Vallarta Bistro

Mag and I dropped into the Penticton's Vallarta Bistro and met Israel. He was super cool. His multi-award winning Mexican restaurant was truly authentic as Mag and I were transported back to Mazatlan....he wants my peppers. I sold him a box of my remaining peppers.....Maybe we'll see him at the latin dance on Sunday....

DJ's

I dropped into DJ's because of the chile relleno menu posting they have on the street. I spoke to their friendly chef Tom. He was excited theat I was growing locally and said he wanted to support local growers and he regretted just ordering a case (from Barney's Produce incidentally). He likes them big. I gave him a card and will be ready for next year.

I picked another (final?) 4 or 5 kilos. It's so cold I can't believe they're still coming.

I need a hothouse!

D.J's

Maggie and I saw D.J's has chile rellenos as a special dish! What's up with that? Where are they getting them? I must check it out!

Peck Of Peppers

I picked 7 kilos of peppers today. There are many more to come but summer is rapidly ending. I'd love to somehow poly off the top of the corral and stave off the coming frost but it doesn't look so feasable considering the overhead watering and the way it would join to the fence......

I finsished the fertilizer today......last chance for artificail food......

Vallarta Grill

Penticton's Vallarta Grill, an excellent authentic Mexican restaurant, wants my peppers!

Pepper Weed

I weeded and fertilized the plot today alothough I still have a couple hours more weeding to do.........I brought the landscape fabric intending to lay some strips between the rows but time didn't permit.

I picked roughly 3.5 more kilos.....

Hector's Casa

I dropped off 3.5 kilos today. They loved the quality and size!

Hector's Casa

Hector wanted a couple boxes of medium sized peppers. I picked 1/2 a box as that was all I have of size. I went to the restaurant but it's closed from 2:00 - 5:00. I'll drop in tomorrow.

Pepper Orders

I'm getting swamped with pepper orders and I don't have enough peppers to supply!

Hector's Casa wants two boxes!

I need sun and heat!

Another poblano sighting in Quality Greens on Spall priced them at $9.00/kilo!

Peck Of Peppers

Today I picked a bunch of the largest peppers and took them to the Old Town Farm Market. Annelle wasn't there but I weighed the box and it came to 3 kilos of peppers. I then sold one of these kilos to Suzy. My first monetary return! She says Save-On Foods sells Poblanos for 9.00$/kilo!........mucho dinero!

Some of the pepper plants were lying a bit flat and I staked them up. It seems that the peppers are coming in unpredictable pockets i.e. some plants are loaded and some are naked......

Fertilized

I did a light sprinkle of fertilizer today.

A few peppers needed to be staked and maybe I should get the twine going down the rows. This years plants seem more upright than last year's bushy plants.

More and more peppers are appearing...........

First Poblano Pepper Pick

I went to check out the results of my fertilization and everything has grown a few inches not to mention more peppers are to be found.

It wasn't a peck I picked but four undersized experimental peppers to cook up for dinner. First Maggie had to try them on. As pretty as she is, the peppers were destined for our bellies.






First, Mag charred them on our stove's elements. This creates a great smoky flavour and helps seal in the flavours throughout the cooking. This is a process that should always be done with Poblanos no matter how they are being cooked.




















Because these peppers were picked as a celebratory Pagan-like first-of-the-year ritual, they were undersized and should of stayed another week on the plant. They were a bit too small to stuff so Maggie made a salsa and put them in it with cheese and other goodies.

Great Pepper Growing Website

I just found a great pepper site that includes growing tips and industry lists.

http://www.fiery-foods.com

Hector's Casa

I dropped in to Hector's Casa today to let him know about my peppers. He took me back into the kitchen and introduced me to his chef. She showed me their poblanos and they said they were interested in mine. They wanted to see them. I asked where they got theirs and she said mostly from Mexico and the US. She also said she thought they were being sold at the Farmer's Market. Anyways, I'll be bringing a sample in soon.........I know I can meet their size demands......

Weeded and Fertilized

I finished weeding the block again. Jerry dropped down and said he's been watering every two or three days for two or three hours. It looks like the right amount although the edge areas where some of the sprinklers miss due to positioning and wind are doing fine, maybe even a bit better. So, perhaps they are getting a bit too much water. Anyways, it all looks good and the peppers are coming on. I put a pinch of fertilizer around the base of each plant. Food for food..........

First Peppers

Dropped in to weed today and got about a third done.........peppers are appearing.

Little plant big pepper-


A freshly weeded pepper row-

Poblano Update

I stopped in to water the plants today. Lot's have 2 to 3-inch peppers. Weeds dominate again. I watered for about 20 minutes. 31 degrees. Cooking!

I guess the first of the crop will be ready in two weeks............

Sun Shines Peppers Grow

I dropped in to check out the peppers and see how they were handling the fertilizer. They are looking a bit bigger and little peppers can be seen throughout. I hooked up the siphon injector but couldn't get it to suck despite my priming methods. No biggy. Ma's gardening book says that the biggest mistake pepper farmers make is overfertilization. So I took home the injector to figure it out.

The weeds are back. Relentless. Encroaching. Choking. Organic vermin........

Weeded, Fertilized, and Sighted First Peppers!!!

Found some time to get up to the peppers and finish weeding what Ma and I couldn't get. Then, I fertilized! Finally. I sprinkled a pinch around the base of each plant and then watered.

I noticed one of the overheads isn't getting a few of the plants. Next time I go, if I remember, I'll bring some wood to make a water deflecter. I should be able to cause some benficial spray.

I fertilized by hand because I lost the siphon injector I picked before. Just as I finished I found it in a bucket that was full of water.

And, most importantly, I have peppers! Little inch long fellers.

Keep on shining sun!

Weed Session

Ma helped me weed on Sunday. Cleared a lot. I'm very tempted to lay down some fabric. Peppers look fine but still need sun..........

Weed Session

Yesterday I did another short weed session with the plans of giving the plants a dose of 10-50-10 (a Superstore purchase). But the weeds prevailed and I didn't have time. Today I hope to pick up that faucet injector.

It's still cloudy and rainy. Come on summer!

Fertilizer Hunt

I dropped in at Growers Supply to day in search of the elusive 12-63-12 fertilizer. They had 10-50-10 I think it was but only in 25kg bags for 50$........I then went to Agrico and they had 10-60-0 for the same price and size.....I talked to Todd in re of an injector for the hose faucet and he showed me the perfect one for 17$. So I can mix a batch in a pail and know exactly what I'm using over the whole area, also it's much easier than broadcasting.

I guess I'll try to find an alternative fertilizer that comes in a more reasonable size at a smaller plant store.......

Rain Rain Rain

Well it's been almost a month since I planted and all we've had is cloudy, cool, rainy weather but despite not having grown much they are all healthy. On Sunday, Mag and I weeded the green rows and exposed a few encroached plants...........Today was sunny and hot; I hope it's a sign of the next few months.......

Planting Done!!!

After a few days of sitting outside during the day climatizing, the plants are planted!

I got half in the ground friday night and the other half in yesterday afternoon. Jerry has set up two sprinkler systems that cover the plot with a non-plant-beating spray. As I planted I gave them all I gave them a weak dose of 20-20-20.

There are 354 in the ground! That's only a 62% survival.....nasty. I now think the seedlings needed more fresh air because all the deaths occured at the back of the table fartherst from ventalation. The positive part of all this is I only had room for 350 anyways. I could've gone to Handley's land but anyways.......

We twined a few rows and then stopped due to lack of string.....this can be done later......

Check out the Corral:

Climatization

The plants were getting a bit cooked in the heat on the windowsill and they were a bit hard to water without making a mess so I took them outside at about 3:00. I gave them a good water with the hose. What a luxury. A hose! Plants belong outside. But, tonight I'll bring them back in. It got cold last night (I was doing the granny-thing with the sheet around my head).......

There are many cases of roots having grown through the peatpots. These give me the willies and I wonder whether they shouldn't be in the ground regardless of adjusting to the heat........

Climatization

Last night I moved a little more than half of the plants onto a south-facing window sill. It's been drizzeling outside and they'll probably miss the light. Hopefully they get blasted by sun before the long weekend........

Planting Preparation

Long time no post..........Plants are doing well and are getting huge; only a week till the long weekend/plant time........

Today I went to Jerry's and raked out the corral where the peppers will be planted. I calculated the area to accomodate about 400 plants. Jerry rotatilled it and it looks like the soil will be perfect. Today's he's going to put a pop-up sprinkler on a corner post that'll cover the whole area. He also a bundle of stakes. I guess all I need is some twine. To warm the soil with poly prior to planting or not.......that's the question......

Now's time to start climatizing the plants by putting them in the sun on windowsills. That could be tough with Isabella running around now.......

Poblano Update

Long time no post..........funny things have happened on the grow table......it seems one area has bit the biscuit. The sad thing is I can't tell why. With the heater off, it seems there are no factors that make one position more suitable than another for plant happiness. Like Slothsinger's comment mentioned, I suppose it is possible that I burned them with fertilizer (i.e. the fertilizer didn't mix properly in the water container and came out super concentrated on the one patch) but I used such a small dose I don't think this is the case............another possibility is that the plants were damaged earlier by the heater and chose to die later just to tease me. The dead patch is above where the heater was situated under the table. Anyways, I still have a tonne of plants and my soon to be bountiful crop shall raise my family from the peat bog into fame and fortune.....

Note: the healthy plants are really healthy! In fact, their roots are poking through the peat pots and they're reaching for the stars!

Next year I must start weeks later.........at this rate, I'm going to have peppers in my basement not in the wild..........

Poblano Update

Just did another water session. A few sickly looking plants. I think they got a bit fried a few days ago (I have since disconnected the heater). All the little plants I raised to get them closer to the light. I added a couple scoops of 20-20-20 to the water to make a weak booster solution.

Big Dave the salsa man.....

Big Dave, the owner of a salsa company here in Kelowna phoned today. I had e-mailed him about a month ago. He had no use for my peppers but was interested in what I had going. He had a friend who grew them in Rutland but couldn't sell them. Dave suggested I grow on a southeast slope. I'll be on a southwest slope. Oh well. I have faith...........

Poblano Update

The thermostat seems to be working fine now......I watered everything well at about 3:00. The ressurected seedlings are still good. Most everything's good.......

Poblano Ressurection

Today I was cleaning up and I went to dump some unused soil into the peat bag. Behold! Five anemic sprouts were poking up. They were long ago discarded as toasted. I potted them. Here are some pics of the crop.........

Poly Humidifier

I followed Rick's advice and finished polying over the lights; something I started last night. I also watered them quite well this morning. It feels very greenhouselike now. I think it's something I should have done from the beginning. I also boosted the temp on the thermostat (which seems to be working now). The overall temp is now about 32 degrees. I'm thinking maybe I should return the thermostat to above the table. It makes more sense to have it there but It's so awkward and hard to mount.....

Oh yeah....I drained another full water container this morning.....that was fast.......thirsty little critters.

Thermostat Malfunction

I watered the plants this morning at 7:00 and unplugged the heater and fan as the thermostat is not switching off. Everything could fry.

Rick suggested I use some poly to increase the humidity. I should. A few wilters due to the watering I guess......they'll come back.......

Malfunctioning Thermostat

In the middle of the night I heard the heater fan whirring and I remembered that it was sounding a lot when I went to bed. I went and checked it and the remote thermometer was reading 40.5 degrees under the table. It seemed like the heater may not have been turning off. I yanked the cord and hit the sack. There's a little bit of wiltage this morning but hopefully no casualties.....

Poblano Update

I watered them all tonight and gave them a bit more than the trickle I gave a few nights ago. This should hold them for two and a half days or so........I had to refill the water container.

A few of the nasty plants have rebounded to a little less than critical state. A few others are wilting along the back. I rescued them and brought them to the not-so-hot front.

Lots of healthy plants........

Poblano Update

The beatup sprouts maybe look a little better but the heater has dried the pots along the far wall. I guess the corrugated metal allows a bit of heat to escape. I moved these pots to the front of the table and watered the whole works. This time I just passed the wand over them. No more overwatering! There have been a few casualties but on the whole lots of healthy plants.........

Poblano Update

Last night I setup the heater and fan to keep things at about 25 degrees. I think they need a bit warmer of an environment. The beatup seedlings don't look any worse nor better....

Poblano Update

It's been a day and a half since the last water. They need to dry out a bit. A few of the seedlings leaves have curled and appear dry but I think/hope that it's just a case overwatering. That caught me by surprise. I thought everything was on the edge of getting toasted. I have found traces of mold on the outside of the pots........

The curled emerging sprouts have not done much and I think next time they should remain in the heat until fully out. To help out I put them on top of other pots to get them nearer to the lights.

Jerry phoned today and said there's not much to do in re of preparing the corral. I asked about installing drip irrigation and he said he has a faucet down there that needs to be free. A Y could be installed and a timer put inline but what about power? He also asked me about fertilizer and I mentioned the 12-63-12.....

Euthanized Unborn Sprouts

I took 10 more sprouts from the incubator and pulled the plug on the rest. No more heater. Let the water retention increase!

Home Depot Shortcomings

I tried to return the flickering flourescent grow bulb to Home Depot today. They wouldn't take it because I bought it in a package of six. So do I return six bulbs to get the one bad one replaced? How many growers does it take to change a light bulb?

Water System

I picked up a plastic faucet thingy for my 5 gallon water container. From there I stepped it down to 1/4 inch tubing with a water heater fitting. And with this tubing taped to a piece of PVC it trickles water perfectly onto the plants without disturbing the soil too much......Nice. No more back breaking yoga stretches over the already trembling table or water runs to the kitchen for that matter.

Darrell says I must be Sergeant Pepper. It's true. Please call me Sergeant Pepper everyone.....

Poblano Update

Last night I gathered all the stray sprouts, potted them, and then brought all the unsprouts together into one and a half flats. Then I watered all the peat pots for the first time (not spraying but actually pouring). Hard work. Today I'll try and find a hose for my camping water container.

This morning I straightened the boom. Now the plants along the far wall are happier.

Repotting Done!!!!

Finally finished repotting all the seedlings into the peat pots. Peat pots suck!!!. I wonder what the pros do........anyways, I got 551 under the lights. There's roughly 100 more unsprouted ones in the hot box which I'm going to yank in a couple days....too much heat! I guess I overestimated the amounts of plants the table can hold because it looks like with a little engineering I'll only be able to get another 50 squeezed on.

The light boom is out of whack; the plants against the wall are pretty much in the dark. same with the ones in the middle. I'd really like to pull it down and adjust it. Maybe in the next free break....

Watering is the new issue now. I'm spraying so much water on these plants I'm going to have Popeye forearms. As there isn't a hose faucet in the adjacent laundry room, I'll have to rig up a gravity feed from one of the high shelves next to the table. I guess all I need are fittings that'll attach to my five gallon water container for camping. I'll need a wand to reach the back and unless I can stop the flow from afar I'll just crimp the hose with the free hand. This'll have to be done tomorrow as their initial watering session won't last too much longer......

I gotta return a light bulb. What a pain. Thanks Rona! You're going to give my seedlings seizures.

Poblano Update

Today I bypassed the pulleys and just fed the nylon rope through an eye-hook on one side and over a beam on the other. Simpler is better. The cottonline is a back up in case of a mishap.

I started the brutal task of repotting what are becoming leggy pepper sprouts. I estimate I did about 200 plants. I have changed the heating table a bit to accomodate peat pots which take up so much more room than the little starting containers. I put the metal sheets Victor made me over the corrugated tin to make a flat surface. The flats that need further heat to germinate are now actually inside the hot box. Everything green is on top.

Poblano Update

I think I mentioned it before but leaving the plastic lids on while under lights is the way to go. It seems that the drying out problem I had was cured over two days by bottom-watering. Now mold can be an issue. I notices a few traces in a flat.

Really it is time to put the seedlings into peat pots. Yesterday I picked up a 20-litre peat-based potting mix from Agro and when I get time I'll start the big planting job........I just wish my unsprouted seedlings would hurry up and get with the plot. A few more poked through this morning but 90% of the two remaining flats sit dormant. I should dig around a bit today...........

New Poblano Card Design

Here's a little better card..........gulp....

Produce Outlets

Here are some Googled produce outlets in Kelowna:

Wholesale

Barney's Produce (1993) Ltd 762-6465
1929 Bredin Kelowna V1Y 7S9                   

Ever-Krisp Wholesale 765-5095
101 720 Evans Crt Kelowna V1X 6G4                   

Sun-Valley Processed Foods 491-0977
50 1697 Powick Kelowna V1X 4L1
                  
Retail

Don-O-Ray Vegetables 860-2557
1 3443 Benvoulin Kelowna V1W 4M5                   

Glenmore Produce 979-7247
110 437 Glenmore Rd Kelowna V1V 1Y5                   

Good Life Okanagan Foods 878-4043
10839 Hallam Drive Lake Country V4V 1P1                   

Low Carb Lifestyles Market 860 7546
114 - 2365 Gordon Drive                   

Paul's Produce Inc 763-3131
102 2365 Gordon Dr Kelowna V1W 3C2                   

Peter's Farm Products 768-3750
2230 Carrington Rd Westbank                   

Quality Greens Farm Market 763-8200
1955 Harvey Kelowna V1Y 6G5                   

Sir Loin's Meats & Deli 765-2673
183 Hwy 33 E Kelowna V1X 2A1                   

Sun-Valley Processed Foods 491-0977
50 1697 Powick Kelowna V1X 4L1                   

Super Store Connection

Maggie, Isabella and I went to the Super Store today and I found the produce supervisor to ask about Poblanos. He was super friendly and went into the details of being a supplier for the store. He said that they get the peppers from different southern states and only occasionaly from Mexico. If a product is available locally, they may go with it to avoid shipping costs if it can be 'authorized'. I gathered this meant that most importantly the produce can support the volume and that it is consistent and of good quality. He said that once I'm 'in the door' they would stick with me and that they try to support the local growers. I said I had six acres to play with but I was only going with about 500 plants this year as I was concerned about finding outlets. The conversation then shifted to his interest in growing and how he looked into property down in the Osoyoos area for his particular crop (something that really needs warmth he says)......he said that I should grow 200 Habanero plants as there is a big demand for them here in the valley and that they can sell for about 2-3 dollars (per kilo I presume). Apparently they are a fragile plant. He could hook me up with a hot sauce maker who is always looking for Habaneros. If that worked out he would provide more crops that could prove profitable. One thing he mentioned about Poblanos is that unlike other peppers they rot before they wrinkle. This is because of their thin skins.

It's very tempting to throw a couple hundred habanero seeds into the mix. I wonder how bogged down I'll be this spring. I suppose I shouldn't put all my eggs into one basket especially with an exotic fruit such as the Poblano. I have time due to the speedy germinating I've had..........but do I have light space and what about cross pollination? It's pretty basic biology but I 've got to look into it. I know that seeds taken from peppers grown with different peppers are almost certainly crossed. But I don't know about the pepper grown from the original strain. It must remain pure, no?

Poblano Update

It seems that leaving the plastic covers on the flats full-time is the way to go. All dry sickly seedlings seem to be standing straight and tall today although some spots in the flats still seem dry (the table is level)....I think bottom watering is helping alot and I refilled the bottom of the trays today as they were sucked dry overnight.

The boom is still kind of useless as the pulleys aren't working well and it's so heavy. I've been just raising the lights by adjusting the chain and it's a real pain.......I can't wait to get rid of the heater and the bulky poly that's in the way all the time.

Still not a lot of action from the remaining two water-soaked flats. I hope they haven't been fried......

Yesterday Saverio said that Hector (Hector's Casa) says he gets his poblanos from Sysco supplies and that I should get a hold of them for prices. I did and they don't carry them. I wonder why Hector said that.....I do know that one supposed chile relleno I had there wasn't a poblano at all but maybe an anaheim.....

SYSCO HRI Supply, LTD.
9385 Jim Bailey Road
Winfield Industrial Park
Kelowna, BC   V4 1S4
(250) 766 - 0011  Telephone
(250) 766 - 1153  FAX

I'm trying to design a card and it's coming but it looks a little ugly............

Ok, it looks really ugly

Poblano Update

This morning I transfered more sprouts to the light flats. I'm getting a bit worried about how long it's taking the water-soaked seeds to germinate. Regardless I estimate that about 80% of everything is up already. That's so much faster than last year; maybe I should hold onto my horses.

I put the plastic lids on the lighted plants today to try and help them stay wet. I also really filled the bottom's of the trays to help keep things moist. This morning some of seedlings were laying flat due to thirst I guess. Must hydrate crop.............

Poblano Update6

I started to mix and match the differently-soaked seeds simply because I know that chamomile is the best and because I have to take sprouted containers away from unsprouted ones to get them in the light.

It'll be nice to get the heat off as everything's drying out so fast. Last night I put the plastic lids on the flats to help retain water.....

Jerry Zimmerman called and I can go help him clear and rototill the corral this weekend or the next. I'll enquire about drip irrigation and the possiblility of finding an injector to dose the plants with 12-63-12.

PoblanoSeedlings

PoblanoSeedlings
Originally uploaded by Strollingtroll.

Here's the sprouted seedlings.............

Poblano Update5

I put the sprouted seedlings under lights this morning. I'll give them 12 hours of light a day. I noticed that some parts of the flats were quite dry which was a bit of a nasty surprise because of all the condensation that collects on the plastic lids. Mostly the dry parts were around the edges. I misted them heavily with distilled water from Dad's shinemaker (I mean water distiller).

Had a bit of a mishap today while trying to fix the rope through the pulleys and the boom came down on the flats. No damage was done though. The boom is way heavier than I thought. I put a back up support rope on in case of another slip......

Poblano Update4

I picked up twelve 40-watt grow lights today from Home Depot. I put them in the ballasts and leveled them. It seems to be a pretty good setup but the cotton line I'm using to raise and lower the boom is a bit small for the pulleys and I think they'll be jammin' although raising and lowering the boom is not something I'll be doing often.

A few more water-soaked seeds have sprouted but they are definately the slow ones of the lot..........

Poblano Update3

Lots of peppers sprouting! Most of them are the ones I soaked in tea. In second place is the salt-soaked ones and then the water-soaked seeds. Some have decent leaves for only six days.

Tonight I rigged up the ballast boom with pulleys to the ceiling joists. I'll pull it up into place tomorrow when I can hammer without waking Isabella. I need nails to tie off the light level rope.

I guess the next issue is can I wait for everything to sprout before firing up the lights? It would be difficult germinating and using the lights at the same time........

Poblano Update

I just checked the peppers and some are sprouting already! That's only 5 days! Interestingly enough they are the ones that I soaked in chamomile. Looks like I'm going to have some real plants on my hands come the May long weekend......

I made a frame to hang the lights from.........

Poblano Update

The salt-soaked poblano seeds ended up soaking for about 14 hours. Joe Valoroso suggested this method but warned against over soaking or over salting etc. He said wait until the seeds had become lentil size. This was not the case with mine. I was scared and planted them perhaps prematurely.

My heating table seems to be working but I had to tune it up a bit. It has a corrugated metal top, styrofoam walls and a wood floor to make up the box. The nine flats sit on top and are covered with their plastic lids and a double layer of poly. The heat wasn't dispersing so well throughout the flats so I put a small fan in the hotbox. When the temperatur in the flats drops too low, the mechanical thermostat turns on the heater and the fan. Now, the heat seems to be a bit more even but it's still not uniform. I don't know why.....

A few weeds have sprouted. Thanks Walmart for the sterile soil!!! I dug around a bit thinking peppers were coming already but they were weeds. I did notice that the pepper seeds are sprouting under the soil though!

I put 6 Mandarin seeds in today just for fun.......

Poblano Log

I have begun the Poblano Pepper project again. This year I ordered 1000 Don Emilio seeds from Western Seed Company. I set up a germination table hat seems to be keeping the flats at about 30 degrees, the optimum temperature. Prior to sowing the seeds I have divided the 648 seeds I plan to plant into 3 groups. These will be soaked in different solutions of plain water, chamomile tea, and a solution of about 1 gallon of water with 1 teaspoon of coarse salt. The salt is not stirred in. Tonight I will plant all the seeds. As it stands, the water-soaked and the tea-soaked seeds will have been soaked for about 14 hours and I'll plant the salt-seeds tomorrow....

Isabella Is Born!!!

Two days ago on June 6th we had a baby girl. Now she's home with Maggie healthy and happy! Yeehaw!