brown to orange a couple of weeks ago and I plucked some of them today.

Oh, and they're Dorset Nagas BTW clicky

A pictorial representation of my chilli growing season follows:
My chilli farm (aka our dining table in Pompey ) from left to right: Scotch Bonnet, unidentified, Dorset Naga, Dorset Naga, Dorset Naga, unidentified.


Naga after a couple of weeks:


Nagas after a month or so:


Transplanted to parents' greenhouse... Naga flowers!


Kind of took over the greenhouse (virtually all the plants visible are Nagas )


Immature fruits:


Nearly there...


Picked today


Bit of perspective (the one on the phone was bloody massive!! )


Anyway, hope that wasn't too boring. I know I'm fantastically sad for taking pics of all my chillies but... I don't care!

Today I have made a hot sauce containing Dorset Nagas, papaya, carrot, red onion, turmeric and cider vinegar. It's tasty and makes your eyes water. Perfect I also made a ridiculously hot version of Tabasco... but I'm not sure what to do with it as it literally burns your nose just sniffing the vapours

[oblomov]

Just wondering if anyone else is planning to grow their own veg, chilies this year.

Started sowing the first early batch of salady stuff, on the 14th into compost and progating trays and most of it has germinated well indoor beside the radiator, and is now beside the window and everyday seems to be advancing skywards. Last year I grew a variety of tomatoes that were bloody superb, called Campari , smell delicious just like old tomatoes used to, skins are lovely you can eat them just like a fruit, sizewise well bigger than cherry yet slightly smaller than the usual , but the taste is amazing.

The problems come when you spend hours double digging and manuring a nice garden bed outside and plant them out and then every cat in the neighbourhood comes and uses it as a toilet and the plants all die. Unless you've got an electric fence that is.

Edited by oblomov, 21 October 2007 - 08:30 PM.

[Elaine]

So, a bit of an update on the chilli growing front.

The wet summer mattered not a jot to my lucky, lucky chillies as they basked in what little sunshine we had, safely tucked away in my parents' greenhouse

Despite an awful lot of flower drop - I think due to the fact that the flowers seemed to not produce a great deal of pollen and so did not pollinate very efficiently - I have just made my first significant harvest of the year. I've been getting worried that the frost will get to the plants, even inside the greenhouse, so I was relieved when the fruits started to turn from green to brown to orange a couple of weeks ago and I plucked some of them today.

Mine thrived outside, and produced well agin. I'll be taking them inside soon, where they'll live on a sunny windowsill until springtime.

If the bees aren't doing their job you need to tickle your flowers (with a feather, or even a pen) to pollenate them, the chillies grow where the pollenated flowers fall from.

E.

[TankRizzo]

Does anyone know when the best time to plant hedges is? I've got to introduce one to my front garden to grow up the new fence, but I've never done hedges before.

[siztenboots]

So, a bit of an update on the chilli growing front.

The wet summer mattered not a jot to my lucky, lucky chillies as they basked in what little sunshine we had, safely tucked away in my parents' greenhouse

Despite an awful lot of flower drop - I think due to the fact that the flowers seemed to not produce a great deal of pollen and so did not pollinate very efficiently - I have just made my first significant harvest of the year. I've been getting worried that the frost will get to the plants, even inside the greenhouse, so I was relieved when the fruits started to turn from green to brown to orange a couple of weeks ago and I plucked some of them today.

Mine thrived outside, and produced well agin. I'll be taking them inside soon, where they'll live on a sunny windowsill until springtime.

If the bees aren't doing their job you need to tickle your flowers (with a feather, or even a pen) to pollenate them, the chillies grow where the pollenated flowers fall from.

E.

Sorry to say I did not manage to get the firey red seeds you sent to germinate. But got some very wierd hybrid results from some seed I rescued from the kitchen, these were whole dried chillies from 2006 I had blended to make chili flakes, which I picked out some random seed from. I will try and keep the plants going over winter for next year as starting from seed each year yields smaller crops.

[SAPD]

If the bees aren't doing their job you need to tickle your flowers (with a feather, or even a pen) to pollenate them, the chillies grow where the pollenated flowers fall from.

Thanks Elaine. I did do this when they were all on the dining table - using an ear cleaner/cotton bud thing - but, when they went into the greenhouse, there were so many flowers that ot wouls have taken forever! I decided to just let nature do its thing. I guess there weren't enough flying things buzzing around in there to pollinate them all but I'll still have more than enough fruit

What were you growing? Fancy doing some seed trading?

[Elaine]

What were you growing? Fancy doing some seed trading?

Not growing many types at the mo just Nippon Taka, Apache, Medusa, Brazilian Rainbow, and Red Savina.

And I do a lot of Asian cookery, so I'm going to get some more Cayenne Slim going soon.

E.

Edited by Elaine, 28 October 2007 - 04:15 PM.

[Ren]

Bringing this topic back up as I have just ordered some chilli and tomato seeds from Mr Seeds. I haven't grown anything before so just looking for a few pointers. I read on the Mr Seeds site that I need 4 inch pots but apart from that I have no idea. So what type of compost do I need? How do I get the seeds to germinate etc? Any advice greatly appreciated. Cheers, Ren

[siztenboots]

This site ( http://www.southdevo...ng-chillies.php ) gives a good clear explanation without the need for specialist equipment.

I guess the only really tricky part is the germination, but once they are up, then just give them lots of light and less heat to get stronger plants. TBH any old plastic tray ( supermarket tomatos or other meat packaging will do ) and you can get 30L of John Innes seed compost for < £4 . Then plant them on to bigger plastic pots ( the pottery ones dry out to quick and are heavy to move around ) , they can support each other if they share a bigger pot.

My big trial this year is one of the hottest chilli in the world, the Dorset Naga (Capsicum chinense) from http://www.reallycoolseeds.co.uk/ , measuring about 1,000,000 Scoville Heat Units. Its scorching heat is combined with a distinctive fruity aroma makes it a truly exceptional chilli.

Rest of this years chilli seed I bought from Edenhendry seeds on Ebay , 10 of each variety , these will all be planted out when ready down at my allotment, where they can get dawn to dusk daylight.

1. Big Jim - The largest New Mexican type; producing pods up to 30cm long and 6cm wide. The pods are of a slightly flattened shape, and mature from green to red. The plant grows to a height of 60cm. A medium to hot variety.

2. Hot Banana - This is a large, thick-skinned pepper, that is relatively mild. It is a hungarian wax-type - the sort you find in your kebabs on a Friday night. They are ideal pickled and can be eaten raw.

3. Scotch Bonnet Yellow- A super-hot variety (a member of the habaneros). So-called because the peppers resemble a tom o'shanter (a traditional scottish hat). The plant can be grown in a grow bag and grows up to a height of 1.5m. However, if grown in a pot inside, it's growth will be restricted. Matures from green to yellow.

4. Cayenne - A great pepper for the complete novice. It is the typical finger shaped chilli, with a good heat (about 8/10). It can be easily dried by hanging in an airing cupboard, or putting in an oven on the lowest setting.

5. Jalapeno - The typical pepper used in North America for chilli-eating competitions. They are fantastic stuffed with sour cream, battered in breadcrumbs and then deep-fried. Yummy!

6. Congo Black - This is an ULTRA rare variety due to some bad crops in recent years - a black habanero-type pepper. HOT HOT HOT! I have a limited supply of these seeds , so this is a great addition to the collection.

7. Tabasco - The actually variety used to make the Lousiana hot sauce. It is another ideal bedding plant, being about 1 foot in height. It is very prolific in cropping and will have several colours of pepper on it at any one time (red, orange, yellow and green), as it continues to produce more fruit as the older ones are still ripening.

8. Tepin - The hottest chilli in the world (not to be confused with Scotch Bonnets - the hottest cultivated pepper in the world). It is a wild variety and produces small round berries on small plants. DO NOT allow children or animals to play with or eat these plants. Even handling the seeds can make the skin tingle. Be aware that these seeds are erratic in germination and can take twice as long to sprout (up to 2 months) because they are wild, not cultivated. Please be patient.

9. Habanero Orange -A great main-stay of Jamaican cookery. Very hot with a lovely flavour (people often forget peppers have different flavours, as well as heat). Grows up to 1.5m in height so can be grown in the garden to conceal any ugly compost bins, fences etc etc. (Grow in a grow bag and put infront of your wheelie bins!)

10. Aji Rojo - A pepper that has been linked to ancient Peru, where it's seeds have been found in archaeological digs! Short dumpy peppers with a moderate heat. Aji Rojo matures to red, and Aji Amarillo matures to yellow.

[Crazyfrog (Fab)]

look interesting are you going to cook with it
i needed some this morning at 4 am to keep me hot

[jakepeg]

I have been growing chillies in my kitchen for several years, just from seeds out of fresh chillies bought from Tescos etc. The Dorset variety look very interesting. (I love hot food, am getting worse with age- Jalepeno chillies and Soft Brie on Grannary bread a top favorite), So how does one use them in cooking? Are hey so hot you dare not use a whole one with seeds in? I know this all depends on what you like, but one chilly with seeds in a curry will end up as Madras strength or more? PS Elaines link to Mo seeds is good too, Blue opium poppies. Can anyone tell me if it is true that if grown in UK they do not produce the opium in the sap." This told to me by soldier in Army often out in Afganistan, he grows them in his garden in Essex, and wondered if this was an urban myth to put off the forces from bringing them back as "home industry kits"

Edited by jakepeg, 04 January 2009 - 03:34 PM.

[siztenboots]

the jalapeno that people know is about 3,500 - 8000 SHU

tabasco pepper around 35,000 SHU

http://en.wikipedia..../Scoville_scale

curry wise, I think more like a phal

I have been growing chillies in my kitchen for several years, just from seeds out of fresh chillies bought from Tescos etc.

The Dorset variety look very interesting. (I love hot food, am getting worse with age- Jalepeno chillies and Soft Brie on Grannary bread a top favorite),
So how does one use them in cooking?
Are hey so hot you dare not use a whole one with seeds in?

I know this all depends on what you like, but one chilly with seeds in a curry will end up as Madras strength or more?



PS Elaines link to Mo seeds is good too, Blue opium poppies.
Can anyone tell me if it is true that if grown in UK they do not produce the opium in the sap."
This told to me by soldier in Army often out in Afganistan, he grows them in his garden in Essex, and wondered if this was an urban myth to put off the forces from bringing them back as "home industry kits"

[Ren]

Thanks for the advice Boots, it's my day off today so I'm going to head down to the garden centre later and get all the bits I need ready. Just got to wait for my seeds to arrive now. Ren

[siztenboots]

Some more stuff , this is a gourmet type of garlic from France the "Rose de Lautrec" variety *1, it is a hardneck porcelein , very nice large cloves , easy to peel for chef with incredible flavour and aroma

I grow a couple of types , this one and another called Music, again only the very best and most expensive types for my organic crop.

*1 Actually Rose de Lautrec is not a variety, it's a Protected Geographical Indication. When it's grown outside the Lautrec region, it's not Rose de Lautrec any more.

[Crazyfrog (Fab)]

Some more stuff , this is a gourmet type of garlic from France the "Rose de Lautrec" variety *1, it is a hardneck porcelein , very nice large cloves , easy to peel for chef with incredible flavour and aroma

I grow a couple of types , this one and another called Music, again only the very best and most expensive types for my organic crop.

*1 Actually Rose de Lautrec is not a variety, it's a Protected Geographical Indication. When it's grown outside the Lautrec region, it's not Rose de Lautrec any more.

so where is my bag of garlic Steve
like it smoked as well that's a specialty where i come from .......
you could think to smoke it as you go behind the vx