What is killing my hot peppers?

[Chuck]

Too late. I guess we'll see how mother nature reacts.

I'll go buy some new plants if there are any left...

Not at Lowes I hope. It very well could be a virus contacted at the growers

 

[Meadowlark]

I've been thinking, and I did spray some herbicide on some weeds a few weeks ago, but I was sure that I was far enough away from the hot peppers to have any effect on them???

Would that explain why some of the leaves look like they are dying from the edges inward?

I am going to hack off all of the dying/decaying growth and leave what looks healthy and see if the plants survive.

Bingo!! Exactly as I suspected. The evidence you presented certainly pointed that way.

Start over with new plants...that's your best bet.

Lowes has been a reliable source of plants for me for many years. Bonnie is their primary supplier of veggies and they are superb. They restock every few days in growing season with fresh excellent starters.

 

[DirtMechanic]

Too late. I guess we'll see how mother nature reacts.

I'll go buy some new plants if there are any left...

A time honored tradition!

 

[The Zen Master]

A time honored tradition!

I am a casual gardener and have to work within my means.

 

[DirtMechanic]

I am a casual gardener and have to work within my means.

Ever heard anyone say you can get through a day without sex but not without a good rationalization?

 

[The Zen Master]

Ever heard anyone say you can get through a day without sex but not without a good rationalization?

Let's stay focused on the hot peppers.

I do not have the time to gift to you for the sake of 5-pepper plants. I beg your tolerance and forgiveness.

Nevertheless, I appreciate your identifying the most likely cause of the plant's illness. If it did, in fact, become infected by the herbicide, it was RoundUp weed killer, and as I understand - it is systemic - so the plants will die anyway if that turns out to be the case.

If not, they will live, though maybe shorter in stature...

If they live, and I go buy a few more plants today or tomorrow, I'll just have more plants.

If they die while I wait to see what happens, I'll have no plants.

It's not easy being a Zen Master...

 

[Meadowlark]

Ever heard anyone say you can get through a day without sex but not without a good rationalization?

LOL. I can honestly say, in all my years, I've never heard anyone say that...until now.

 

[The Zen Master]

If it is the RoundUp and the plants die, should I throw the potting soil away too?

 

[DirtMechanic]

If it is the RoundUp and the plants die, should I throw the potting soil away too?

You can plant 7 days or so after a spraying so I would not think its a problem.

 

[The Zen Master]

Thank you.

If the plants don't make it I'd like to be able to re-use the soil and containers.

 

[The Zen Master]

Poisoned pepper update:

Dey still livin!

Have to admit I am surprised. They're looking like they might actually overcome the poisoning!

 

[DirtMechanic]

There is a difference between over stimulation and a poison

 

[DirtMechanic]

 

[The Zen Master]

I always thought that RoundUp was poison?

 

[DirtMechanic]

It is. It stops a process I cannot describe well at all. But is the sun, in large quantity, by scalding and UV damage and dessication, not also something that stops function? Wind can damage, but it also makes the meristem stronger. To much water stops transpiration in plants but is simultaneously necessary.

I learned on some tomatoes that they could survive small quantities of roundup and grow through it. The more I learned about that type roundup type pathway thing, and read on hormones like 2,4 D, then the more I was impressed with how little is necessary to hurt a plant. The other side is how incredibly smaller amounts hormone are needed for growth. I became more able to understand these "ranges" of function in plants. They amaze me with how efficient and resilient they are, but maybe thats just me getting older, becoming more aware of how all life works together. I use some chemicals but now I would rather use too little and wait or apply it twice for safety. Some of them leach, some turn to gas and drift, some last for years and ruin any useful recycling efforts. Some, like glyophosate, stop bacterial action too. They really have to be used in a very narrow range.