Advice on raised tomato + pepper bed?

[abbyleegardens]

Hi all,

I'm brand new to both this forum and raised bed gardening! I planted three raised beds, others with more success than my tomatoes and peppers. They seem to be stunted, dropping leaves, leaf curl, some fungus or pest problems, too.

Do you have any advice? I'm kind of at a loss. My plan is to put the tomatoes in five-gallon buckets, as I think they're too close together. Are my peppers crowded, too? I've been spraying with neem oil every few days, and for context, it was 90 F here today. Last week it rained, and rained, and rained, so I think my problems are layered.

Thanks in advance! I'm desperate for some purple cherries and supersteaks

 

[Munch517]

That doesn't look too bad, the peppers leaves may be curling a bit due to soil being too damp for too long, with a bit of drying out they should be ok. You will for sure need to do something to support your tomato plants sooner rather than later though.

As for spacing I've had luck putting tomatoes (always indeterminate) 1' apart along a trellis and pruning to a single stem, I'm not sure attempting to transplant at this point would be a good idea. I give my peppers just over a foot apart and use tomato cages or horizontal netting for support, I'd also pluck any flowers or fruits from them until you see some healthy growth.

 

[quiltbea]

I am just back to raised bed gardening after a 4 year absence but I think you will find its a good method though its too easy to over-water. Get thee a moisture meter to let you know when they need water.
I agree with Munch but also want to add that "peppers love to have their shoulders touching" or as some say "they love to hold hands" so a foot apart is fine for peppers. You can stake them to give them some support.

 

[Chuck-D]

Though both niteshades peppers reqire far less water your tomato ar also a bit on the pale side check your ph level it should be around 7.0-7.2 .
Your peppers are still young so ther is plenty time to get them tack on track , mix a bit of play sand ( Lowe's or Home Deport will have it roughly 4 usd for a .75 cu yd bag ) sand will help with drainge at around 10% of your mix keep in mind sand does not retain water so don't over do it .The othe option would be to transfer the peppers . Add a 12 cup pot of coffee to a 2 gall watering can ant top off with cold water one a week and splt it amongst your peppers they will rebound quicker and production will be insane . When your peppers get about 3' tall top them and vertical growth will stop affording more nutrition to reproduction.
And yes do seperate them from the tomatos

 

[headfullofbees]

Sorry to disagree, but the ideal pH for tomatoes is 6.0-6.8 & for peppers, 5.5-6.0.
Potatoes, which are also nightshades, will grow in soil pH 4.9; very handy if you suffer scab, as the fungus can't open below 5.1