Hi there,
I'm growing capsicum (same as peppers I think)...but the leaves have gone a little bit crazy. At the top, where the new fruit is forming, they've sort of twisted and changed texture. Can anyone tell me why?
Thanks very much,
Bonnie
Howdy, Bonnie...
It's hard to say by just looking at the pic and not knowing the growing conditions there. However, first thing I'd look for is insects. Have you seen any aphids on the plants? Or ants? (Ants will be attracted to the honeydew secreted by aphids.)
Also mites may come into play. Very tine little critters so you may need a magnifying glass to spot them. Any signs of bugs then take measures to get rid of them (sometimes a good spray with a water hose will get you started).
At this point it could also be a disease but it's hard to say (and diseases are probably my weakness area of knowledge!).
Have you had cool nights there? High winds during the day? Have the plants been fed well?
Shoe
Hi Horseshoe,
Thanks for your reply. Yes it is hard when you don't know what I've subjected the poor plant to. Well, I did sprinkle some potash and dolomite around and it has recently had a lot of water because we've had a couple of weeks of rain. It's summer here, and we're getting around 28 degree days on average - not too hot at all. Before that though it was pretty dry indeed and very hot.
I know there are heaps of grasshoppers around - little green ones with sturdy bodies, and other more fine looking ones. They're eating it a little bit. It's given me 2 peppers and there are more growing now...
Here's another picture. See the yellow spot on the leaf (left hand side arrow)? Maybe it is disease. I'm going to post another thread with a pic of my little tomato plant which I think is getting sick.
Cheers,
Bonnie
Well, right now, the rest of the plant looks like it is doing pretty good, Bonnie. You may still continue getting some peppers from it before it actually succumbs (if it does). Yellowing of leaves can be caused by excessive water so I'm crossing my fingers for ya!
The grasshoppers (could be leaf hoppers) will certainly pass on a viral infection so am hoping you can keep them at bay!
Shoe
Howdy, Bonnie.
Just wanted to check in and see how your peppers did. Were you able to harvest anything?
Shoe
Hello, are these grown from seed or did you buy them from someplace? Looks to me like herbicide damage. It will make some of the plant effected curl or deformed.
Hi Horseshoe...Wow it's been a while since I got on the site! Hope you're going well in your garden.
Yes - I did harvest a few peppers but only about 3 or 4. I'm having another go right now. I've got some seedlings and I also pruned the old one back to a bit of a stump over winter (are you supposed to prune peppers?) and it's growing some leaves again now - not getting any taller though! (here it is being overshadowed by a mystery plant).
Thanks for your interest. I'll be posting a few more queries today.
buffalo sisters - hi, I grew this from seed. Thanks for your advice.
cheers,
bonnie
