true leaves

True leaves

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Time for an update on the 20 varieties of chilli we have growing here at The Birdhouse in sunny and blustery Hampshire, England.

A quick reminder of the seedlings’ journey so far…

The seeds were soaked in tea and left to chit in a humid propagator. Once the seeds had rooted & shooted they were put into small newspaper pots. They were kept fed and watered until their roots peeked out the bottom of the pots. Potted on into 9cm square pots. No science behind the square pot choice. We just have lots of them. They fit & balance well on our windowsill trays. And there we are, the story so far.

Chilli varieties with varying numbers of true leaves. Showing days since germination…

And if we do it all again next year?

We have not used heaters, reflectors, heated pads, lights or anything else too specialist…yet. Next year we might consider providing extra lighting once the seeds are germinated and potted up. A quick social media peek at specialist chillihead groups soon reveal the types of plant that can be grown under specialist UV lights with a little extra heat. Short, dark, glossy beasts that are poised to surge up when the frosts are finally over. Something to aim for.

Pots Galore

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It’s been a while. Busy times, you know. A quick status update shows that the February planted seeds are now in 9cm pots, they have 4-5 pairs of true leaves and are being fed ‘Chilli Focus’ plant food once a week (10mls to 1L). The March chitters are in their coir pots. Most have at least one pair of true leaves.

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So what happened in the chitting experiment? Jalapeno, Bulgarian Carrot, Aji Limon, Prairie Fire and Pretty Purple were all stars. Pretty much 100% success rate with the chitting within two weeks. Somewhat confusing results from the other candidates. Scotch Bonnet gave a 50% show. Fresno sent us three germinated offerings. Serrano & Long Slim Cayenne a couple each. Still NONE from Tobago Seasoning and Go Chu. None whatsoever. Disappointing to say the least.

The conditions were a little varied but surely one or two of each seed type should have germinated? We did take a holiday to Cornwall. The seeds were kept warm in the boxes at the back of an Aga the size & colour of a fire engine. They were also kept in the light. One Serrano showed his head in that week but then a few more of the harder types followed suit. Maybe light exposure is also a factor for some chilli types?

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There was also a brief foray into chemical assistance to germination. Some seed cases are tough and can be helped to soften using a couple of techniques: presoaking before chitting and using tea to soak them in. The tannins in the tea helps soften the seed case to allow more moisture in and then the root to break out. Not sure if I am committed enough to try diluted bird poo as a chemical aid. Might try scarification though.

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One tiny glimmer of hope remains in the fact that lots of books, seed packets and website claim that chilli seeds can take up to 5 weeks to germinate. All remaining seeds are basking in warm sunlight during the day and in the airing cupboard at night. If any of the Tobago Seasoning or Go Chu germinate they will be the most precious plants EVER. Definitely ones to overwinter. Come on now, play nice and give me couple of the plants I really want