So this will be my third season of growing peppers, and my first 2 seasons went well, the only thing is that i did not get much produce off the plants. they would flower, but then the flowers would fall off. this would constantly happen to me over the course of both seasons, the plants are in 4x8 raised beds and i didn't use much fertilizer, I am going to work the soil with some this year and add some more compost to the mix, the soil is a garden soil mix , its called the Big yellow bag and it is available from A local place that sells sod, It makes my other vegetables grow wonderful, but the peppers get only green growth, lots of flowers, followed by the majority of them falling off, some of the plants didn't even give me one pod all season long, but the plants were as healthy as can be. is there something i'm doing wrong, Is irregular watering the cause of my problems? I try to wait until the soil dries up a bit, but not too much to where the plants start to wilt, but i don't water at a specific time, just whenever i remember, usually in the morning  before i head off to work, or in the evening when i remember I'm just curious to know what you all think I should try. thanks again for your input.
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2 seasons, both with not much produce, just flowers which fall off
- Thread starter bustapepper
- Start date
dont water at all until they wilt. You will figure out a schedule after 2-3 times of this happening.
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The other thing I can think of, which I had issues with, was to much iron in the soil. TONS of flowers, but they all fall off, with crazy green, great growing plants. I have finally(after 2-3 months) washed most of the iron out of the soil/diluted it enough that I am getting crazy pod production(at least crazy in my opinion).
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The other thing I can think of, which I had issues with, was to much iron in the soil. TONS of flowers, but they all fall off, with crazy green, great growing plants. I have finally(after 2-3 months) washed most of the iron out of the soil/diluted it enough that I am getting crazy pod production(at least crazy in my opinion).
If big your plants won't suffer if they wilt a few hours. That would eliminate that, because overwatering can cause flower drop. Is it hot where your at? Where I'm at in Southern California if I didn't have a shade cloth above my plants they would start wilting at 10:00am and would not set pods. With shade cloth they set no problem.
I live in a maritme climate, with cool summers, and find that ghost peppers (for example) set nearly zero fruit... it seems that anytime the night temperatures drop below about 65°F./15°C., the flowers fail to pollinate.
Most Capsicum annuums, on the other hand, do fairly well here. Neighbors have both hot and sweet peppers of this species, and they produce fruit.
I hope this is helpful.
Most Capsicum annuums, on the other hand, do fairly well here. Neighbors have both hot and sweet peppers of this species, and they produce fruit.
I hope this is helpful.
I am in canada, southern alberta. about 1 hour drive from the sweetgrass montana border crossing. so my climate sucks, I start the hardening off on the 2nd week of may, and they are in the ground around the 3rd week of may. temps in july/ august get to around 85 peaking around 95 on the hottest days, but usually sit around 75-80f, night time temps around 60-70f
Flower drop probable causes:
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1. Day temp too high >95F
2. Night temp too low <65F or too high >85F
3. Too much nitrogen fertilizer
4. Too much water
5. Low light levels (reduces fertility).
6. Very low humidity (reduces fertility)
7. Poor air circulation (air circulation contributes to pollination).
8. Lack of pollinating insects.
9. Size of pot
10. Too much mineral in feedwater.
11. Too much grower attention/anxiety.
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1. Day temp too high >95F
2. Night temp too low <65F or too high >85F
3. Too much nitrogen fertilizer
4. Too much water
5. Low light levels (reduces fertility).
6. Very low humidity (reduces fertility)
7. Poor air circulation (air circulation contributes to pollination).
8. Lack of pollinating insects.
9. Size of pot
10. Too much mineral in feedwater.
11. Too much grower attention/anxiety.
With 75-80 F during day and nights 70F, they should be setting pods.bustapepper said:
I agree with the above post list.
I hope you have a better year!
You can try adding some bone meal and potassium sulphate to the soil when the plants start to bud.  Check the soil pH as well as what willard3 said he pretty much nailed everything.  Over watering and high nitrogen would be the first things I'd look at. Â
Gardening always starts with the soil. Soil and weather affect plants the most. Sounds simple, but it is a lot of work.
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I'd work on the soil first, making sure there's not too much nitrogen, start a compost pile with horse manure/vegetable peelings, add worm castings to the soil, etc.
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Look into making AACT, an aerobic fertilizer tea. There are lots of 'recipes' for them on the internet. Dilute and water with it once a week or two.
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Buy a few 5 or so gallon pots/buckets with holes and plant some hot peppers in there. If a frost is predicted, you can bring them into your basement or place with lights and ripen the pods you do get - or - pods may form throughout the Fall. Pots do need more attention.
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Don't get discouraged. Experiment. Best of luck in the 2016 season.
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I'd work on the soil first, making sure there's not too much nitrogen, start a compost pile with horse manure/vegetable peelings, add worm castings to the soil, etc.
Â
Look into making AACT, an aerobic fertilizer tea. There are lots of 'recipes' for them on the internet. Dilute and water with it once a week or two.
Â
Buy a few 5 or so gallon pots/buckets with holes and plant some hot peppers in there. If a frost is predicted, you can bring them into your basement or place with lights and ripen the pods you do get - or - pods may form throughout the Fall. Pots do need more attention.
Â
Don't get discouraged. Experiment. Best of luck in the 2016 season.
thanks for all the advice, I will definitely hone my techniques to try to get higher yields this season,Â
