Leaves Turning yellow/falling off, my peppers seem to be dying.

13 years ago

Hi,

This is my first post here and unfortunately it's not bringing good news.

I've recently been trying to grow some jalapenos on my windowsill and initially everything was going really well. They were growing so fast and looked really healthy. About 2-3 weeks ago this is what they looked like:

Then about that time the leaves on the plant to the left in the first picture (the one starting to grow it's first pepper) started turning yellow and falling off. Then the second plant started and then the third. In each instance the yellowing started soon after they started producing their first peppers.

Now they look like this (the box is facing the opposite direction):

Is there anything I can do to save them or would it be better to start over?

Other info:

They are planted in fresh potting soil - a mix of miracle grow and organic potting soil.

I water then about twice a week, the soil is moist.

Each night tiny mushrooms grow (i didn't plant them) which die as soon as the sun hits them.

There are quite a few very tiny flies about, though they seem more interested in the soil

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Comments (10)

simsedward
13 years ago
You need to transplant each one into its own container, much larger than that one.They might be getting cramped.
notrod
13 years ago
I would give them more space, but also ease up on the watering as well.
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I think -- I'm no expert on this -- the leaves, flowers, and fruit are falling off right where they would naturally do so, certainly it's not something obviously wrong, like halfway down the stem. Mainly I fertilized them with tomato fertilizer, which is usually low in nitrogen for just that...hey, I have beans growing near them, could this be putting too much nitrogen in the soil? There's a gap of two or three feet between the patch of peppers and the thin row of snow peas and pole beans growing up the back fence. Newt: OK, if I can figure out where to get epsom salts, I'll add a little in case that'll help. The temps have not been falling much below seventy, so that's not an issue. I have seen places claiming peppers cross-pollinate, which seems logical, but I've also seen ones saying they self-pollinate, and thus don't need help. I take it this is false. Will simply tapping the flowers help, the way it does tomatoes? The ground around the peppers has not really gotten dry, which is why I was slow to water them. I am under the impression that it should start feeling dry when you stick your finger in it, or else you'll over-water. Was I mistaken?
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Hey Chris, You should probably start a new thread to ask your question as this thread is very old! LOL! In answer to your question, it's hard to say. Forget the 'I don't have a green thumb' excuse. It's all about learning what conditions your plants need and doing your best to provide that. You need to monitor the temperature in your family room. When you say 'very cold' are you talkin' 60s? 50s? 40s? 30s? So it could have gone into shock, could have gotten spider mites, or root rot from too much water, or even stress from not enough water. It's too hard to say without knowing more about your growing conditions. In Spring do NOT set the plants out until nights are reliably above 55 degrees and days at least in the upper 60s to 70s. Ideal coniditions for these tropical beauties is lows in 60s/70s and highs in upper 80s/low 90s with some humidity and lots of bright sunshine and breezes (think Hawaiian beach!). The further north you live, the harder it will be to supply these conditions. They like a long growing season, and a short dormancy. In the North, our dormancy periods are quite long and plants get stressed with too long a dormancy period. If you have an extended cold and rainy spell, bring the plants inside or put under an eave or in a garage. Plants with no leaves do not like to be cold and wet for extended periods. You risk them getting rotted roots or blackened tips.
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That could be drought stress or fertilizer burn. skuiiy: We bought the plant with the shown plastic pot and kept it in there since it seemed to be doing well & producing flowers and fruit. A plant from the nursery producing fruit is often doing so because it's stressed. When tomatoes are stressed, they fruit because the plant rushes to reproduce before it dies. So assuming it's happy because it's fruiting could be incorrect. Even if the pot is OK now, it won't be much longer unless that plant is a dwarf or small determinate. skuiiy: -Gave it liquid fertilizer. -Added about a spoonful of epsom salt to the soil/mulch mix it's in and mixed it in a bit. Epsom salt is really only necessary if the plant has a magnesium deficiency. If not, it could cause problems. Also, it's possible you've given the plant too much fertilizer, which can manifest as leaf burn skuiiy: now I'm watering(about 2 cups of tap water, instead of just 1)every other day starting today to see how that goes. First: Pot it in a much larger container. Gently knock off as much of the current potting mix as possible so that almost all of the mix is fresh, as this will help correct the problem if nitrogen burn is the problem. Use a normal, fluffy, well-draining potting mix, not a mix advertised as moisture-retaining, and not anything labeled as "garden soil". Mix water into the mix well before putting it in the pot, as peat-based mixes can initially repel water if they're dry. Second: Don't measure your water or water on a set schedule. To determine when to water, stick your finger down into the mix a couple inches. If it's dry, water and water very deeply, until the water is running freely out of the bottom of the pot. If it's still wet a couple inches down under the surface, hold off. In your climate, when it gets hot, don't be surprised if you have to water daily. As for fertilizer, you can give the plant a dose according to instructions once a week or every two weeks (depends on how frequently you have to water), or you can water at very dilute strength with every watering (dilute more the more frequently you have to water).
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andythehotpepperguy
13 years ago
I agree with watching the watering. My JalapeÃ±os did that to me about a month ago. It seemed to me it was a combination of over-watering and low temperatures. I wouldn't water until the plants look like they need it, they'll get droopy leaves when they're ready. Do your plants get any heat at all?
tsheets
13 years ago
Mushrooms growing, yellowing leaves, and what is probably fungus gnats... Sure sounds like overwatering. Cut way back on the watering and see how well they recover.
napalmxv3
13 years ago
What direction is the window sill facing?

You should only have to water a container that small every 2 weeks, probably. Just wait til the soil is dry. As long as their not dead, they can be rescued.
ehsteve
Original Author
13 years ago
Hi - thank you all for your help and advice.

So I've checked the soil under the surface and it's very damp. Initially when the leaves started turning yellow I mistakenly thought that they weren't getting enough water so made the problem worse.

I'm going to try not watering them for a while (I'll try a couple of weeks as suggested). I've also loosened some of the soil up a bit to make it easier for the water to evaporate.

The window is facing South-East so not ideal but the best one in the Apartment. I'm thinking of getting a grow lamp of some sort to help them out. How many hours of direct sunlight do they need? Or is the answer "as much as possible"?

We're in Virginia and so they peppers are pretty warm through the day particularly when in direct sunlight.

I guess it's fingers crossed now and see how they recover. I've been checking out a few of the pepper pictures on the board and am jealous - hopefully I'll be able to followup with some decent pepper pics of my own.

Thank you again.
napalmxv3
13 years ago
South is ideal so you're not far off. Work with what you have. They should be getting enough light for their size.

Letting them dry is the best thing to do. If they don't show enough recovery, try replacing the soil. Saturating it too much doesn't do well for the nutrients.
jean001
13 years ago
Have you fertilized? If not, please do so.
taz6122
13 years ago
Peppers don't need much fertilizer. They are probably too wet. A west window would be better this time of year. South windows don't get enough exposure(especially if you have eves on that side) as the sun has shifted north.
jean001
13 years ago
It was said "Peppers don't need much fertilizer."

Perhaps so. Especially for peppers in the garden.

To my way of thinking, OP has a crowd in a small container. Containers run short of fert in a relatively short time.

Leaves Turning yellow/falling off, my peppers seem to be dying.

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simsedward

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Leaves Turning yellow/falling off, my peppers seem to be dying.

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