These two very hardy plants seem to stay green no matter how cold or dry it gets. We are in Northern New Mexico at around 8000 feet and it would be a great overall ground cover if we can identify and purchase more seed. Can you help?

The gnats are in the Miracle Grow potting mix. It is a problem this year. If you google "miracle grow gnats" you will get 18,700 hits and a day's worth of reading about people being really pissed off about it. The pro mix has no nutritive value afaik; it's just peat, vermiculite, perlite, and the usual other odds and ends. It's a growing medium, not soil. Thus it must be supplemented by fertilizer when you get some true leaves or soon thereafter. The mg potting mix slow release fertilizer you're using on the up-potted plants is not going to be sufficient. A low-key fertilizer like diluted organic fish fertilizer, diluted to half the recommended strength, wouldn't burn the seedlings. Definitely do not want to use full strength or non-organic fertilizer at this stage. Anyway as others have already noted you are killing them with kindness; you gotta cut the watering back radically. my seedlings are 14 days old and have gotten 1.5 cups of warm water per 72-cell tray, once. They are slightly slightly moist but pretty dry, and the plants like it that way.

Wow that barrel looks really cool. If it was used for bourbon production I bet it would impart a fantastic flavor in anything smoked. Yep, that was my Frigidaire by General Motors smoker. I built it about 26 years ago. Some friends were on the way to the dump with it when they decided I needed a house warming gift. They were right! One of the photos showed peppers stacked three shelves high, but I can go as many as eight. I have other smokers for meat, but this one still produces the best venison jerky, and lots of it when needed. BTW The latch on the fridge is deemed a child endangerment hazard and was supposed to be removed upon disposal, if not sooner. Kids were getting trapped inside these fridges and suffocating and thus were probably one of the first products listed as a child hazard... at least as far back as I can remember anyway. This post was edited by mecdave on Tue, Aug 26, 14 at 20:59

The way you planted them is the problem. 1) You have them in buckets not getting sun and you have potting soil or garden soil on top of the native soil, which isn't necessarily bad but if you haven't prepared the native soil to allow the roots to make make an easy transition. You can try, but I doubt it will be a success, to transplant them into fresh buckets with holes drilled in the bottoms using a soilless potting mix. This time make sure you come to with a couple inches from the top with soil. If you want to protect them from dogs and children(whether in a container or in ground), throw a tomato cage around them. Note: Large fruited annuums, like New Mexican chiles, do much better in ground than in containers. So perhaps next year think about a raised bed or straight in ground or use containers that are bigger than 5 gal. buckets. Next, I have a few issues with chris051443's assessment. Sorry Chris :( I won't comment on the coco coir, since I've never used it but I've heard it's great at starting seeds. ----- 2) "I'd never use that amount its primarily used to retain moisture in smaller pots The degradation of the mulch will rob the plant of nitrogen as with any compost that still contains bark etc Mulcing is good for soil in small amounts it can also increase the soils bacterial content and the mulch will always be breaking down and releasing amounts of other nutrients and minerals. ----- Disagree entirely. a) It can be used in ground, in small pots, in raised beds, etc. to not only conserve water but to cut down on weeds, regulate soil temps, and add nutrients to the soil. b) Well aged mulch will NOT rob the soil of any nutrients. FRESH wood chips will, however, but even then it would have to be incorporated into the soil, which, at that time doesn't qualify as a mulch. Mulch is defined as lying on TOP of the soil, not be a part of. In any case, refrain from using FRESH wood chips on vegetables and other annuals and reserve them for perennials and tress. Better yet, age those chips. c) BARK does not rob the soil of nutrients. One reason why bark based soil mixes are so popular nowadays. Bark has great durability whether as the soil or as a mulch. The SAPWOOD(basically wood chips) found in many bags of bark does rob the soil of Nitrogen if used as a soil mix. Why it's always a good idea to sift out the sapwood when making a bark based soil. Used a a mulch though, the sapwood doesn't need to be sifted. 3) "Garden soil is always a must add component It contains a good biodiversity of bacteria and fungi" ----- This is true and should be reserved for just that--- the GARDEN. However, it's very difficult to maintain a healthy microherd bacteria and fungi)in containers unless they're very large containers. Stick to a soilless potting mix for containers or use large containers like half wine barrels. Something as large that temperature swings and water swings will still support the microherd. 4) "If I was you I'd repot with less thick mulch it can overload the soil with rotting type organisms which have been known to eat at the roots." ---- Thickness of mulch is not an issue and unless you're using diseased organic matter as your mulch, does not promote bad, unhealthy soil. I've mulched with a thickness of four inches or so before with no ill effects. However, you don't want mulch touching the stalk of your plants, so pull back on mulch about 3-4 inches from the stalk. 5) "PS mulch is no good for pots IMO if you want to cover the top to prevent mould etc you could use small pebbles" ----- Try telling that to my very healthy potted MULCHED plants. Also, I can see the merits of rocks as a mulch, but they heat up very high. And much like most of the growers in the U.S., we're looking to cool our soils a tad in the dog days of summer. I can see it's merits possibly in the spring when we're trying to warm the soil, but unless you live in a very mild climate or are an indoor grower, I just can't see it as an effective MULCH. Once again, sorry Chris. But mulch is your friend. Kevin