Things are coming along nicely here! The chilli plants have had a growth spurt over the past two weeks, and last weekend I had to take them out of the heated propagator and space them out because they were starting to get a bit cramped. By that time most varieties had outgrown their shoes and were clearly in need of re-potting, so on Thursday afternoon I re-potted all of the plants into their second pots. The daytime temperatures in the porch have been sitting between 84–88F, but the night time temperatures are still quite low and sit between 58–62F, which means that the trusty oil heater still has a bit more work to do yet. However, this should hopefully change after about 14 days or so, once we've moved into May.
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| Chilli Plants in the Porch - 17th April 2020 |
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| Chilli Plants in the Porch - 17th April 2020 |
As usual, this year I'm using a mixture of two different types of compost with some additions mixed in, one of which being perlite. I've not needed to use perlite for several years because one of the composts I normally use is already coarse enough to give my mixture good drainage and aeration. However, this year I was unable to get hold of one of my usual composts, so I had to buy a different type instead, and it's not quite as coarse.
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Ring of Fire - 16th April 2020
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I'm very pleased with how well the tribe is doing thus far and all plants are looking green and healthy. The Aji Largo plant has developed a small amount of oedema on several of its lower leaves, but apart from that it's doing great. Oedema develops when the roots take up more water than the plant can transpire through its leaves, which results in a build up of water pressure in the internal cells causing them to burst. Sometimes it can also be associated with poor airflow.
Here's a little tip for you. If you've over watered one of your plants and there isn't enough sun to help dry up the compost then the next best thing you can do is to use a fan. All you need to do is create enough of a breeze so that the leaves are gently moving, and this will cause the plant to increase its rate of transpiration.
Here are some photos that were taken on Friday evening showing some of the individual varieties, plus one group shot showing all of the newcomers.
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| Aji Mochero - 17th April 2020 |
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| Alberto's Locoto - 17th April 2020 |
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| Aribibi Gusano - 17th April 2020 |
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| Chocolate Habanero - 17th April 2020 |
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| Habanero Numero Diez - 17th April 2020 |
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| Inca Red Drop - 17th April 2020 |
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| Mako Akokosrade - 17th April 2020 |
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| Mini Rocoto Brown - 17th April 2020 |
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| Red Mayan Habanero - 17th April 2020 |
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| Ring of Fire - 17th April 2020 |
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Yellow Jelly Bean Habanero - 17th April 2020
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| New Chilli Varieties - 17th April 2020 |
I'll put the walk-in plastic greenhouse up once the whole tribe has been re-potted into their final pots, which will most likely be around mid-May. In the meantime, I first have to clear a space for it, give the bay tree a good haircut and then find a new home for some wild strawberry plants that are growing around the base of the trunk. I'm looking forward to seeing how the new chilli varieties turn out. All hail the Chilli Gods.
