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Tightly curled leaves issue

Hi,  I'm new to growing peppers & I am having an issue with many of my plants having a tight curling issue with new growth.  The veins of the affected leaves also seem to be very prominent.   I have some that actually look like Fiddleheads!  I am assuming I over fertilized them.  Although I am also leaning towards Aphids/ Mites since when I released a bunch of Ladybugs they went right to the curled leaves in many cases.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  My tomatoes have not had the issue & I give them all the same amount of nutes.  I will post pictures soon.  I am having issues trying to post the pics.
 
magicpepper said:
do you have any pictures? cause that would make it easier to figure out
+1
 
Pictures would definitely help in diagnosing the issue
 
other then those leaves id say the plant looks really healthy, no sign of nute burn anywhere else, no sign of over watering either from what i can see, id have to go with mites or aphids!
 
magicpepper said:
other then those leaves id say the plant looks really healthy, no sign of nute burn anywhere else, no sign of over watering either from what i can see, id have to go with mites or aphids!
 
Either these or thrips. In any case, pluck the leaves, and spray the entire plant(s) with neem oil and/or pyrethrum, which is available at Home Depot.
 
magicpepper said:
 
And be sure to make sure the leaves are thoroughly covered in the spray when you do so, since if there's even a little missed spot, the bugs will eventually find it, and you'll have to start all over
 
elcap1999 said:
 
And be sure to make sure the leaves are thoroughly covered in the spray when you do so, since if there's even a little missed spot, the bugs will eventually find it, and you'll have to start all over
yea those little buggers are sadistic towards plants,  you could also try dipping your plants into hot water, i think 145f maybe a little less will kill the bugs, but not the plants, i could be wrong about the temp though. elcap do you know the right temp?
 
magicpepper said:
yea those little buggers are sadistic towards plants,  you could also try dipping your plants into hot water, i think 145f maybe a little less will kill the bugs, but not the plants, i could be wrong about the temp though. elcap do you know the right temp?
 
I don't recall it off-hand, so I'll defer to others on dipping in hot water...
 
     To me it looks like herbicide damage. Growth regulator herbicides like 2,4-D and dicamba cause damage to new growth exactly like you are seeing. I had the same issue on all of my plants the last two years. These herbicides are very volatile and can drift for miles - still potent enough to injure or kill plants. 
     The first year I saw damage, I thought for sure it was broad mite damage. I sent plant samples in to a university entomologist and he couldn't fine one mite or egg. Once I realized what I was dealing with, I started pruning all the damaged growth off my plants. These chemicals are translocated by the plant's vascular system to areas of rapid growth (new shoots), so picking off all new growth until it starts looking normal is the way to get it out of a plant.
     If I were you, I would send some samples in to an entomologist or a county extension agent to find out if you have broad mites before spraying anything. In the mean time, keep pinching off new growth and disposing of it properly (trash). It will take a while for all the poison to be removed from your plant, but it will eventually grow out of it. Good luck!
     One more thing - check out Trent L's glog. He had the same problem this year and has some good pics of 2,4-D damage. (I was to disgusted and embarrassed to take any of my sick looking, stunted plants.)
 
Makes sense. I'm in the Burbs & everyone around me has Tru Green Etc pumping god knows what everywhere!  My Jalapenos seem not to be affected though...
[sharedmedia=gallery:images:2399]
 
 
Actually, thanks for the info, Dash! My leaves looked like that for several weeks, after they produced a helluva crop for a month, and everyone was saying thrips, broad mites weevils, etc., I even have a drawer-full of dropped pods in my fridge until they just finally stopped producing. It wouldn't surprise me if the company that does all the landscaping in my neighborhood uses it. 
 
Then after I put in Epsom salt into my fert injector, most of the leaves (primarily the badly mangled ones and/or yellowing ones), dropped within a day or two, and in general looked eerily similar to what TrentL posted up. The leaves dropping on mine after I added the epsom salt was probably a coincidence, but the new growth I've seen in the last week looks hardly mangled at all, only a little curled, which is likely from needing other nutrients like iron, etc., which I've already put into my fert injector...
 
see this is why i love this site, cause everybody has been there and done that and if they havent at least some one else has and knows what is going on!   thanks for the info dash, i will be on the look out for this, im out in farm country but a few people around me and one of them sprays for everything!
 
habsfan67 said:
Thanks Dash!  After looking at the damage to Tren l's plants mine look exactly the same. 
 
Indeed, the resemblance to the damage I had is striking...
 
habsfan67 said:
Makes sense. I'm in the Burbs & everyone around me has Tru Green Etc pumping god knows what everywhere!  My Jalapenos seem not to be affected though...

 
 
 
     Interesting, my jalapeños didn't seem to be affected much either...
 
elcap1999 said:
Actually, thanks for the info, Dash! My leaves looked like that for several weeks, after they produced a helluva crop for a month, and everyone was saying thrips, broad mites weevils, etc., I even have a drawer-full of dropped pods in my fridge until they just finally stopped producing. It wouldn't surprise me if the company that does all the landscaping in my neighborhood uses it. 
 
Then after I put in Epsom salt into my fert injector, most of the leaves (primarily the badly mangled ones and/or yellowing ones), dropped within a day or two, and in general looked eerily similar to what TrentL posted up. The leaves dropping on mine after I added the epsom salt was probably a coincidence, but the new growth I've seen in the last week looks hardly mangled at all, only a little curled, which is likely from needing other nutrients like iron, etc., which I've already put into my fert injector...
 
     Wow, that sucks. I thought I had it bad when all my seedlings and OWs got hit. I can't imagine seeing healthy, pod laden plants get poisoned! Glad to hear your minions are on the upswing! I hope you got everything figured out and the trend continues. 
 
habsfan67 said:
Thanks Dash!  After looking at the damage to Tren l's plants mine look exactly the same. 
 
     Cool! I hope they recover. Do you have a good magnifying glass or access to a microscope to check for mites just in case?
 
magicpepper said:
see this is why i love this site, cause everybody has been there and done that and if they havent at least some one else has and knows what is going on!   thanks for the info dash, i will be on the look out for this, im out in farm country but a few people around me and one of them sprays for everything!
 
:cheers:
 
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