It has taken me close to two years, but I have once again decided to plant chillies.
In the meantime, I imagine quite a few people have grown disenchanted with this particular blog, and I don't blame them. Blogs are supposed to be maintained at the very least semi-regularly.
Truth be told, having a small offspring of mine own (well, I am 50% owner, Almapaprika owns the other 50%) has proven to be a life changing experience.
The little 'un is amazing and fantastic, and I cannot but marvel at every discovery made by this wee person, even the ones that leave both parents screaming 'DON'T TOUCH THAT!!!'
But the chilli bug has been itching for a while.
A few months back, in the thick of a bitter English winter (I know, I know, no such thing as a 'bitter English winter' in The United Kingdom of Mild Britain and Milder Ireland', and yet, the climate would seem to want to make fools of us all), a stranger approached me at work, and said ominously 'are you the guy who grows chillies?'
To be honest, being picked out of the blue from a random stranger as 'chilli growing man X' does not surprise me...well, not anymore. I guess i've been peddling my capsaicin trade long enough to be known by at least one stranger to me or possibly two.
Turns out this chap was an acquaintance of Dr. John (see videos in this blog), who wanted to know a bit about growing chillies.
I ended up giving him a veritable capsicum cornucopia.
And I also ended up having the urge to grow chillies again.
Except the wee one gives me virtually no free time to look after the few plants Almapaprika and I have at the moment. It is a miracle most of them are still alive.
I thought of a list of chillies to plant, wrote it down, went into my black seed box...(Yes, I have a black seed box. It is not exclusively for the keeping of chilli seeds, but it is where all my seeds are kept.)
...and promptly placed that idea in the back burner for the better part of three months.
However, the scorching English summer (I know, it almost sounds like I am writing about some mythical land with proper seasons.) as well as another request by a friend at work has made me rethink this venture, and, armed with renewed vigor and impetus (or possibly hallucinating thanks to the wee one...did I agree on a name...let's call offspring Numero Uno 'Pequin'), yesterday I finally pulled thumb out of respective bodily orifice and proceeded to plant some chillies!!!
In the middle of JULY, I know.
They will be overwintered chillies.
But nonetheless, here's the list of participants:
- 4X Orange Habanero
- 4X Chocolate Habanero
- 4X Black Naga
- 4X Barrackpore 7-Pod/Pot
- 2X Datil
- 2X Scotch Bonnets
I will give my friend at work some of these, probably some of the Chocolate Habaneros and Orange Habaneros, just to make sure I don't end up blamed for some late night experimenting with chillies gone horribly wrong.
But even before all that, a more important question needs be asked:
Will they even germinate?
These are two-plus year old seeds...
The adventure begins anew! :-)
Showing posts with label Orange Habanero. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orange Habanero. Show all posts
Monday, 22 July 2013
Thursday, 29 July 2010
Photo Update Numero Dos
From the top, clockwise: Chocolate Habaneros, Orange Habaneros, Naga Morich, Datil, Ring of Fire Cayenne, and Madame Jeannette (yep, they do look like Orange Habs, but they all taper towards the end)
Chocolate Habaneros
Orange Habaneros. The largest one there was bigger than the BIG Chocolate Habanero in the previous post. It was amazing!
All good stuff! :-)
Photo Update Numero Uno
It has been a while since I posted photos, so I shall try to play catch up.
Having said that, here are some photos from 5&6 July:
A BIG Chocolate Habanero. Un Habanero Chocolate bien grande.
A Cayenne Ring of Fire. Un 'Cayenne Ring of Fire'.
From top to bottom: Chocolate Habaneros, Ring of Fire, Naga Morich (Bottom Left), Orange Habanero (Bottom Right). El Naga Morich se ve distinto al tradicional. Esta temporada todos los ajies de la planta de Naga Morich han crecido de esa manera. Pero no crean que son menos picantes. Para nada! son lo mas picante que he probado (casi).
More of the same :-)
Update 'Numero Dos' will be up shortly.
Friday, 23 July 2010
Bullet the Blue Sky
Lightning-fast post (work has been keeping me busy these past few weeks):
1. The Maize Morado has FINALLY shown Cob-like growths! These would be either the female tassels, or the fully pollinated corn cobs. There are three at the moment, so WOHOO! Also, I only found this out today, but the Corn has grown so tall, it is growing INTO the office roof!
2. The Datil pods matured, so I now have two Datil pods at home. Photos of them and some of the other ones will be posted soon-ish. I plan to use the pods to make some sort of Tuna steak in Mango and Datil chutney dish... may or may not work. The plant has now gotten two more pod-lings, so more good news.
3. After weeks of having only ONE pod (which is now ripening to a glorious red) The Barrackpore 7-pod has more pods. The same is happening to the Aji Umba Red, which had only two pods, but has now got about six. The two Jamaican Red Hots have also gotten a few pods in them. This means the only plants not to have provided ANY pods so far are the two Fataliis (no surprise there) and the two Black Nagas (noooooooooooo!). The Trinidad Scorpions still has only ONE pod...which is also now ripening.
4. I am a bit confused with some of the pods that have resulted from some of the swaps for seeds. Mind you, this is also part of the fun of seed trading: you never quite know what you'll get! The Habanero Golden pods have just started ripening...to a very ORANGE colour. The Madame Jeannettes have also ripened...to a very ORANGE colour. I thought the first were supposed to ripen to a light yellow/gold colour, and the second ones to a deep red. Ah, well. They all look very good regardless.
5. The Brazilian Starfish and Red Squash peppers have fallen under some form of spider mite attack that has left the two Red Squash plants pretty beaten up. I don't think they will be able to survive this, and I fear I may lose the pods, which is a shame, since they are very interesting and dare I say visually striking pods. I have tried to spray them with SB Plant Invigorator, but the mites seem to be unaffected by the spray.
6. I really should get to work on that web page of mine.
7. Powdering chillies is fun, but cutting them is painful! I discovered that vinyl gloves SHOULD NOT be used for this. They tear too easily and, more alarming, suffer from micro-tears which means they aren't detectable until your fingers start to hurt. I spent three days with my thumb feeling as though it was being bitten by fire ants. And this even after using copious amounts of olive oil to wash the fingers to get the capsaicin washed off properly. I made Chocolate Habanero powder, Orange Habanero powder, and Naga Morich powder.
8. Will post photos soon! :-)
Wednesday, 16 June 2010
Pods!
Well, as is to be expected, this is the time of the year when pods are starting to show up on the plants.
The Orange Habanero is full of them. So is the Chocolate Habanero.
One of the two Royal Gold Habaneros is being quite prolific. The other is still growing and not flowering (though there are plenty of buds).
The Madame Jeannette has about 10 pods of varying sizes.
The Aji Umba Red has one pod, and though it is supposed to be quasi-related to the MJ, the pods show completely different characteristics. It will be interesting to see the pods fully mature.
Both Black Nagas are producing buds, but no flowers have opened as of yet.
One Fatalii has started flowering. The other is about to.
Both Jamaican Red Hots are flowering, but no pods seem to be forming :-(
The one overwintered Naga Morich has produced four pods so far, and is flowering heavily.
The Datil has produced two pods.
The Ring of Fire Cayenne has about a dozen pods.
The Barrackpore 7 pod has a lot of flowers, but no pods yet.
The Trinidad Scorpion is the same.
The Thai Dragon is growing, and growing, and growing...but not a single bug so far!
The supposed 'Red Squash' has finally produced pods, and they are looking true to form. But the flowers are definitely C. annuun.
The Brazilian Starfish looks about to flower.
The Rocoto Rojo continues to irritate me with its lovely green growth and zero flowers/pods.
The Roselle has flowered lots now, but no good sized flowers (tiny ones), so I may have to overwinter this one.
The Maiz Morado has finally produced on tassel, or male inflorescence. Now I just have to wait for the female ones.
Whew! Long update.
Candied (crystallized) Orange Habanero experiment is still going quite well. I might shorten the number of days from 7 to 5, since it is a very small batch. I will wait until the liquid in the pod segments has been completely replaced by sugar, though. But the syrup so far tastes delicious!
Monday, 14 June 2010
Candy-Candy @ The World Cup
Couple of quick things, since updates have been few and far in between:
1. I have recently purchased a new website domain, which I will soon be turning into a snazzy new website. But until I do, stay tuned to this channel.
2. New experiment: I am in the process of candying Orange Habaneros.
Yes.
You heard correctly.
Candying.
Turning Orange Habanero slices into candy by an osmotic process whereupon a sugar solution replaces the liquid inside the pod walls. The new 'sugarpods' are then dried to produce the candying effect, and the yummy and extremely hot syrup left over shall be utilised for a variety of things.
3. First few days of the World Cup have left me with some interesting one liners:
a) England are not as bad as their first match; nor are they as good as everyone hypes them up to be. Lay off Robert Green. Lay off Fabio Capello. The English media have the uncanny ability to punish coaches who don't take risks and coaches who DO take risks. Whinge-whinge-whinge-whinge! let the players play and shut it!
b) Raymon Domenech should change his name to Raymond D'Oh!menech. I actually fell asleep watching France-Uruguay.
c) Germany are contenders IF and ONLY IF Mezut Ozil is running the strings at midfield, and he's already shown flashes of Rooney-esque petulance in the first game. Knock him out of the game, and it's curtains for Deutschland.
d) Ghana look strong. Serbia look like a wounded animal, and Australia look like someone just told them it's not Aussie Rules.
e)South Africa are playing with spirit. Mexico are tricky. Uruguay are deceptively good. France are only to blame for their ineptitude.
f) Argentina are using a midfielder at wingback. Do they not have such a player among their 23 man squad? Jonas Gutierres will be prematurely aged (into retirement) by the industrious Koreans.
g) Greece look more like the 1998 team than the one that won the European Championships.
h) Could the Panini album predictions be.....WRONG?!
Thursday, 3 June 2010
Goodness Me!
Crikey! My computer seems to be working at the dial-up speeds of old! (kiddies, go grab your parents, yank them away from the TV and ask them what Dial-up means. It's from the by-gone era of Windows 3.1, Dot Matrix printers and Netscape Navigator). I still have no idea why SKY is charging me an arm and a leg for 'bigger, faster, stronger, better broadband' when it feels like I have the same download speed as back in 1998!
I also say Goodness Me! because it has been a while since I posted anything. He estado muy ocupado, what with trying to get used to the married thing and finally being able to go on our delayed honeymoon.
The plants, it would seem, enjoyed my absence.
The Maize Morado is almost at the roof of the windowsill!
The rest of the windowsills are a sight to behold!
Both the Chocolate Habanero and the Orange Habanero have about 15 pods each on them now, and even the Naga Morich as joined in the fun with four pods.
THE DATIL HAS A POD!!!!!
Joy of Joys! I am looking forward to that one!
The Cayenne Ring of Fire is doing it's job, and has about a dozen pods on it.
And groovy baby! the Madame Jeannette plant has two pods at the mo!
Even the Roselle has joined in and given two flowers!
And look! The first ripe harvested pods of the Orange Habanero:
So far, so good. I watered all of the plants with the Epsom Salt solution yesterday, so that takes care of this month's dose.
Very, Very Happy!
:-)
Friday, 7 May 2010
Algo no me huele bien...
Yep, something is fishy here.
These are the chillies and plants that are still going strong in this year's crop.
2x Red Squash
3x Maize Morado
1x Cayenne Ring of Fire
1x Thai Dragon
1x Madame Jeannette
1x Aji Umba Red
1x Barrackpore 7-pot/7-pod
1x Brazilian Starfish
2x Jamaican Hot
2x Fatalii
2x Royal Gold
2x Black Naga
1x Trinidad Scorpion
1x Roselle
Plus the overwintered:
1x Orange Habanero
1x Chocolate Habanero
1x Naga Morich
1x Rocoto Rojo
Now, all seems according to plan with all the plants. Some of them (the Fataliis) seem to be growing very, VERY slowly, while others (Madame Jeannette) are growing like there is no tomorrow.
The interesting thing is that two of the peppers don't seem to match their descriptions...
The Brazilian Starfish is supposed to be a Baccatum, and yet the leaves looks strangely like those of a Chinense. It's growing shape is much more elongated and elegant than any of the Chinenses of similar age growing alongside them, but it is nonetheless strange. Still, this is the first Baccatum I have ever grown, so I might be wrong.
Now, the Red Squash on the other hand, doesn't look AT ALL like a Chinense, even though the seed company I bought them from said it was. If anything, the plant so far screams Annuum. It is just starting to produce flower buds, so I shall have to wait and see if it's just me (after all, I could have mislabelled things when I planted seeds originally. Unless they end up looking like nothing I ordered for this season).
No photos this week, as I am in the middle of slowly re-potting all of the seedlings into their final pots (have done so thus far with the Trini Scoprion, the Red Squash, the Brazilian Starfish, Madame Jeannette, Aji Umba Red and the Roselle.
Others will be done next week. I just need to get more containers from Home.
On another note, last weekend I cooked Chocolate Habanero, rum soaked cherries, pecan and ginger brownies.
Man Alive!
Those are some really good brownies!
:-)
Wednesday, 28 April 2010
Back from the Break
I am making a short entry today as I am back from my break...
...no longer a single pepper, but now as a married pepper (Almapaprika and I have joined in holy capsicumony).
I put a small entry about a pre-wedding happening with chillies in THP forum, as the first entry I've put as a pepper related event since I last made an entry.
Had no honeymoon, as the lovely Icelandic volcano cause havoc all over Northern Europe, making it impossible for us to leave on our mini-trip to Rome.
Que tragedia griega!
Worst of all, brother never brought me the seeds of Aji Chombo I asked so many times about!
:-(
Dad, on the other hand, did manage to leave with half my supply of Ring of Fire and White Habaneros. Not a lot of seeds, mind you. But he was happy to see his son enjoying growing chillies.
:-)
The plants survived, thanks to the peeps at the office who kept them well watered.
The Orange Habanero even has some pods on it, which is great considering it only produced pods in July last year.
The rest of the plants are doing very well, specially the Black Nagas, which I left under the little domes. They were a wee bit crammed into the little domes, but they look much, MUCH bigger than the last photos I took of them.
I wrapped all of the little plastic bottles with tin foil (kitchen foil for the Brits) so that if the roots reached the edges, they wouldn't get scorched by direct sunlight (since I would not see the plants for about 10 days). It also reflected sunlight back at the leaves of the plants. I have read that foil mulch can help plant growth and productivity.
I will probably have to start re-potting some of them to permanent pots soon, just like I did with the Trinidad Scorpion before I left a fortnight ago to prepare for the wedding.
The sad bit has been that the hydroponics at home has been a disaster, with only one plant currently surviving...
:-(
I will probably take photos of the plants at the end of the week to post the growth updates.
The Maize Morado is now almost 3 feet tall! I can't wait to see it reach 8 feet!
...no longer a single pepper, but now as a married pepper (Almapaprika and I have joined in holy capsicumony).
I put a small entry about a pre-wedding happening with chillies in THP forum, as the first entry I've put as a pepper related event since I last made an entry.
Had no honeymoon, as the lovely Icelandic volcano cause havoc all over Northern Europe, making it impossible for us to leave on our mini-trip to Rome.
Que tragedia griega!
Worst of all, brother never brought me the seeds of Aji Chombo I asked so many times about!
:-(
Dad, on the other hand, did manage to leave with half my supply of Ring of Fire and White Habaneros. Not a lot of seeds, mind you. But he was happy to see his son enjoying growing chillies.
:-)
The plants survived, thanks to the peeps at the office who kept them well watered.
The Orange Habanero even has some pods on it, which is great considering it only produced pods in July last year.
The rest of the plants are doing very well, specially the Black Nagas, which I left under the little domes. They were a wee bit crammed into the little domes, but they look much, MUCH bigger than the last photos I took of them.
I wrapped all of the little plastic bottles with tin foil (kitchen foil for the Brits) so that if the roots reached the edges, they wouldn't get scorched by direct sunlight (since I would not see the plants for about 10 days). It also reflected sunlight back at the leaves of the plants. I have read that foil mulch can help plant growth and productivity.
I will probably have to start re-potting some of them to permanent pots soon, just like I did with the Trinidad Scorpion before I left a fortnight ago to prepare for the wedding.
The sad bit has been that the hydroponics at home has been a disaster, with only one plant currently surviving...
:-(
I will probably take photos of the plants at the end of the week to post the growth updates.
The Maize Morado is now almost 3 feet tall! I can't wait to see it reach 8 feet!
Monday, 1 March 2010
Two sides of a coin...or 'cheek to cheek'
How appropriate I finish writing the title of this blog as someone drops a hand full of coins on the floor in front of me.
My flat is a zoo. Well, that would more accurately be the 'the people living in flats in building opposite ours.'
We've been in that flat for nine months now, and I've already been flashed or mooned TWICE.
Sadly this has not been the sort of male, hormone-induced fantasy where the other human being prancing around in the buff is part of the 'Swedish bikini team' (it's a 90's American thing. look it up).
Nope, the 'exposers' were blokes.
Non-too sightly ones at that.
The first such instance occurred one Saturday morning (so traumatizing was it that it has been etched into my memory), when a group of what I can only describe as YOBS (English thing. Look it up), decided to continue whatever alcohol and drug fuelled party they came from in their own flat. At one point, I look out of my living room balcony door to discover one said shaven headed, pasty white gentleman is nearly hanging from the balcony railing while dancing to trance music (if you can call that dancing), with nothing but a can of beer to hide his shame.
This past Saturday, however, it was the person opposite our flat, who opened the blinds to his bedroom, and proceeded to moon us as he put on his underpants. Why someone walks around a house wearing nothing more than a grey sweatshirt (hoodie) is beyond me.
Again, as per usual, Almapaprika missed both 'encounters with the arse kind'.
I went with Almapaprika and some friends of hers to watch 'Swan Lake' recently. It was an all male production (well, all the swans were played by men) much acclaimed in London and other places. I must admit that I am not a Ballet 'Afficionado' per se (I'll attend a showing more for the music than the prancing around), and found myself drifting off at points. But it was entertaining (the 60% or so I was awake for), and dare I say it, quite hilarious at times.
My man flu continues to besiege me (probably why I fell asleep at the Ballet), now filling me with so much phlegm I am a mere day away from speaking fluent Dutch (Nee, Mario! Nee!).
I have brought to the office today the following seedlings:
1x Fatalii
2x red squash
The sun and the radiators are working wonders with the plants. The Rocoto Rojo has grown two new branches that are already a good 4-5 inches long. The Naga Morich, Chocolate Habanero and Datil all also show a lot of progress in new growth, though I am worried the Orange Habanero and the Caribbean Red Habanero may end up not making it.
I am half tempted to buy some Blossom Set spray to help the plants produce pods though the temperatures might not be ideal, though I feel it's a bit like cheating (but then again, so are heated beds...), if only because I'm still reminded of the near hundred flowers both Fataliis gave last year and the ONE pod that came from all that...
My flat is a zoo. Well, that would more accurately be the 'the people living in flats in building opposite ours.'
We've been in that flat for nine months now, and I've already been flashed or mooned TWICE.
Sadly this has not been the sort of male, hormone-induced fantasy where the other human being prancing around in the buff is part of the 'Swedish bikini team' (it's a 90's American thing. look it up).
Nope, the 'exposers' were blokes.
Non-too sightly ones at that.
The first such instance occurred one Saturday morning (so traumatizing was it that it has been etched into my memory), when a group of what I can only describe as YOBS (English thing. Look it up), decided to continue whatever alcohol and drug fuelled party they came from in their own flat. At one point, I look out of my living room balcony door to discover one said shaven headed, pasty white gentleman is nearly hanging from the balcony railing while dancing to trance music (if you can call that dancing), with nothing but a can of beer to hide his shame.
This past Saturday, however, it was the person opposite our flat, who opened the blinds to his bedroom, and proceeded to moon us as he put on his underpants. Why someone walks around a house wearing nothing more than a grey sweatshirt (hoodie) is beyond me.
Again, as per usual, Almapaprika missed both 'encounters with the arse kind'.
I went with Almapaprika and some friends of hers to watch 'Swan Lake' recently. It was an all male production (well, all the swans were played by men) much acclaimed in London and other places. I must admit that I am not a Ballet 'Afficionado' per se (I'll attend a showing more for the music than the prancing around), and found myself drifting off at points. But it was entertaining (the 60% or so I was awake for), and dare I say it, quite hilarious at times.
My man flu continues to besiege me (probably why I fell asleep at the Ballet), now filling me with so much phlegm I am a mere day away from speaking fluent Dutch (Nee, Mario! Nee!).
I have brought to the office today the following seedlings:
1x Fatalii
2x red squash
The sun and the radiators are working wonders with the plants. The Rocoto Rojo has grown two new branches that are already a good 4-5 inches long. The Naga Morich, Chocolate Habanero and Datil all also show a lot of progress in new growth, though I am worried the Orange Habanero and the Caribbean Red Habanero may end up not making it.
I am half tempted to buy some Blossom Set spray to help the plants produce pods though the temperatures might not be ideal, though I feel it's a bit like cheating (but then again, so are heated beds...), if only because I'm still reminded of the near hundred flowers both Fataliis gave last year and the ONE pod that came from all that...
Friday, 26 February 2010
Man-Flu: The Silent Killer...of Manly Men!
Yes, as you may have guessed by the title, I have the sniffles.
To be more precise, I have a sore throat and a clogged up nose.
Man Flu!
It was probably the real reason Custer fell. Not the Native Americans, but a bad bout of Man Flu.
I do feel horrible, though. I seem to have gone from being in pain from poke-stabbey-slashy to now being reduced to a puddle of phlegm thanks to this.
Almapaprika, as could be expected, is showing the same maternal insticts of a mother praying mantis (lunch?).
But I do love her so...(she copes admirably with my manly whyning...what more can I ask for?)
This grey, cold, and rainy morning on my walk to work I was greeted by that most picturesque of images that depict this town:
A dunken hobo crossing the street towards me whilst nonchallantly throwing up.
Yes, you just don't get this sort of stuff back home (we got the occasional crackhead who attempted to stop traffic whilst stark naked and in the middle of whigging out.).
I felt immediately nauseous as the milky, chunky liquid spewed forth from his bearded facade (he must be a HARD HOBO! The type that outdrinks elves!)
As I sit here at home, waiting for the handyman to come take a look at our washer/drier (never the two should meet, in my opinion. One uses water, the other doesn't. Simple as that.), I shall update a few photos of the hydroponics chilli. Mind you, said handyman was supposed to arrive at 1:30pm, and it is now 3:15pm, but the landlord assures me he shall be here before 4:00pm.
Anywho, here's a couple of pics of the Little Elf (finally got the blasted name right) seedling:
The Second photo is interesting. All the Rocket died (as can be seen on the other photos. But I have since cleaned the mess), so this little fella could only be the Culantro, which I am crossing my fingers it is.
I have also added today two more seeds to the hydroponics kit:
1 Cayenne Ring of Fire
1 Belpicen
I put the Cayenne Ring of Fire because it's a very fast grower, and the pods are nice and hot. The Belpicen I put just to see what happens. That would make it three plants (possibly) in the hydroponics, since the stem cutting of the Orange Habanero kicked the bucket.
To be more precise, I have a sore throat and a clogged up nose.
Man Flu!
It was probably the real reason Custer fell. Not the Native Americans, but a bad bout of Man Flu.
I do feel horrible, though. I seem to have gone from being in pain from poke-stabbey-slashy to now being reduced to a puddle of phlegm thanks to this.
Almapaprika, as could be expected, is showing the same maternal insticts of a mother praying mantis (lunch?).
But I do love her so...(she copes admirably with my manly whyning...what more can I ask for?)
This grey, cold, and rainy morning on my walk to work I was greeted by that most picturesque of images that depict this town:
A dunken hobo crossing the street towards me whilst nonchallantly throwing up.
Yes, you just don't get this sort of stuff back home (we got the occasional crackhead who attempted to stop traffic whilst stark naked and in the middle of whigging out.).
I felt immediately nauseous as the milky, chunky liquid spewed forth from his bearded facade (he must be a HARD HOBO! The type that outdrinks elves!)
As I sit here at home, waiting for the handyman to come take a look at our washer/drier (never the two should meet, in my opinion. One uses water, the other doesn't. Simple as that.), I shall update a few photos of the hydroponics chilli. Mind you, said handyman was supposed to arrive at 1:30pm, and it is now 3:15pm, but the landlord assures me he shall be here before 4:00pm.
Anywho, here's a couple of pics of the Little Elf (finally got the blasted name right) seedling:
The Second photo is interesting. All the Rocket died (as can be seen on the other photos. But I have since cleaned the mess), so this little fella could only be the Culantro, which I am crossing my fingers it is.
I have also added today two more seeds to the hydroponics kit:
1 Cayenne Ring of Fire
1 Belpicen
I put the Cayenne Ring of Fire because it's a very fast grower, and the pods are nice and hot. The Belpicen I put just to see what happens. That would make it three plants (possibly) in the hydroponics, since the stem cutting of the Orange Habanero kicked the bucket.
Friday, 19 February 2010
A Book arrived in the post today...
I just got a copy in the post today of 'The Complete Chile Pepper Book' by Dave DeWitt and Paul Bosland.
It is not as academic as Jean Andrews 'Peppers: The Domesticated Capsicums', (which I think is a fantastic book, mind you) but it is a book I had been waiting for a while to get. It is also more complete than Mark Charles Miller, John Harrisson 'The great Chile Book', which was until now the only Chilli book I owned.
I will probably sit and read it over the weekend and give allow it to sink in before I talk about it, but from glancing through it on Google Scholar, and from just giving it a quick read a few minutes ago, I think it is a fairly complete book on capsicums.
I gave all the plants at work a quick watering with a half dose of Chilli Focus today, to start bringing the nutrients back into their diets. Some of the forum members have advised not to over-rely on nutrients, since it leeches the soils, but these are potted plants, so not much choice, unfortunately.
The Naga Morich at work is starting to sprout growth along the previously bare main stem, so I am seriously considering (someone just hit the sliding glass doors in our entrance head on...I should mention they slide open with the same speed and impetus of a professional mime miming 'a solid wall') chopping the top growth from it and using it for cuttings so as to trim it back to a manageable two feet height and seeing if I can get broader growth this year.
The Rocoto Rojo is also showing promise, albeit as a single, two foot stick with lots of new green growth coming out of it.
The Chocolate Habanero, Orange Habanero and Caribbean Red Habanero are showing less signs of vigorous growth. It may be a case of pruning for them and hoping for the best.
Crazy students have just spilled hot tea all over one of the radiators in front of me...and they wonder why they are not allowed into this building with hot drinks...
...at least they didn't spill it all over themselves (though that would provide me with a modicum of amusement.
Almapaprika dreamt of Mrs. Cole again last night. And once more she was helping out at the wedding.
I say it's all fine and dandy so long as she doesn't wear that awful outfit that made her look like an extra from a Street Fighter video game (Mrs. Bison).
The entrance door of the building is now refusing to open to people who want to leave or enter, unless they meet some unknown height/weight/body mass requirement.
I wonder sometimes what the (INFORMATION RESTRICTED) millions of pounds that went into the construction of this building ACTUALLY went into, what with the heating problems, the malfunctioning entrance doors, the malfunctioning lifts, useless lights, etc.
But at least it looks nice and shiny from the outside, and that's all that matters, really. (Ghost of cynicism past floats past me)
Almapaprika has infected me with her 'celebrity' dreams.
Or in my case: nightmares.
I dreamt last night I got into an argumentative spat with Wayne Rooney.
I was hoping for Cheryl Cole, to be honest (with a translator next to me).
But no.
I get the floppy eared 'White Pele.'
And not in a good mood (Is he ever in a good mood? then again, neither was I).
At least I saved Almapaprika from dreaming about him...
I hope.
It is not as academic as Jean Andrews 'Peppers: The Domesticated Capsicums', (which I think is a fantastic book, mind you) but it is a book I had been waiting for a while to get. It is also more complete than Mark Charles Miller, John Harrisson 'The great Chile Book', which was until now the only Chilli book I owned.
I will probably sit and read it over the weekend and give allow it to sink in before I talk about it, but from glancing through it on Google Scholar, and from just giving it a quick read a few minutes ago, I think it is a fairly complete book on capsicums.
I gave all the plants at work a quick watering with a half dose of Chilli Focus today, to start bringing the nutrients back into their diets. Some of the forum members have advised not to over-rely on nutrients, since it leeches the soils, but these are potted plants, so not much choice, unfortunately.
The Naga Morich at work is starting to sprout growth along the previously bare main stem, so I am seriously considering (someone just hit the sliding glass doors in our entrance head on...I should mention they slide open with the same speed and impetus of a professional mime miming 'a solid wall') chopping the top growth from it and using it for cuttings so as to trim it back to a manageable two feet height and seeing if I can get broader growth this year.
The Rocoto Rojo is also showing promise, albeit as a single, two foot stick with lots of new green growth coming out of it.
The Chocolate Habanero, Orange Habanero and Caribbean Red Habanero are showing less signs of vigorous growth. It may be a case of pruning for them and hoping for the best.
Crazy students have just spilled hot tea all over one of the radiators in front of me...and they wonder why they are not allowed into this building with hot drinks...
...at least they didn't spill it all over themselves (though that would provide me with a modicum of amusement.
Almapaprika dreamt of Mrs. Cole again last night. And once more she was helping out at the wedding.
I say it's all fine and dandy so long as she doesn't wear that awful outfit that made her look like an extra from a Street Fighter video game (Mrs. Bison).
The entrance door of the building is now refusing to open to people who want to leave or enter, unless they meet some unknown height/weight/body mass requirement.
I wonder sometimes what the (INFORMATION RESTRICTED) millions of pounds that went into the construction of this building ACTUALLY went into, what with the heating problems, the malfunctioning entrance doors, the malfunctioning lifts, useless lights, etc.
But at least it looks nice and shiny from the outside, and that's all that matters, really. (Ghost of cynicism past floats past me)
Almapaprika has infected me with her 'celebrity' dreams.
Or in my case: nightmares.
I dreamt last night I got into an argumentative spat with Wayne Rooney.
I was hoping for Cheryl Cole, to be honest (with a translator next to me).
But no.
I get the floppy eared 'White Pele.'
And not in a good mood (Is he ever in a good mood? then again, neither was I).
At least I saved Almapaprika from dreaming about him...
I hope.
Thursday, 18 February 2010
Mobile (Cell) phones...they enhance an idiots' natural idiocy.
I have just embarked on an interesting venture, and created a Facebook page for Aji Chombo!
Yeah, it does stink of self-promotion...
Maybe I should hold a press conference as well...
Nah, I'm sure Tiger Woods would upstage me if I did.
And yes, people (not just idiots) seem to unlock some sub-conscious 'Extra Idiot' gene when they use cell (mobile) phones. Since I work more or less in a customer service 'orientation', you get to do a lot of people watching, and it is surprising how many people swear they can multitask who clearly should not be allowed to operate a PAIR of chopsticks.
Mobile phones turn the average person into an 'Idiotic Neophyte', and a full blown idiot into a 'Grand Wizard Moron'.
Mind you, these phones are a nice and convenient thing to have...
...but I get the feeling that if everyone that was born after 1990 was suddenly and simultaneously hit by a car and sent into a coma (yes, a Life on Mars reference. Good. You can count yourself NOT in the two categories above) back into the 1980's, they would die of starvation for lack of finding a phone with a 'Find a curry house' application.
But I digress...
Almapaprika has been having pre-nuptial nightmares.
Again.
They have been happening for the past few months, in anticipation of having to say 'I do' to a union with me in front of a crowd of family and friends. (I'm not that ugly...am I?)
Last nights (well, days. She's working nights this week) had her at the wedding, sans wedding dress, while the rest of the women there HAD wedding dresses (thankfully, neither me or the rest of the gentlemen present had said wedding attire on), and with our DJ gone leaving her mom to handle everything from her MP3 player.
In the midst of all this, who emerges to console her?
Not her two best friends.
Not me (I was probably writing a blog entry in her dreams at the time)
But Cheryl Cole.
Yes. You read correctly.
Cheryl 'The Geordie girl who went on to be a pop superstar and married Ca$hley' Cole.
She apparently did fairly well in consoling her, and Almapaprika also did commendably in understanding Mrs. Cole's Geordie accent.
Almapaprika even went on to give Cheryl some sound advise ('You should look for better', when referring to Mr. Cole).
So, Cheryl, if you happen to browse through this blog (I really wouldn't know why, but hey, stranger things have happened), feel free to drop by the wedding reception.
But bring an MP3 player (but not JUST with your songs).
On the front this blog was created for (chillies, which seems to be a neglected part of today's entry), I now find myself drinking copious amounts of soda in order to use the bottles as makeshift greenhouses (thank the El Cheapo challenge for that)
The Rocket keeps dying in the hydroponics kit. The little Elf Chilli seems completely unaffected and actually quite healthy, as does a little cutting of the Orange Habanero I put last week. I wonder why?
I have also experimented with putting an Aji Lemon Drop seed on some decaf tea 'grinds' to see if they can also be used to germinate seeds (Decaf you say?). Put the seed in Tuesday, so fingers crossed. We go through tonnes of the stuff at home, so if it works, I might have found a cheap germinating medium.
Yeah, it does stink of self-promotion...
Maybe I should hold a press conference as well...
Nah, I'm sure Tiger Woods would upstage me if I did.
And yes, people (not just idiots) seem to unlock some sub-conscious 'Extra Idiot' gene when they use cell (mobile) phones. Since I work more or less in a customer service 'orientation', you get to do a lot of people watching, and it is surprising how many people swear they can multitask who clearly should not be allowed to operate a PAIR of chopsticks.
Mobile phones turn the average person into an 'Idiotic Neophyte', and a full blown idiot into a 'Grand Wizard Moron'.
Mind you, these phones are a nice and convenient thing to have...
...but I get the feeling that if everyone that was born after 1990 was suddenly and simultaneously hit by a car and sent into a coma (yes, a Life on Mars reference. Good. You can count yourself NOT in the two categories above) back into the 1980's, they would die of starvation for lack of finding a phone with a 'Find a curry house' application.
But I digress...
Almapaprika has been having pre-nuptial nightmares.
Again.
They have been happening for the past few months, in anticipation of having to say 'I do' to a union with me in front of a crowd of family and friends. (I'm not that ugly...am I?)
Last nights (well, days. She's working nights this week) had her at the wedding, sans wedding dress, while the rest of the women there HAD wedding dresses (thankfully, neither me or the rest of the gentlemen present had said wedding attire on), and with our DJ gone leaving her mom to handle everything from her MP3 player.
In the midst of all this, who emerges to console her?
Not her two best friends.
Not me (I was probably writing a blog entry in her dreams at the time)
But Cheryl Cole.
Yes. You read correctly.
Cheryl 'The Geordie girl who went on to be a pop superstar and married Ca$hley' Cole.
She apparently did fairly well in consoling her, and Almapaprika also did commendably in understanding Mrs. Cole's Geordie accent.
Almapaprika even went on to give Cheryl some sound advise ('You should look for better', when referring to Mr. Cole).
So, Cheryl, if you happen to browse through this blog (I really wouldn't know why, but hey, stranger things have happened), feel free to drop by the wedding reception.
But bring an MP3 player (but not JUST with your songs).
On the front this blog was created for (chillies, which seems to be a neglected part of today's entry), I now find myself drinking copious amounts of soda in order to use the bottles as makeshift greenhouses (thank the El Cheapo challenge for that)
The Rocket keeps dying in the hydroponics kit. The little Elf Chilli seems completely unaffected and actually quite healthy, as does a little cutting of the Orange Habanero I put last week. I wonder why?
I have also experimented with putting an Aji Lemon Drop seed on some decaf tea 'grinds' to see if they can also be used to germinate seeds (Decaf you say?). Put the seed in Tuesday, so fingers crossed. We go through tonnes of the stuff at home, so if it works, I might have found a cheap germinating medium.
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Does my Blog look big in this?
I took the opportunity today to browse at the blogspot blogs, something I had not done before.
GHAAAAAA!!
Talk about a United Nations of Weird!
But then again, I also keep a blog, so that's an interesting reflection on me...
I was telling a friend who also has a blog, that it was like that friend we all have (if you have at least ONE friend, odds are it's him/her, or YOU) who was not born with that filter that allows most people to sort out the stuff that should be said from the stuff that maybe should be kept as 'personal', or 'you really shouldn't say that'.
But the Internet to some degree makes us all live in a constant state of 15 minutes of fame, and this is how we all deal with it.
Some of us deal with it like Vanilla Ice...
...some of us deal with it like Dame Judy Dench...
...some of us deal with it like Gonzo from the Muppet's! (I would probably be in this last group).
Instant, universal, unstoppable exposure! (and by universal, I am confining it at this time to our corner of the Galaxy, since wireless transmissions have only travelled so far...The thought of this blog being read by Extraterrestrials makes me laugh. 'Look, Zorg! He mentioned John Terry again! That human is so well mentioned in blogs he MUST be their leader. We shall probe him first!')
Could anyone ask for anything else?
I have had to switch to Firefox to upload J's Naga eating adventure, since IE is being it's usual Microsoft self, and refusing to allow the upload. So, with any luck, you will be able to see this video soon.
As a bit of a backdrop, last August, as the first Naga Morich pods were ripening at work, a friend of mine from work asked to try one. I did give the customary warning (this chilli is the hottest known to man.), but it was still a 'go on, then.' reply. So, after notifying a few people in the office about it, we proceeded to have a little chilli sampling one morning. I took with me an Orange Habanero and a Naga pod.
It was very cool, because I simply walked into an office, plucked the pods from the plants, and said to the people in the room 'we're going to do a chilli tasting.' And they followed. Soon a crowd of about 20 gathered at the Staff common room.
The Orange Hab went down quite well with the people who tasted it. I was one of them (having never tried them before), and the flavour was nice and citrus-like. A few people got watery eyes, but it didn't go beyond that.
The Naga was the main event.
J decided to try a sliver, as did C, R, and me (I think. There may have been one extra person).
Gosh it was painful! But at the same time tasty! J ate all of his sliver, and later asked for more!
MORE! He said
Are you sure? we asked, watery eyed and burning.
MORE! he replied, salivating with anticipation...or was that just from the previous sliver? (Hmmm...'Orange Habs and Nagas', a new book by Dr. Aji Chombo)
So I have him another sliver.
C, thankfully was filming it all.
So, here it is. Enjoy!
If you're from thehotpepper, and you find the video entertaining, pass the word along.
If you're from another planet: Yes, peppers are fun to eat!
GHAAAAAA!!
Talk about a United Nations of Weird!
But then again, I also keep a blog, so that's an interesting reflection on me...
I was telling a friend who also has a blog, that it was like that friend we all have (if you have at least ONE friend, odds are it's him/her, or YOU) who was not born with that filter that allows most people to sort out the stuff that should be said from the stuff that maybe should be kept as 'personal', or 'you really shouldn't say that'.
But the Internet to some degree makes us all live in a constant state of 15 minutes of fame, and this is how we all deal with it.
Some of us deal with it like Vanilla Ice...
...some of us deal with it like Dame Judy Dench...
...some of us deal with it like Gonzo from the Muppet's! (I would probably be in this last group).
Instant, universal, unstoppable exposure! (and by universal, I am confining it at this time to our corner of the Galaxy, since wireless transmissions have only travelled so far...The thought of this blog being read by Extraterrestrials makes me laugh. 'Look, Zorg! He mentioned John Terry again! That human is so well mentioned in blogs he MUST be their leader. We shall probe him first!')
Could anyone ask for anything else?
I have had to switch to Firefox to upload J's Naga eating adventure, since IE is being it's usual Microsoft self, and refusing to allow the upload. So, with any luck, you will be able to see this video soon.
As a bit of a backdrop, last August, as the first Naga Morich pods were ripening at work, a friend of mine from work asked to try one. I did give the customary warning (this chilli is the hottest known to man.), but it was still a 'go on, then.' reply. So, after notifying a few people in the office about it, we proceeded to have a little chilli sampling one morning. I took with me an Orange Habanero and a Naga pod.
It was very cool, because I simply walked into an office, plucked the pods from the plants, and said to the people in the room 'we're going to do a chilli tasting.' And they followed. Soon a crowd of about 20 gathered at the Staff common room.
The Orange Hab went down quite well with the people who tasted it. I was one of them (having never tried them before), and the flavour was nice and citrus-like. A few people got watery eyes, but it didn't go beyond that.
The Naga was the main event.
J decided to try a sliver, as did C, R, and me (I think. There may have been one extra person).
Gosh it was painful! But at the same time tasty! J ate all of his sliver, and later asked for more!
MORE! He said
Are you sure? we asked, watery eyed and burning.
MORE! he replied, salivating with anticipation...or was that just from the previous sliver? (Hmmm...'Orange Habs and Nagas', a new book by Dr. Aji Chombo)
So I have him another sliver.
C, thankfully was filming it all.
So, here it is. Enjoy!
If you're from thehotpepper, and you find the video entertaining, pass the word along.
If you're from another planet: Yes, peppers are fun to eat!
Monday, 15 February 2010
There are bad films, and then there are BAD films
First of all, I FOUND THE USB CABLE!!!
Hot Dog!
I normally don't scream whilst writing (I have an aversion to ALL CAPS texting. It's very shouty.), but I was soooooooooooooooooooooooo happy when I found the cable, I spent most of Saturday evening transferring photos from my camera to Almapaprika's laptop (and tonight to photo bucket). It saved me the money and the time to get the new cable, and I ended up bumping into (can't believe I've just spent 30 seconds hitting enter on this contraption trying to get to imdb.com, without realizing I had only written 'ww', instead of 'www') Stephen Graham whilst shopping in the City Centre.
By bumping into, I of course mean I saw him from a respectful yet quasi-personal distance from me (about two metres). Took me a while to recognize the face.
Almapaprika didn't recognize him at all.
She says I always get to see the interesting people (like when I saw Eddie Izzard jog past in...and I can assure you I am not making this up...past a red double-decker bus in London just outside of Big Ben. It would only have been more interesting had an executioner appeared in front of me asking me to chose from Cake or Death.) She was looking in the opposite direction, doing what I should have, which was looking for my aunt who was visiting London for the first time (I am an absent minded nephew), and thus missed the whole episode.
But I digress.
This is a good idea of how long ago I last downloaded photos from the camera:
These are two photos of last autumns' harvest. Not exceedingly abundant, but not bad for a first time. I did harvest more White Habaneros than pictured.
But I also lost most of the Orange habs to mould :-(
This is the little hydroponics kit Almapaprika's mum got me for X-mas (which will be included in the 'El Cheapo-Budget Smackdown' thanks to me putting ONE seed into it. You can find out more by going to www.thehotpepper.com)
This is where I am germinating the seeds this season. I am not entirely happy with the setup, but beggars can't be choosers, as the case might be...
The Trinidad Scorpions are up and out! Two of them out of 4 is not bad, and together with the 7-pot should make a good group of super hots! (if they grow and are not killed by this...apartment of doom!).
Now it turns out one of the Roselles has mould, and may not make it, while the other one looks really strong. I will be happy with the one (more than I can say for the Rocket, which is slowly dying in the hydroponics kit. Why? I can only guess some of the seeds were too close together, and competition is doing this, but with my luck...
I have just finished watching an absolutely horrendous fantasy film entitled 'Dragonhunter', and I am subjecting myself to even more misery by watching 'Merlin and the War of the Dragons'.
WHY, Jürgen Prochnow?!
WHYYYYYYYY?!
I will go away now to finish watching this...um...film...
Hot Dog!
I normally don't scream whilst writing (I have an aversion to ALL CAPS texting. It's very shouty.), but I was soooooooooooooooooooooooo happy when I found the cable, I spent most of Saturday evening transferring photos from my camera to Almapaprika's laptop (and tonight to photo bucket). It saved me the money and the time to get the new cable, and I ended up bumping into (can't believe I've just spent 30 seconds hitting enter on this contraption trying to get to imdb.com, without realizing I had only written 'ww', instead of 'www') Stephen Graham whilst shopping in the City Centre.
By bumping into, I of course mean I saw him from a respectful yet quasi-personal distance from me (about two metres). Took me a while to recognize the face.
Almapaprika didn't recognize him at all.
She says I always get to see the interesting people (like when I saw Eddie Izzard jog past in...and I can assure you I am not making this up...past a red double-decker bus in London just outside of Big Ben. It would only have been more interesting had an executioner appeared in front of me asking me to chose from Cake or Death.) She was looking in the opposite direction, doing what I should have, which was looking for my aunt who was visiting London for the first time (I am an absent minded nephew), and thus missed the whole episode.
But I digress.
This is a good idea of how long ago I last downloaded photos from the camera:
These are two photos of last autumns' harvest. Not exceedingly abundant, but not bad for a first time. I did harvest more White Habaneros than pictured.
But I also lost most of the Orange habs to mould :-(
This is the little hydroponics kit Almapaprika's mum got me for X-mas (which will be included in the 'El Cheapo-Budget Smackdown' thanks to me putting ONE seed into it. You can find out more by going to www.thehotpepper.com)
This is where I am germinating the seeds this season. I am not entirely happy with the setup, but beggars can't be choosers, as the case might be...
The Trinidad Scorpions are up and out! Two of them out of 4 is not bad, and together with the 7-pot should make a good group of super hots! (if they grow and are not killed by this...apartment of doom!).
Now it turns out one of the Roselles has mould, and may not make it, while the other one looks really strong. I will be happy with the one (more than I can say for the Rocket, which is slowly dying in the hydroponics kit. Why? I can only guess some of the seeds were too close together, and competition is doing this, but with my luck...
I have just finished watching an absolutely horrendous fantasy film entitled 'Dragonhunter', and I am subjecting myself to even more misery by watching 'Merlin and the War of the Dragons'.
WHY, Jürgen Prochnow?!
WHYYYYYYYY?!
I will go away now to finish watching this...um...film...
Monday, 1 February 2010
Signs of Life
The Maize Morado is growing with a purpose! Almapaprika was amazed to see how fast the little things are pushing up, UP! to the sky.
The same can be said about the Roselle. These are fast growing little things...
On the capsicum front, it seems the Brazilian Starfish, Red Squash, Royal Gold and Jamaican Hot are showing early signs of life, which makes me very happy. Put one of the germinating boxes on top of the water heater in the cupboard, and it has done wonders. I'll move the other one as soon as I move the two Roselle seedlings to slightly larger pots to free up the space.
Have taken photos of the Maize, but will take some more today and post the comparison photos so people can see how quickly they have grown.
I am really annoyed with the hydroponic setup. A week has gone by and no sight of progress from the Culantro. I might bring some up to work and scatter some of the seeds on the pots of the overwintered plants, who seem to be starting to sprout new growth. The Rocoto Rojo, the one that worried me the most because it only had two small leaves in three near metre long stalks, now seems content with a scattering of little blooms of green. The Naga Morich is also showing signs of new greenery. In fact, the Naga, the Orange Habanero and the Chocolate Habaneros are all producing the odd flower or two. The Caribbean Red Habanero is thankfully not doing that, but has maintained itself nice and green. I've decided I will start watering them with a half-strength Chilli Focus solution once a fortnight, just to start giving them a little bit of extra nutrients.
Haven't been feeding them anything for nearly 6 months, just water. But they seem to have done OK (Specially the Rocoto, which only produced the pods when I stopped feeding it. I read in the Hot Pepper Forum that it might be because of too much Nitrogen, which tends to be a particular issue with Rocotos and Manzanos.)
So, photos will appear shortly (I hope).
Oh, and I still can't believe I made the whole of the last entry in Spanish without the use of any 'eñes'. But boy, was it difficult!
The same can be said about the Roselle. These are fast growing little things...
On the capsicum front, it seems the Brazilian Starfish, Red Squash, Royal Gold and Jamaican Hot are showing early signs of life, which makes me very happy. Put one of the germinating boxes on top of the water heater in the cupboard, and it has done wonders. I'll move the other one as soon as I move the two Roselle seedlings to slightly larger pots to free up the space.
Have taken photos of the Maize, but will take some more today and post the comparison photos so people can see how quickly they have grown.
I am really annoyed with the hydroponic setup. A week has gone by and no sight of progress from the Culantro. I might bring some up to work and scatter some of the seeds on the pots of the overwintered plants, who seem to be starting to sprout new growth. The Rocoto Rojo, the one that worried me the most because it only had two small leaves in three near metre long stalks, now seems content with a scattering of little blooms of green. The Naga Morich is also showing signs of new greenery. In fact, the Naga, the Orange Habanero and the Chocolate Habaneros are all producing the odd flower or two. The Caribbean Red Habanero is thankfully not doing that, but has maintained itself nice and green. I've decided I will start watering them with a half-strength Chilli Focus solution once a fortnight, just to start giving them a little bit of extra nutrients.
Haven't been feeding them anything for nearly 6 months, just water. But they seem to have done OK (Specially the Rocoto, which only produced the pods when I stopped feeding it. I read in the Hot Pepper Forum that it might be because of too much Nitrogen, which tends to be a particular issue with Rocotos and Manzanos.)
So, photos will appear shortly (I hope).
Oh, and I still can't believe I made the whole of the last entry in Spanish without the use of any 'eñes'. But boy, was it difficult!
Thursday, 21 January 2010
Have a Thought to Spare?
Debating whether or not to go ahead with this year's planting, or to merely keep the plants that are still alive (a Naga Morich. The blasted thing is flowering in JANUARY!, plus a Chocolate Habanero, an Orange Habanero, and a Rocoto Rojo...oh, and the Datil Chilli at home), and forgo the planting altogether.
Flat offers me no chance of getting anything going (we now get possibly four hour MAX of direct sunlight during the high summer thanks to the construction of another block of flats in front of us), but I have so many seeds. I really wanted to try the 7Pot seeds one of the forum members sent me from Trinidad, as well as the other seeds forum members sent and some I bought at the close of last growing season...but we shall just have to wait and see.
In the meantime, I did want to spare a thought for the earthquake in Haiti. I know this is already a week old, and therefore I say nothing that is not already known, felt, or experienced by some.
Just spare a though for them, and keep them close to mind.
Within weeks most of the world had forgotten that nearly a quarter of a million people died in December 2004 because of the Indian Ocean Tsunami.
Let us not forget the ones who perished here, for it means we once again fail to learn from history.
Sunday, 2 August 2009
Too many surveys...
I have been erstwhile distracted from the blog by the bane of postgraduate studies:
The dissertation project.
I am running an online survey on my project, which I need to have since my interviewing skills are rubbish.
I should have known this from ages ago, since my Role Playing skills are equally inept. This is a warning to all of you: If you RP and can't for the sake of you get information from the Gnome Pineapple salesman being played by your friend who knows you are awful at the game and is giving you all the help possible to help you find the +2 Enchanted Suppository of Regularity, you haven't got a prayer for getting accurate information regarding a complex regeneration scheme from Government Officials...
So ask the public what they think. You'll be surprised how refreshing and helpful they will be.
As for the chillies, well what can I say? So far so good. I've taken more photos which I've uploaded to my photobucket account:
http://s611.photobucket.com/albums/tt197/ajichombo/
The Nagas should be changing colour soon. I can feel it. The Chocolate Habs are doing great, as are the Orange Habs (they are just AMAZING). Pretty much the only plants disappointing me are the Fatalii twins. A lot of growth, a lot of growth, a LOT of growth.
But not pods....
Grrrrrrrrrr!
The White Habanero is doing splendid, as is the Caribbean Red Hab (finally). Even the Red Savina has a pod growing!
I have FINALLY moved the Jamaican Hot and the second Paper Lantern from the glass jars to terracotta 15cm pots. I feel really bad about it, but I have decided these two shall be overwintered to provide the spearhead of the 2010 growing season.
August temperatures in Liverpool are predicted to be 14.5C on the average (yes, global warming...I can see it making a difference) AFTER the meteorology office in the UK gave a long range forecast of a heat wave for August. This is why weather forecasting is a great job. You MAKE THINGS UP! and you get paid a handsome fee to boot! I will definitely apply to be one. Stick my head out the window, or better still, my bionic leg, and say 'Hmmmm...leg is tingling. I predict rain!' and bingo-bango! Money!
I am sorely tempted to use the heat lamps from the reception to keep the plants fooled into producing more...
The dissertation project.
I am running an online survey on my project, which I need to have since my interviewing skills are rubbish.
I should have known this from ages ago, since my Role Playing skills are equally inept. This is a warning to all of you: If you RP and can't for the sake of you get information from the Gnome Pineapple salesman being played by your friend who knows you are awful at the game and is giving you all the help possible to help you find the +2 Enchanted Suppository of Regularity, you haven't got a prayer for getting accurate information regarding a complex regeneration scheme from Government Officials...
So ask the public what they think. You'll be surprised how refreshing and helpful they will be.
As for the chillies, well what can I say? So far so good. I've taken more photos which I've uploaded to my photobucket account:
http://s611.photobucket.com/albums/tt197/ajichombo/
The Nagas should be changing colour soon. I can feel it. The Chocolate Habs are doing great, as are the Orange Habs (they are just AMAZING). Pretty much the only plants disappointing me are the Fatalii twins. A lot of growth, a lot of growth, a LOT of growth.
But not pods....
Grrrrrrrrrr!
The White Habanero is doing splendid, as is the Caribbean Red Hab (finally). Even the Red Savina has a pod growing!
I have FINALLY moved the Jamaican Hot and the second Paper Lantern from the glass jars to terracotta 15cm pots. I feel really bad about it, but I have decided these two shall be overwintered to provide the spearhead of the 2010 growing season.
August temperatures in Liverpool are predicted to be 14.5C on the average (yes, global warming...I can see it making a difference) AFTER the meteorology office in the UK gave a long range forecast of a heat wave for August. This is why weather forecasting is a great job. You MAKE THINGS UP! and you get paid a handsome fee to boot! I will definitely apply to be one. Stick my head out the window, or better still, my bionic leg, and say 'Hmmmm...leg is tingling. I predict rain!' and bingo-bango! Money!
I am sorely tempted to use the heat lamps from the reception to keep the plants fooled into producing more...
Tuesday, 14 July 2009
Chockies!
Yes, it is a bit of a strange word.
Chockies.
The Chocolate Habaneros have FINALLY started to produce pods. I counted three today, and all indications are that there may be a few more in the works.
Not bad for a nearly four foot tall plant with about thirty flowers on it!
:-P
Yes, I am a little frustrated at times.
But other times I'm left in awe.
The 'Naga X' plant has now produced 10 pods, and is loaded with flowers, but dropping temperatures will probably stop more pods from developing, since pollen is not being released.
The Chocolate Sweet Pepper is producing a second load of flowers, no doubt a result of all the pods it carried now plucked out.
A second harvest? Might well be...
Someone has been messing around and playing games with me the past few weeks.
Simply must be.
The Orange Habanero went from being loaded with flowers and producing squat, to being loaded with flowers and now also with pods. I count about 15 so far, and if what I've read in THP about this particular Habanero is correct, it will bear loads of pods (in the hundreds). Still, I'll settle with having just enough to make a good sauce with.
The Caribbean Red Habanero, on the other hand, has been disappointing. Lots of flowers, but zilch pods. I think it may be affected by the fact that the Orange Habanero is overgrowing the CRH, which means it's cramped into a little corner.
I have just had to do something from work which just...well...this is a public forum, so in that respect I shall keep my opinions regarding work to myself. I would be very angry if I just wasn't so blinking disappointed...
Chockies.
The Chocolate Habaneros have FINALLY started to produce pods. I counted three today, and all indications are that there may be a few more in the works.
Not bad for a nearly four foot tall plant with about thirty flowers on it!
:-P
Yes, I am a little frustrated at times.
But other times I'm left in awe.
The 'Naga X' plant has now produced 10 pods, and is loaded with flowers, but dropping temperatures will probably stop more pods from developing, since pollen is not being released.
The Chocolate Sweet Pepper is producing a second load of flowers, no doubt a result of all the pods it carried now plucked out.
A second harvest? Might well be...
Someone has been messing around and playing games with me the past few weeks.
Simply must be.
The Orange Habanero went from being loaded with flowers and producing squat, to being loaded with flowers and now also with pods. I count about 15 so far, and if what I've read in THP about this particular Habanero is correct, it will bear loads of pods (in the hundreds). Still, I'll settle with having just enough to make a good sauce with.
The Caribbean Red Habanero, on the other hand, has been disappointing. Lots of flowers, but zilch pods. I think it may be affected by the fact that the Orange Habanero is overgrowing the CRH, which means it's cramped into a little corner.
I have just had to do something from work which just...well...this is a public forum, so in that respect I shall keep my opinions regarding work to myself. I would be very angry if I just wasn't so blinking disappointed...
Saturday, 11 July 2009
Uprooted Peppers
We have been in the services apartment for four days now, and you simply don't know the comforts of home well until you do something so simple as to say to your other half:
'can you pass me the pepper?'
and realise you don't have any because you left it in the flat you can't go to.
The meeting with the City council was reduced to a shouting match as people realised that the City of Liverpool just simply wasn't prepared to deal with this crisis.
The good news is that this is a dry run in case heaven forbid something worse were to happen. At least in this emergency neither scores of ambulances nor the coroners office needed to be contacted (though there may be dead plants soon, but I'm not sure if there is a gardening coroner's office in the city).
I have taken more photos (of the plants. The crane ones I've already posted on other mediums and I will not use the blog to show people any more of that than I have already shown through the bbc reports), but they are all uploaded into my photobucket account, but I will share a couple with you:
The Nagas
An Orange Habanero pod (getting more pods now. Hazzah!)
The Fatalii twins, now all grown up
A black Cuban Flower (have one solitary pod growing now)
Esplendor (left), the Naga X plant (centre) and the Chocolate Habanero (right). Choc Hab has produce loads of flowers, but no pods...
Well that's all for now. I need to get some shopping done. We have no cling film or little takeaway trays, and Almapaprika is working nights this weekend.
'can you pass me the pepper?'
and realise you don't have any because you left it in the flat you can't go to.
The meeting with the City council was reduced to a shouting match as people realised that the City of Liverpool just simply wasn't prepared to deal with this crisis.
The good news is that this is a dry run in case heaven forbid something worse were to happen. At least in this emergency neither scores of ambulances nor the coroners office needed to be contacted (though there may be dead plants soon, but I'm not sure if there is a gardening coroner's office in the city).
I have taken more photos (of the plants. The crane ones I've already posted on other mediums and I will not use the blog to show people any more of that than I have already shown through the bbc reports), but they are all uploaded into my photobucket account, but I will share a couple with you:
The Nagas
An Orange Habanero pod (getting more pods now. Hazzah!)
The Fatalii twins, now all grown up
A black Cuban Flower (have one solitary pod growing now)
Esplendor (left), the Naga X plant (centre) and the Chocolate Habanero (right). Choc Hab has produce loads of flowers, but no pods...
Well that's all for now. I need to get some shopping done. We have no cling film or little takeaway trays, and Almapaprika is working nights this weekend.
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