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Dying plants

I grow a variety of over 200 plants each year. Some in the ground, but most of them are in big pots.
I have healthy plants, but once in a while I run into some that take a turn for the worse. The other day I go out into the backyard and I have 3 plants (Carolina Reapers) that just seemed to die. These plants are almost 3 feet tall and were  doing well until this happened. I have no reason why that is happening. All the other are healthy as can be. They all receive the same amount of water and feeding. The dying ones looked like they hadn't been watered in a month, but that's not the case. I have looked for bugs, etc. and have not found anything that would be the cause. I gave each plant a little water with a weak solution of mir gro. Doesn't seem like it did anything. I am usually careful not to over water or over feed them. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have attached a picture of the plants.
 

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For future reference: when your plant exhibits signs of a problem, refrain from grabbing the hose and/or fertilizer.  #1 most common rookie mistake.  Literally, handcuff yourself to the stovepipe when you get the urge.  It absolutely never, ever, ever works out.
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Down to business... are you leaving these plants in the location shown?  If so, is there any air circulation there?  What are we seeing?  Close-up of the pots at the soil line?  Are the pots heavy with water?  Have you done the 3 finger test?
 
I gave the plants very little water when I saw them in that condition. I moved the plants to a shadier location. They are outside so they are getting plenty of circulation. They get all the morning sun. Before I moved them, they were getting sun all day. There are other plants within a foot of where these plants were and they are thriving. What you are seeing is the plants in the pots. Yes, you can see the soil which is about 2" from the top of the pot. No, the pots are not heavy with water and the drainage appears to be fine. I've dug down about 4 - 5" to check the soil, but I'm not familiar with the 3 finger test you are referring to. Thanks for your or anyone else's help and input.
 
It looks like basic heat stress at first glance.
 
Then I pulled up the weather for LAX.  Wow!  You guys have been having some amazing weather compared to the rest of the country (assuming you're from Huntington Beach, CA).
 
So, anyways, if your weather has been at all similar to LAX, it shouldn't be heat stress. :)
 
how heavy are the plants?  When mine get this wilted, I usually do a quick weight check, if they feel real light it means the soil is completely dry and I give them water.  You can stick your fingers in there if you want, but I prefer to just pick them up.  They may just need water, the bigger the plants get, the faster they use the water up.  Also black pots in the sun will create additional heat which speeds up evaporation so you have to water more often.
 
I've noticed that some of my plants, even of equal size, use up water faster than others, so I can't stick to the same watering schedule for all of them otherwise some will get seriously wilted like your reapers.
 
MikeD said:
I grow a variety of over 200 plants each year. most of them are in big pots.
I have healthy plants, but once in a while I run into some that take a turn for the worse. The other day I go out into the backyard and I have 3 plants (Carolina Reapers) that just seemed to die. These plants are almost 3 feet tall and were  doing well until this happened. I have no reason why that is happening. All the other are healthy as can be. They all receive the same amount of water and feeding. The dying ones looked like they hadn't been watered in a month, but that's not the case. I have looked for bugs, etc. and have not found anything that would be the cause. I gave each plant a little water with a weak solution of mir gro. Doesn't seem like it did anything. I am usually careful not to over water or over feed them. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have attached a picture of the plants.
Let's start with a positive, You have about 200 plants doing great so congrats! Then we get to the issue, three reapers not so much.... So the question is, why? We know they've been treated the same, watering - nutes - physical location - pot size/grow media and environmental conditions, so what's wrong? We've had a couple of recent threads that may point us in the right direction, the first being Dropping during direct sunlight, but why only these three leads us to The leaves all dropped from my pepper, an extreme you're not experiencing but if we scroll to Post #25 you'll note the plants are root-bound with the media compacted, a very possible condition for your problem.

I'd check for this two ways..... The first is the obvious visual check but a more telling way, IMO, is "weighing" the plants after watering. After your normal watering regimen simply lift the problem plants and compare them to the others and see if there's a noticeable difference between them. Obviously a 3' tall multi-branch & fruit laden plant will weigh more than a smaller one but the media absorption should be telling in weight difference.
 
Good luck and keep us updated!
 
The problem with the rootbound theory, is that rootbound plants should exhibit nutrient deficiency symptoms.  Or stunted growth, over time.
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I'd be curious to know if the potting mix has somehow become hydrophobic.  Or if the OP has sprayed anything. (especially if there was a soil drench involved)
 
solid7 said:
The problem with the rootbound theory, is that rootbound plants should exhibit nutrient deficiency symptoms.  Or stunted growth, over time.
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I'd be curious to know if the potting mix has somehow become hydrophobic.  Or if the OP has sprayed anything. (especially if there was a soil drench involved)
 
I was going by OP's post that he grows over 200 other plants that are doing fine. Obviously he could have potted these three in different media, I hadn't considered that and knowing media is important.
 
Edit: A thought. If these three plants potting media has become hydrophobic, would the weight comparison test help determine this condition?
 
The_NorthEast_ChileMan said:
 
I was going by OP's post that he grows over 200 other plants that are doing fine. Obviously he could have potted these three in different media, I hadn't considered that and knowing media is important.
 
Edit: A thought. If these three plants potting media has become hydrophobic, would the weight comparison test help determine this condition?
 
Yes, it probably would.  I guess I can't really envision a scenario where water held in the media, but didn't fulfill its purpose.
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I was asking about anything sprayed, because this year, I killed 2 rocoto plants by root drenching with something that I didn't check the pH of.  Turns out, it was over 9.0, and my plants went all wilty like that, and didn't come back.  I didn't realize that some plants can be more sensitive than others.  But now I know...  
 
Wow, thank you everyone for all your response to this. I just joined last night. I am very impressed with all the interest and suggestions I have received. Damn!!
I have all day tomorrow to play in the yard and go through things. I will post something tomorrow night giving everyone an update.
I did look at the plants when I got home just a while ago, and there is not much difference. I will be going through every single reply and check things out in the morning.
Thanks again from all,
Mike
 
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