What is killing my hot peppers?

[The Zen Master]

I am totally lost - can anyone offer any suggestions as to what might be attacking my hot pepper plants? I do not know what information anyone might need to assess this. I am in Cedar Creek, TX and bought the plants at Lowe's - they looked perfectly healthy. 4-plants were transplanted to larger containers - 1 was left in the container it came in (bought a couple weeks later). All plants have the same disease.

Any help would be highly appreciated.

 

[Alvean]

is it white and powdery ?

 

[The Zen Master]

No it is not powdery mildew. It is mind-boggling - plants looked fantastic in the store. Brought them home, and in a few days they started having puffy leaves. Garden center lady said try this Organic fungicide/insecticide/miticid seemed to work, a little, but plants have gotten progressively worse.

First time growing hot peppers in Texas - what a disaster. Used to grow them in Arizona never had a single problem.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Curling leaf is chemistry, hormones or poisons or something weird inside the plant. Your description of what you spray around the planting is lacking detail. The lack of a infection front line around the discoloration suggests a greenhouse virus. You would not be the first in that area. How are they today with pics?

 

[Meadowlark]

Howdy Cedar Creek...I'm just south of you in the Livingston area. Just a guess but those look like possibly they were hit with drift from some herbicide spray. I'd certainly be looking for some healthy ones to go with.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Ok thats two of us saying spray drift on the curled leaves. Yardwork weed killer or post emergent? Looks like they will power on through. They grow slow, its a factor. Those white spots may be scald since they were in a protected area until you got them home.

 

[Chuck]

What type of soil did you repot with? If a commercial compost product it is probably not a soil issue. It looks like a virus to me. Probably Alfalfa Mosaic Virus if its a virus. It could be herbicide damage as stated above but herbicide damage usually involves wilting of the leaves and I don't see that. It could also be a fertilizer issue, using too much. I am an organic gardener and last year I accidentally put way too much fertilizer on and it wrinkled the leave just like yours but the plant grew out of it.

 

[The Zen Master]

Curling leaf is chemistry, hormones or poisons or something weird inside the plant. Your description of what you spray around the planting is lacking detail. The lack of a infection front line around the discoloration suggests a greenhouse virus. You would not be the first in that area. How are they today with pics?

The photos are from today.

I sprayed them (advice of Garden Center person) with Garden Safe Organic Fungicide3 - they did seem to perk-up after a spray but it seems like each night it gets worse. Probably my imagination.

I am totally stumped I've read everything I could find on the internet.

 

[The Zen Master]

What type of soil did you repot with? If a commercial compost product it is probably not a soil issue. It looks like a virus to me. Probably Alfalfa Mosaic Virus if its a virus. It could be herbicide damage as stated above but herbicide damage usually involves wilting of the leaves and I don't see that. It could also be a fertilizer issue, using too much. I am an organic gardener and last year I accidentally put way too much fertilizer on and it wrinkled the leave just like yours but the plant grew out of it.

Only fertilized once with 1/2 strength MiracleGro.

What stumps me is this - I brought 4-plants home, transplanted them into commercial potting soil - in a few days I noticed puffy leaves. About a week later I saw a beautiful plant at Lowe's and brought it home - seems like 2-days later its started the puffy leaves. My second photo is the 5th plant.

 

[Chuck]

Only fertilized once with 1/2 strength MiracleGro.

What stumps me is this - I brought 4-plants home, transplanted them into commercial potting soil - in a few days I noticed puffy leaves. About a week later I saw a beautiful plant at Lowe's and brought it home - seems like 2-days later its started the puffy leaves. My second photo is the 5th plant.

This sounds more and more like a fertilizer problem. It wouldn't surprise me if the (plant experts) at Lowes used the wrong setting on their hose end sprayer. What I would do is flush the plants thoroughly. This will not hurt the plant at all. Why don't you use HastaGro by Medina. It is a much much better fertilizer and its organic. I would also, just to make sure, move your peppers away from any other vegetable as a virus is incurable and will spread to other crops such as tomatoes.

About your growing medium. What is it exactly and where did it come from? Its not likely but it is possible to have a Piclaram problem. Have you used the medium on any other plants?

 

[The Zen Master]

This sounds more and more like a fertilizer problem. It wouldn't surprise me if the (plant experts) at Lowes used the wrong setting on their hose end sprayer. What I would do is flush the plants thoroughly. This will not hurt the plant at all. Why don't you use HastaGro by Medina. It is a much much better fertilizer and its organic. I would also, just to make sure, move your peppers away from any other vegetable as a virus is incurable and will spread to other crops such as tomatoes.

About your growing medium. What is it exactly and where did it come from? Its not likely but it is possible to have a Piclaram problem. Have you used the medium on any other plants?

One plant (second photo) is in the growing medium I bought it in. Whatever it has, it caught from the first 4.

 

[Chuck]

One plant (second photo) is in the growing medium I bought it in. Whatever it has, it caught from the first 4.

OK, so it is not the soil. Are the actual limbs doing anything odd such as discoloration or flaking something that just isn't right?

 

[The Zen Master]

I've been thinking, and I did spray some herbicide on some weeds a few weeks ago, but I was sure that I was far enough away from the hot peppers to have any effect on them???

Would that explain why some of the leaves look like they are dying from the edges inward?

I am going to hack off all of the dying/decaying growth and leave what looks healthy and see if the plants survive.

 

[DirtMechanic]

I've been thinking, and I did spray some herbicide on some weeds a few weeks ago, but I was sure that I was far enough away from the hot peppers to have any effect on them???

Would that explain why some of the leaves look like they are dying from the edges inward?

I am going to hack off all of the dying/decaying growth and leave what looks healthy and see if the plants survive.

Do not touch it. It may need all the solar panel energy it can get if you have chemically shorted some of the circuits. While those herbicides are usually systemic, they also rely on a quantity\volume relationship for effectiveness and thus maybe your drift has not achieved critical limits and the plants will grow through it. Certainly they will need photosynthesis to help regrowth.

 

[The Zen Master]

Too late. I guess we'll see how mother nature reacts.

I'll go buy some new plants if there are any left...