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Vegetable Gardening

Pepper plants wilting and dying

7 years ago

It is very hot right now, being August in Texas, but that is not the problem. I've had 3 large pepper plants suddenly wilt and die. Is it verticillium wilt?

So far the remaining pepper plants and all the eggplants are doing fine (I removed the tomato plants when it got so hot that the blooms stopped setting).

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daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

I've had one of my peppers do exactly that. They all wilt in the daytime, but perk back up when the sun goes down. This one stayed wilted, and wilted more, and more, and more. No yellow leaves. No brown leaves. Just major droop. Finally pulled it. I even have shadecloth over them. I'm reluctant to call it verticillium or fusarium, because those conditions are marked by yellowing of leaves that usually starts at the bottom.

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Comments (8)

Peter (6b SE NY)
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Suddenly wilt and die can be bacterial wilt. Verticillium is more of a northern thing AFAIK.
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You're close to me, and my peppers are doing just fine. Peppers LOVE 90F temperatures. You need to dig down in that bed, and see what conditions the roots are looking at down there. If the roots are facing a layer of impenetrable soil, you've got problems that adding more soil might not easily fix. If you add soil on top of tomatoes, they'll do great, and just form more roots higher up. Peppers won't do that. Viral wilt is always a possibility too, but if that's the case, you'll be looking at yellowing leaves. Might also look closely on the leaves for insect pests. See, the main reason people put in raised beds is because the underlying soil is hard to work. If you put in walls for a raised bed, but didn't fill the bed with good quality soil, you haven't fixed the problem.
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daninthedirt (USDA 9a, HZ9, CentTX, Sunset z30, Cfa)
7 years ago
That could be about bacterial wilt, but I examined mine for the tell-tale ooze, and didn't see any.
share_oh
7 years ago
I have a similar problem - I have 4 bell pepper plants that had flowers on them and the start of peppers, but now the leaves are beginning to wilt and turn colors and easily pull off - starting at the bottom of the plants. I looked up verticullium wilt and it sounds like it could be the culprit. But it says it's in the soil. This row of pepper plants is right next to a row of banana peppers which have been doing wonderfully well.

Our garden is brand new this year - pulled up the sod and tilled up what was under it. We didn't test or do any additives as it was getting late in the season and we just wanted to get plants in the ground. Everything else in the bed (cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts and bush beans are doing fine.

Any thoughts on what could be wrong? (I am in NE Ohio)
ekgrows
7 years ago
I've had that happen with borers. Not sure what kind, but they got into 3 of my peppers this year. I found a hole in the main stem a few inches above the ground, and the whole stem was hollow. Once I cut that off, the plants recovered, but were set way back - are just flowering, while the plants not affected have been producing for a while.
share_oh
7 years ago
I'll look for a hole in the stems. Thanks!
yolos - 8a Ga. Brooks
7 years ago
I had beans and tomatoes that wilted. I tried the test to see if anything oozed out and nothing did. I dug them all up and took them to the extension office and they said it was Southern Blight.
lucillle
Original Author
7 years ago
Another one is dying. Tomorrow I'm pulling them all up.

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