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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Getting ready to bring everybody inside!

I've been following Stella's Frankenchile thread, thinking *I* really should get my cuttings started too... but somehow, I just wasn't getting to it, you know? We had that day when the daytime high hit 80º and barely dipped into the 50's and all....

Well, last night went down to 39.8º by my porch thermometer, even though the local weather report was 43º, and the Low for the rest of the week is forecast to be in the lower 40's too -- especially after adjusting by -3ºF :?

I finally got myself in gear and took cuttings from just about everything I need to get cuttings from (most of the hot peppers, tropical milkweeds, lime and cinnamon basil, etc.), before their condition deteriorates from the weather, got some -- though not all -- of the returning vacationers (cold sensitive container plants) ready to come back inside. (I discovered that one of the pineapple tops has grown a pup :D

I've dug up and potted a Jalapeno plant -- this in my 2nd generation that interestingly grew to 1/2 the height of Jalapeno-M. I *may* pot up the Jalapeno-M as well, and I'm DEFINITELY bringing in the Aji Dulce and Fish.

This isn't the best time for it, but I also repotted a few plants that had grown roots into the ground under the container (which also meant they were pretty pot-bound): A couple of the citruses and a pomegranate. These are plants that can stay out for a little while longer anyway, so they should be OK.

It's going to rain most of the day tomorrow and possibly day after, so I'll let them all get a good rainwater soak, then I'll start bringing them all in. I hope I'm not cutting it too close. I AM glad I moved all the citruses from the spot they were in. They were fine where they were all summer through the drought, but I think the location gets too flooded when it actually rains because they're looking a bit yellow after the last few rainy days. They should be OK to stay out until the temps drop to upper 30's. (I have a thread going about that here: https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=29413 )

It all works out because I need to rearrange a *few* :roll: things inside the house to make room for all these plants. They all *GREW* a lot this year. I think it's due to the Pro-mix Ultimate Organic Potting Soil and Gardener's Gold Organic Potting Soil, Bumper Crop Organic Soil Conditioner, and Dr. Earth's Organic Veg Fertilizer that I used to fortify the container soil mix (home made compost, garden topsoil, and sand) this spring. :-()

:flower:

csvd87
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Location: Vancouver Island, Canada

I too need to get into gear and finish building my grow shelf as with all the trees around I get very very little sun in any windows, so I will be keeping my plants alive with fluorescents. My Lemon, Grapefruit, and Mango have seemed to be dormant for a while. My Avocado is really leggy as it doesn't get enough light. Need to bring in a couple pepper plants, Long Slim Cayenne, Sweet Cayenne, Jalapeno(just to get them Red), and Chocolate Bell. Luckily they are all in pots already. Heck I'm still trying to germinate things.. having a great time trying to get Rosemary from seed, and I have a Yellow Tobasco pepper with a few true leaves. My pineapple, although very unsteady is doing very well with only a couple hours of light a day it's a good 12" or so tall.

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stella1751
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Wow, Applestar! That's a huge project. Where will you put them all? What kind of lighting do you have for them?

I don't think I will bring anything in this year. However, I keep thinking about what Curtis said, how he planned to use more containers next year because he wanted to plan ahead for the eventual move into the house. I think I should have at least one container of each variety I want to move into the house.

I will wait until I see how my Frankenchile cutting fares over the winter. I think I mentioned in a previous thread that the first and only time I tried over-wintering a pepper did not work. However, I have learned much this summer through THG about this, so I am hopeful this time will be different.

I mostly live in fear of damping off fungus and have been giving my two cuttings as little water as possible, just enough to keep them alive. I'm thinking about putting them on a heating pad under my fluorescent grow light. They still haven't reached the root-bound stage I want, making a solid root ball in preparation for transplanting with a minimum of disruption. These guys will be tricky, too, given the mature size of the plant, which I suspect will be 5' to 6' tall.

What are your oldest peppers? Will you over-winter any this year for a second time? What is the oldest pepper any of you have ever grown?

garden5
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You're going to have your hands full, Apps. I know that in probably a week or two (hopefully two), I'll be doing the same thing.

I've got some tropicals I'll be bringing in, along with a few pepper plants.

I think I'll both pot my pepper plants, and give rooting some cuttings a try. I'll have plenty since I'll be pruning the peppers anyway so that the potted plants won't have so much grown to support.

What kind of growing medium are you planning on using to start your cuttings?

You got a pineapple top to grow, how cool! I tried early this year, but it just sat there in a glass of water and got soft :(. I did, however, get and avocado seed to take root :D. It's about 1.5 ft. tall, now.

Good luck and hope you beat the frost.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

During the cold months, all the available space in front of the windows are crowded with wintering plants (This, despite my claim that I don't like to container garden :lol:) There are strategically placed benches and cabinets, TV trays pressed into service, and even shelf boards laid across stools. 8)

Thanks to my overly optimistic seed starting efforts this spring, resulting in last minute scramble for extra lighting, I have plenty of supplemental lights. DBIL supplied me with salvaged fluorescent light fixtures to beef up my Seed Starting Area in the garage, and there is an extra fixture that I didn't get around to installing, so I may bring that in as well. (Unfortunately, my garage is no place for cold-sensitive plants since it WILL freeze during midwinter. I have to go to heroic efforts to get the seeds started, as some of you may remember from my previous threads.)

I'm in the process of uploading my temporary indoor mini-greenhouse photo for the hot pepper cuttings. These clear/translucent storage tubs come in real handy for many uses. Let's see if they're ready....

Ah, here we go: [img]https://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll272/applesbucket/Image8223.jpg[/img]

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applestar
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Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

I thought I'd link the continuation to this story here :wink:
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175258#175258



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