Thanks for all the advice guys! Unfortunately, 2008 was not my great year (it was 2003) - which is why I keep thinking it's nutrient rather than weather / site, however, Platanus is right about there not being enough warmth this year for my warm site stuff (so, naturally, this is the year I plant okra and sweet potatoes...). I might have picked the wrong year to ask this question, but the issue appears to be the same as in previous, warmer years. I have great sun, have had plenty (more than plenty this year) of rain and have a growing season that is a little longer than the place I used to try and grow okra, Massachusetts (now that was a challenge!). I notice that my soil pH is a little lower than the optimal that was reported by the link jean001a provided (thank you for that!) and so I might pursue that. Thanks for all the great advice. I'll follow it and see what I can get. :)

Gloria brug seeds are easy to grow. When you get them they will have a corky covering. You want to soak the seeds in water overnight to soften the cork. Carefully peel the cork off and put the seed in a moist potting mix. If I'm starting them outside in the summer I don't do anything other than keep the soil moist. If I'm starting them indoors in cooler temps I put them on a seed mat. I don't cover the pots. They usually come up within two weeks. When they have a set of true leaves I transplant them into individual 6" pots and allow them to grow for a while then I transplant them into 12-14" containers let them finish out the season in that size and the next season I move them up to a final larger pot. I don't get flowers until the second growing season. The watering is the same as brugs grown from cuttings. I don't feed them until they have a few sets of leaves then I start with a diluted fertilizer. I use an all purpose fertilizer at first and switch to a bloom booster the second season. I also increase the frequency of feedings to 2x/wk the second growing season. This is what works for me but I'm sure there are different methods that work equally well for others. Karyn

Chris, thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed them. I hope others will post photos of their gardens. I'd love to see them. Kathy, I know what you mean about a clean slate. That's exactly what I had 26 years ago with my place. Just a couple of large trees, and nothing much else. I didn't really get into gardening in a huge way until I stopped working outside the home about 12 years ago. Oh, I had planted shrubs, trees, etc, but my flower growing was pretty much limited to a few annuals every year. I look forward to seeing your place when you get your website up and running. Please don't forget to post a link. :) Nancy, please do drop in for a visit some time. I'd love to show you around, and if I am ever up your way again, I certainly will pay you a visit! :) I know exactly what you mean about pictures. I've been to the Grand Canyon several times, and photos and words just are not the same as seeing it in person! :) Jan

Hello! I've recently started with indoor growing, my starting garden consists of False Alarm Jalapeno's, Best Boy Tomatos (Determinate), and Some Habeneros. I've also got seeds for Basil, and Rosemary that I'm about to start. Your basil has inspired me. I grow in my basement, but it's not as cold as yours, my furnace is in the same room, and I use a fan to move the excess heat around. I've also cranked the heat up to a cosy 72 in the rest of the downstairs.. about as low as I go is mid 60's. Currently I'm only nursing seedlings in rockwool, and I mix my nutes in a 2 liter bottle that I keep on the seedling heat mat. I used a vegetable tray with a cover to start my seedlings. I'm running that at ~85 degrees. My Tomatos were sprouted in about 72 hours, the FA Jals took another couple of days, My first habenero just popped up after 7 days. All of which are excellent times from what I read. So far so good, now if I can keep from killing them some other way... I've checked your site out, and it's awesome, I particularly like the graphs, I would love to track my setup in this fashion as well. However it'll be a bit before I can get a nice PH and PPM monitor. I have pictures of the beginnings of my setup here: Here is a link that might be useful: Hot Pepper Hydro