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Dying Chili

H

Holmbow

Hi,

I've been growing a chili (African Naga Ghost Pepper) for the past 2 months. 
1 1/2 weeks ago I've accidently overwatered some of my plants. This didn't kill them, but due to the overwatering, but to my surprise, a lot of white bugs showed up on the surface. I tried to overwater all of my plants to expose them, and the white bugs was in them all.

Google told me, that it was the most destructive bugs you could get in a plant, which would cause close to none harvest. I threw almost all of my plants in the garbage, but tried to save 2. 

The way I tried to save one of them was to wash all of the dirt of the rootsystem, and try to start a hydroponic system. Accidently I lost almost all of the rootsystem, due to the jiffy pellet which I started the seeds in. 

You can see that the leaves are turning a little brown, but they haven't started to hang

My question now is, is there any hope that my plant will survive, and rebuild the root system, or is it a lost case? 
 

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Thank you :-)

It said that it was aphids and/or white flies. When the water laid on top of the soil, almost the whole surface of the water was filled with small white almost caterpillar looking bugs
 
Well if it's on the soil then it could be fungus gnats (treatable). If it's aphids, those are also treatable. And if it's whitefly, well those are also treatable. It's a shame you trashed your plants but if there's any way you could pull them out I would suggest trying to save them. Fungus gnats can be treated just by letting the top layer of soil dry out and by putting a fan on them if they're indoors. For aphids and whiteflies, an insecticidal soap or neem oil would work just fine. Aphids can be a pain cuz they bounce back quickly but you just need to stay on top of them and you should be fine.
 
Edmick said:
Well if it's on the soil then it could be fungus gnats (treatable). If it's aphids, those are also treatable. And if it's whitefly, well those are also treatable. It's a shame you trashed your plants but if there's any way you could pull them out I would suggest trying to save them. Fungus gnats can be treated just by letting the top layer of soil dry out and by putting a fan on them if they're indoors. For aphids and whiteflies, an insecticidal soap or neem oil would work just fine. Aphids can be a pain cuz they bounce back quickly but you just need to stay on top of them and you should be fine.
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Oh well - I should have read a little more about it before taking action. It just said I had to deal with it as fast as possible - so I thought that I wanted to get rid of it all, instantly. Unfortunately the trash is long gone - I am left with a slightly brown plant, which I have no idea about whether or not is going to die out.
 
How does the aphids get there in the first place? Is it from the soil, or the air perhaps?  :neutral:
 
You'll go crazy trying to figure out how they got there. Trying to wash the soil will lead to more problems too. Treat the plants for the bugs and let the soil dry out a little bit. It's very likely that what you're seeing could be due to overwatering. That's probably the number one mistake new gardeners make. Especially with peppers. They don't need or like lots of water.
 
Thanks for the reply. I now have a little more knowledge for the next time.

I've here posted a picture of the sad root system that is left - what would be my option? Continuing with hydroponics - getting it back in the soil - or starting from the bottom? :-)
 
I don't do hydro so someone else might be able to help you with that. But you CAN put it back into soil if you want. I've never done it but I've seen people do it. I would imagine you could expect to see some shock from doing it and the growth may be stunted for a while before it's starts growing again.
 
Holmbow said:
Thank you :-)

It said that it was aphids and/or white flies. When the water laid on top of the soil, almost the whole surface of the water was filled with small white almost caterpillar looking bugs
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     Your description makes me think you think you may have had a springtail infestation. I've experienced both springtail and fungus gnat infestations before, but I've never heard of or seen fungus gnat larvae behaving like that upon overwatering. Springtails, on the other hand, will often float to the top and appear to cover the water. Their populations can grow very quickly following prolonged overwatering.
     Springtails aren't a really big deal. They mostly eat organic matter in the soil (or your soilless mix, if you're growing in a container). The only thing you need to do to keep them in check is let your soil dry out between waterings and they will die off.
     The brown leaf margins you're seeing might be the result of over feeding (pretty common for a first-time grower). Plants that small don't need much fertilizer at all. Hold off on feeding them for a while and see if new leaves that emerge in the coming days or weeks show improvement.
     Aphids are a really common pest, but definitely not a crop destroyer. As Edmick said, insecticidal soap is a great way to keep them in check while they are indoors. Even after it looks like your plants are aphid-free, you still need to treat them several more times because soap will only kill adults. Any eggs that are present will pick up right where their parents left off as soon as you let your guard down.
     Aphids are just about everywhere. It's possible they were in the soil you used, but it's more likely that they are just naturally in your environment. It never fails that, no matter how clean my plants look in fall, a few aphids  always hitch a ride indoors on the plants I'm overwintering. Around this time of year I start to get complacent and think I didn't bring any in and then WHAM! suddenly I'm seeing then on all of my plants. Their populations explode indoors, when they don't have natural predators to keep them in check.
     Are these going to strictly be indoor plants, or do you plan on planting them outdoors later?
 
Holmbow said:
Thanks for the reply. I now have a little more knowledge for the next time.

I've here posted a picture of the sad root system that is left - what would be my option? Continuing with hydroponics - getting it back in the soil - or starting from the bottom? :-)
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     I wouldn't recommend going hydroponic so soon in your pepper-growing career. Especially since the roots on your plant look like they may have already been fried by too much stress at a young age. If you put them back in soil just be patient. Don't drown them or overfeed them and just give them time to grow new roots. They are going to have to put on a lot more growth below ground before you see any improvements above ground.
     Having said that, I can't recommend letting your soil dry out as a pest control measure anymore. With severely compromised root systems, you're walking a fine line between overwatering and promoting pest infestations and underwatering and further stressing your plants.
     In the mean time, it might be a good idea to take what you've learned and start another batch of seeds in case this round doesn't make it. I swear, at least 3/4 of gardening (for me, at least) is trying to learn lessons from catastrophic failures.
     Good luck! :cheers:
 
+1 on perhaps just sticking to soil for now. Hydro might just end up complicating your situation further and turn your fascination into frustration.
 
And if you were to consider hydro at some point, I would maybe recommend the Kratky method. It seems to be one of the more simple methods of hydro. A member here Peter S has some really good videos on it.
 
Hybrid Mode 01 said:
 
     Your description makes me think you think you may have had a springtail infestation. 
 
     Are these going to strictly be indoor plants, or do you plan on planting them outdoors later?
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After looking springtails up, I believe that you are absolutely right - Bitter sweet to know that they aren't that harmful :D
 
They are properbly going to stay indoor. I am currently a student living with 3 other students with no garden - so it has to be my southern window for now.
 
 
Hybrid Mode 01 said:
 
     I wouldn't recommend going hydroponic so soon in your pepper-growing career. Especially since the roots on your plant look like they may have already been fried by too much stress at a young age. If you put them back in soil just be patient. Don't drown them or overfeed them and just give them time to grow new roots. They are going to have to put on a lot more growth below ground before you see any improvements above ground.
  
 
     Good luck! :cheers:
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I'll give it a go with some fresh soil and with only the nutrients that is already in it  :surprised:
 
 
Thank you all for your expertise - it is much appreciated :-)
 
Velkommen til og held og lykke med din enlige plante. Heldigvis er det muligt at så flere :P
Du burde nok smutte over i "welcome" og introducere dig. Hvor i landet befinder du dig?
 
Nulle said:
Velkommen til og held og lykke med din enlige plante. Heldigvis er det muligt at så flere :P
Du burde nok smutte over i "welcome" og introducere dig. Hvor i landet befinder du dig?
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Takker :-)  det må jeg heller få gjort et tidspunkt.
 
Jeg bor i Tirstrup, nord for Ebeltoft :-)
 
A little update. 
 
After I transfered the plants back to the soil, and gave it time to settle again, it has boomed and has grown almost to twice the size as when I started this thread. All old brown leaves has fallen off, and a lot new has come. It actully also started flowering. I'm not quite sure if I should prune it, to let it grow even more.
 
I've attached 2 pictures.
 

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