God I love growing our own

[fian]

You may remember I managed to overwinter a chillie plant... one out of about 8 that survived well into the winter. All the rest did not restart in spring ... Well... its fruiting and the chillies are now turning red... BUT ... I have no idea what variety they are and more importantly what heat they are....any ideas ?

They look like habanero peppers.

 

[pargyle]

They look like habanero peppers.

Oh dear .. I think you might be right - 100,000 – 350,000 Scoville !! I'm frightened to even touch them ...

 

[JamezF]

Habaneros are not that smooth in my experience; they have a more "wrinkled" shape. Yours look more like one of the "cherry" varieties to me. I doubt they'd be as hot as a habanero, but depending on variety they might vary from a bit less hot than a jalapeno to a bit hotter than a jalapeno.

James

 

[pargyle]

Habaneros are not that smooth in my experience; they have a more "wrinkled" shape. Yours look more like one of the "cherry" varieties to me. I doubt they'd be as hot as a habanero, but depending on variety they might vary from a bit less hot than a jalapeno to a bit hotter than a jalapeno.

James

It's finding out that's scary !!

 

[enrico]

We always plant too many chillies, been giving them to our village shop to sell on. Bags of mixed tomatoes on the gate are selling well. And , at last, after three months of none ....... WE HAVE RAIN...... everything was dying,

 

[pargyle]

At last... more ripe tomatoes than we can eat ! I've harvested more tomatoes in the last two weeks than in the last 5 years ! Sadly blight has now started in the Shirley F1's but the ones I grew from my own seed from the plants that were blight free are again blight free this year - despite being less than a couple of metres away from plants with blight ! I shall save more of those seeds this year and not bother with any others. The cherry tomatoes have been producing well ...they rarely seem to get blight. I do like a tomato sandwich that has been well salted, wrapped in foil and carried around for a few hours in a ruck sack ! Even better with hard boiled egg slices...

 

[enrico]

Our tomatoes are just coming to the end. The chillies have grown like trees and the red peppers this year have done really really well. Now realise they need pots far bigger than you would expect for a good crop. The largest chilly plants are those in the ground in the greenhouse.
Beginning to wind down now. the cabbage white are suddenly out in force bouncing off the nets to try and get at the brussels.
Been a good year for most things despite the dry weather.

 

[Curly green finger's]

So I’ve been picking runner beans it feels like weeks now and processing/selling them we are going to make loads of runner bean chutney this year I’m also getting a wee bit sick of them tbf - probably picked two bulk bags full.
Going to hopefully pick the last of them this week then IM DONE!
I do like eating them fresh/ raw but bloody hell they do cause windy bottom!

 

[Erichalfbee]

runner bean chutney this year I’m also getting a wee bit sick of them tbf - probably picked two bulk bags full.

Can you make alcohol from them?

 

[Curly green finger's]

Can you make alcohol from them?

yes you can use them to give other wines a bit more body.
Or make runner bean wine
One of my friends who is a bit nuts and distilles alsorts made some runner bean moon shine, it was that strong you could put some on a spoon and light it and there was nothing left on the spoon

 

[pargyle]

They look like habanero peppers

This is what they look like now...

 

[fian]

The reason I think they are habaneros is because of the pointed shape and small size characteristic of capsicum chinense.

 

[pargyle]

The reason I think they are habaneros is because of the pointed shape and small size characteristic of capsicum chinense.

You are almost certainly right ....

 

[fian]

Try one, but have a good glass of milk nearby since casein surrounds capsaicin and mitigates its effects.

You are almost certainly right ....

 

[JamezF]

You are almost certainly right ....

I really don't think so. I've never seen a habanero that wasn't "wrinkly". Do a search for "cherry bomb chile pepper" and look at some of the image results. To me they look far more similar to the ones you have than habaneros do.

James

 

[enrico]

Chillis cross pollinate with ease so even if you buy a certain seed sometimes they don't grow true

 

[Jimmy]

I know it's up to me when I pick my apples but is there any contemporary harvesting date info that reflect the changes in climate? Looking up some for the varieties that I grow (Kidds Orange red, Charles Ross, Sunset, Blenheim Orange amongst others) they all suggest harvest dates that are at least 2-3 weeks later than I experience here in S Warwickshire. If I left them as long as suggested more of them would succumb to the birds/squirrels. Websites like Blackmoor/Chris Bowers/RHS all seem to be half a century out of date.

 

[Macbear]

I know it's up to me when I pick my apples but is there any contemporary harvesting date info that reflect the changes in climate? Looking up some for the varieties that I grow (Kidds Orange red, Charles Ross, Sunset, Blenheim Orange amongst others) they all suggest harvest dates that are at least 2-3 weeks later than I experience here in S Warwickshire. If I left them as long as suggested more of them would succumb to the birds/squirrels. Websites like Blackmoor/Chris Bowers/RHS all seem to be half a century out of date.

No knowledge of any historical records other than my own. I picked my Katje apples from mid August, Red Windsor from early September and Falstaff from about now, Russets and Bramleys always later, although windfalls for both from late August. This has been pretty constant over about a decade. Birds, squirrels and rats need to be beaten to the harvest. RHS timings seem to be about right for where I live - North Norfolk.

 

[enrico]

We work on the colour of the seeds, once brown they can be picked but some like Blenheim orange will stay on the tree until winter and will sweeten with age, infact they turn into pleasant eaters.

 

[pargyle]

At last... more ripe tomatoes than we can eat ! I've harvested more tomatoes in the last two weeks than in the last 5 years ! Sadly blight has now started in the Shirley F1's but the ones I grew from my own seed from the plants that were blight free are again blight free this year - despite being less than a couple of metres away from plants with blight ! I shall save more of those seeds this year and not bother with any others. The cherry tomatoes have been producing well ...they rarely seem to get blight. I do like a tomato sandwich that has been well salted, wrapped in foil and carried around for a few hours in a ruck sack ! Even better with hard boiled egg slices...

So... since Monday the blight on the Shirley F1's has spread to the point where it's affecting the fruit .. lovely big green tomatoes turning brown with the blight. I've cut all the plants down and they have gone into the council green waste bin - better part of 10kg of tomatoes with it - so frustrating. I've picked the green ones that are not affected and are nowhere near brown stems and put them into a tray in thre greenhouse to see if they will ripen but I'm not hopeful. The cherry tomatoes are now coming to an end - just as well because they are also now showing signs of blight. The only saving grace is my blight free ones are still blight free and I'm picking ripe ones every day ...

Anyone know of a genuinely blight resistant commercially available seed ? All that effort going into the bin really hacks me off.