Re: [CH] White-flowered Rocoto

JohnT (Love2Troll@kc.rr.com)
Sun, 24 Jul 2005 08:00:51 -0500

To all...


Will McCown writes:

>  Is there some magic I don't know about?  Peruvian bees perhaps?

So far have seen only 1 of 35 accessions that wouldn't self, but the bees 
seem to really help for heavy pod set.  Unfortunately they are becoming more 
rare each year.  I'm searching for some magic myself.  Only trick that I 
know of is to get them rootbound for early bloom and set.  Accessions from 
Bolivia and Ecuador give up ripe 1st year pods the earliest.  Guatemala the 
latest.  (in my limited experience)  Capsicums are supposed to be day 
neutral...  maybe not all of them are?  You can have very mild and very hot 
pods ripen at the same time on the same plant.  Sometimes pods start to turn 
color and are ripe in 3-4 days.  Sometimes it takes 3-4 weeks.

Still very much in the learning stage here.  Am really anxious to try some 
in hydro both indoor and out.  Been 15 years since had a small ebb & flow 
rockwool cube setup.  I liked the control.  Armed with pH and dissolved 
solids meters could mix exact formulations to experiment with.  Still have 
metal halide & high pressure sodium fixtures.  Maybe next year.

No shortage of local names either.  Locota, Locotito, Chile de caballo & Aji 
picante are some of the names I've seen on the USDA site.

jt