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Shriveled tops...curvy veins

C

ccernst

So most of my pepper plants have started to shrivel at the top of the plant. All the younger leaves up top that are shriveled have very curvy veins. Soil is year old compost, put in last year for most plants. The plant pictured is still in a 4" starting pot with MiracleGro starting soil.
shrivel_pepper_top.jpg


is this water related or nutrient related??
 
I had the same problem with mine. Mites can produce that sort of damage, but it turns out my neighbor was spraying herbicide and some of it must have carried into my yard. See the link: 2,4-D damage in peppers.

I think someone mentioned that nitrogen excess can also contribute to this sort of growth pattern.
 
hmmm...well about a month ago, I did spray herbicide...but it was on a very calm day. None of my potatoes, beans, herbs, or zuchini got zapped. only the peppers have such a reaction.
 
I would start off by potting up into a quality mix like Pro Gro BX or an equivalent and hold off on the ferts for the time being.
 
all but three plants are in the ground...the three that are in pots are to be given away.

...and I've got a bacteria infection as well...darn ACE Hardware plants!!
 
It could be several things...but my peppers (and many other plants) go through this every year because the lawncare company that takes care of the townhouse community I live in sprays 2-4D herbicide every May without notifying anyone in advance. It is extremely irritating! The plants eventually recover after some selective pruning, normal care and 1-1.5 months time. It drastically shortens my growing season!
 
Hi, all. Long-time lurker but first-time poster here. To the OP, I am presently growing Bell's, MexiBelle's, NuMex Big Jim's, Long Red Slim Cayenne's, Hungarian Hot Wax's, Jalapeno's, and Bhut Jolokia's, and EVERY one of them that I used foliar plant food on came out looking exactly like your picture does, so I'm going to bet that they've been stunted by fertilizer. It absolutely could be 2-4D damage, but it doesn't look like it to me.

Oh, and I noticed that someone mentioned 2-4D being applied on a calm day . . . you should note the following: on any day when the humidity and temperature combination is sufficient to cause a temperature inversion, 2-4D will lift and drift hours after application, even on the calmest of days. I am located in Arkansas, and we are prohibited by law from commercially applying 2-4D within two square miles of cotton. It is not only a restricted-use herbicide, it is also illegal to purchase by farmers after April 15 each year absent an exception permit.
 
In Indiana you're not even required to notify or put up postings that an application has been made. I also get the same damage whether it is windy, calm, hot or cold.
 
Hum we have true green spray our yard this year and lots of my maters and a few pepper plants have leaves like that too maybe i need to have them stay further away from the garden.
 
wow yup thats it i went to that link my plants damage is exaclty like the pic's is there any way to help them recover?
 
A little patience and TLC and mine usually recover. Sometimes I have to cut them back a bit in order for their new growth to be normal. It seems to me that the younger a plant is, the faster it recovers as well. My overwintered peppers take forever to recover, they looked terrible until mid-July (exposure was mid-May) last year, and this year looks to be the same. My pepper and tomato seedlings have all recovered, although some had to be severely pruned back (8" back to 4" with nothing but a stem and a few nodes left to grow out from).
 
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