every year after a major harvest my pepper plants shed all there leaves in a short time. this year was crazy because we had a cold week in the middle of the summer, so my datil produced fruit twice. Although it was the middle of the summer, after the harvest, my datil lost all its leaves. I know this happens because they are going dormant for the winter like trees do, but is there any way to stop this?
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how do I stop my pepper from loosing all its leaves?
- Thread starter NIbbles
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Need more specific info, like how are you growing; in ground, in containers, in a greenhouse, in home? Youre in SC so if you are growing outside without the benefit of a greenhouse chances are those plants wont come back.
i grow outside in containers. I think they are in 5 gallon pots. I don,t see why they won't come back. They have not seen a hard frost(we had a small frost 31F but I took them next to the house so they dot freeze. I did this with my aloe which is the most sensitive to frost and it is fine with no damage). the soil is rich coming from our compost. just after the peppers produce fruit they loose their leaves. I hope this is enough info. thaks
That 31F explains it. Too cold, bring them inside if it's just a one off cold front.
Isn't 50*F the safe lower limit?
It's hard to pinpoint without seeing the plant and knowing your growing habits but I'd say it's a nutrient deficiency, cooler weather, bugs/fungal or a watering problem. Did all of your plants drop leaves after they flush with peppers?
Growing in containers is like growing in hydro, if you don't feed regular they will show it. The bad thing for peppers is they are slow to show the deficiencies and by then they look bad. Tomatoes almost talk to you when you mess up and they recover quick. It's good to start with compost but it doesn't last all year so make a schedule for feeding and stick to it. You can use something as simple as Miracle grow every 7-10 days and you should see a difference.