Mary’s Komnatnyy Krasnyy 1/4

[MaryL]

My pepper is definitely on its way.  It’s somewhat hard to see with all the background greenery, but it finally resembles more like Shawn’s and Corinne’s.  I need to move the herbs out of this garden and let the pepper have it all to itself.

[Shawn]

Your pepper is looking wonderful. 

[MaryL]

Ok, my Russian finally has the machine all to itself!  It got a Rinse and Refill while we were at it, as well.

[MaryL]

This was March 12, and the 2nd picture is yesterday, March 21, much taller but after removing many of the hugest leaves

[Shawn]

It is coming along Mary.  I am often taking large leaves off.  As I do the following days I see more growth.

[Kate]

That pepper looks great. It's amazing how full it looks, even with the pile of leaves removed!

[MaryL]

Wow, it was already time to give it another haircut.  Mostly in order to access the blossoms to pollinate them.  Also, I’ve moved this from the bottom of that stand to a counter so I can work with it from here on out.

Before



After

[Shawn]

It looks great Mary.  I need to trim mine as well.

I guess i am a slob! I am just letting mine do its thing now and it is full of buds. I am afraid of retarding any growth at this stage of growth.
I know the pepper growers here will say go ahead, but.....call me coward.

[Shawn]

Only do it if you feel ok with it.  Nothing wrong with leaving them alone either.

[MaryL]

Mar 31, 2018 14:19:03 GMT -5 @cornne said:

I am afraid of retarding any growth at this stage of growth.

I get that.  But with this plant in particular I couldn’t reach the buds through the foliage to pollinate them.  

Mar 31, 2018 16:46:52 GMT -5 MaryL said:

Mar 31, 2018 14:19:03 GMT -5 @cornne said:

I am afraid of retarding any growth at this stage of growth.

I get that.  But with this plant in particular I couldn’t reach the buds through the foliage to pollinate them.  

I know! They are so tightly packed in there!  I just give them a tickle every now and again!

[Kate]

LOL, getting a visual.

What do you guys feel is the best way to pollinate the peppers?

The back of an old electric toothbrush is mikes fave. I use Be the Bee , an AG accessory, but Mike's idea is the same and less costly.

[Kate]

I used my Braun for the tomatoes, but I thought Mike was saying pepper flowers are too fragile or fall off too easily for it. Maybe I'm wrong. It wouldn't be the first time

[jcosmo]

Apr 1, 2018 8:25:20 GMT -5 Kate said:

What do you guys feel is the best way to pollinate the peppers?

I use a paintbrush for one of mine. It's very compact with lots of buds right at the center, and the ones on the periphery are often turned at difficult angles, so it works well for that. I mostly just use a fingertip (and occasional shaking of the plant, holding it at the base of the stem) for the others.

[Kate]

I guess I'll try both the Braun and paintbrush. I've got loads of soft, pointed makeup brushes I've never used. Some are pretty high end, but what the heck, the plants are worth it!

[MaryL]

I used to only shake my plants. But I noticed that Mike and Shawn always got more peppers than me, so I thought I should do more, whether it’s with a toothbrush, paintbrush or Be the Bee.  I ended up getting the Be the Bee because there was a sitewide sale.

[Shawn]

I find that depending on the plant, shaking may be enough but some of them need the brush.  90% of the time I use the brush.

[MaryL]

Apr 7, 2018 3:42:21 GMT -5 Shawn said:

I find that depending on the plant, shaking may be enough but some of them need the brush.  90% of the time I use the brush.

I imagine the brush would be the most precise and effective.  Like Kate, I’ll dig out a small makeup brush - I’ve got just the right size and shape.