Deformed pepper leaves

[thealley]

Hello,

The first picture shows a hot pepper and a bell pepper inside the same pot, so the conditions (soil etc...) are the same for both. The plants are growing very slowly, but whilst the leaves of the bell pepper are growing nicely, the ones of the hot pepper are sort-of deformed. I water them once every two days, and sometimes once every day. The current highest temperature in the early afternoon is about 23 degrees Celcius, and I'm still bringing them in at night.

Any suggestions please?

Many thanks.

 

[Chuck]

Hello,

The first picture shows a hot pepper and a bell pepper inside the same pot, so the conditions (soil etc...) are the same for both. The plants are growing very slowly, but whilst the leaves of the bell pepper are growing nicely, the ones of the hot pepper are sort-of deformed. I water them once every two days, and sometimes once every day. The current highest temperature in the early afternoon is about 23 degrees Celcius, and I'm still bringing them in at night.

Any suggestions please?

Many thanks.

I have a lot of different peppers. All the way from sweet to dangerously hot and every one of them shows the same thing that yours does. I think I over fertilized them. It doesn't seem to hurt the production as mine are putting on a lot of fruit. I usually side dress when the plants start to bloom and set fruit but I'm not going to this time. I am sure that they will grow out of it.

23C is really cool for peppers and that is why they are growing slow. They prefer it much warmer than that. Your plants will be much better off if you put each one into a lot larger container. Also, you are watering way too often. Mine are larger than yours but they are in the ground and the temps here are in the low 90's F. I water mine about every 10 days or when they are wilted in the mornings.

 

[thealley]

I have a lot of different peppers. All the way from sweet to dangerously hot and every one of them shows the same thing that yours does. I think I over fertilized them. It doesn't seem to hurt the production as mine are putting on a lot of fruit. I usually side dress when the plants start to bloom but I'm not going to this time. I am sure that they will grow out of it.

Hi Chuck, is it normal that they grow so slowly? And may I ask you the intervals of your watering?

Cheers.

 

[Chuck]

Hi Chuck, is it normal that they grow so slowly? And may I ask you the intervals of your watering?

Cheers.

I added on to my post. I think I have answered your questions but if not don't hesitate to ask.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Hi Chuck, is it normal that they grow so slowly? And may I ask you the intervals of your watering?

Cheers.

Yes. Peppers come in late in our season.

 

[headfullofbees]

Looks like aphid damage.
Garlic and chilli spray.

 

[thealley]

Looks like aphid damage.
Garlic and chilli spray.

Don't think so cause I can't trace any of them on the leaves or under them

 

[Chuck]

Looks like aphid damage.
Garlic and chilli spray.

I have 42 pepper plants and every single one of them has this. There are no insects of any kind at all. My plants look worse than the OP's. All of the new growth, and there is a lot of it, has this same deformity. But as the leaves get older they seem to go back to normal looking. It hasn't affected fruit set at all. The only thing different I have done is that when I planted the transplants I dug a good sized hole, 2 big shovels full + of soil and to the soil I added 1 1/2 pints of 3-2-3 pelleted fertilizer, refilled the hole and planted. I normally put in 1/2 the amount of fertilizer. The plants started off looking normal but within 2 weeks the leaves started looking deformed. I have never had organic fertilizer do this but, believe me, I have looked at these plants with a magnifying glass and there is nothing to see. I am pretty sure that this is a case of the "too much is just right" syndrome.