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Dying Chili Pepper Buds

Chili_Author

Chili_Author

A recent epidemic has swept through my plants, killing most of them. Only two remain now, a cayenne and a bhute jolokia. However, despite surviving, these two that survived still show signs they are sick. The most notable is any buds they develop shirvel up and die, thus unless I can find a cure for this they'll never produce any fruit. I was reminded recently as well that these plants are on the verge of death still, despite looking much healthier than they did. I had three plants a few days ago, but one just died over night despite looking as healthy as these two. Any ideas on what kind of sickness I'm up against and how I can treat it before it kills my last two plants?

The dead remnants of the buds.
http://sta.sh/01x765gdnuui

The remains of the most recent plant, a cayenne, to die.
http://sta.sh/0292buygh3qw

The initial appearance of the plants when the sickness set in.
http://sta.sh/0rucxn0m7wn

Thanks in advance!
 
Yeah, I did look at the roots on one of the plants that had died. Weird thing is, the root system looked like it belonged to a healthy, perfectly alive plant. But on this particular plant, everything else was brown, dry, and dead. There were no fungi I could discern either.

I pulled up another root system on the day I was throwing out the dead plants, about a week and a half later, and by then the roots finally looked like they belonged to a dead plant. However, there were still no fungi. Go figure.
 
Maybe fert burn would be my best guess, also make sure you are using a good bloom fert with a decent amount of calcium and phosphorus :) +1 Meinchoh about the roots! Bad roots = bad or dead plant or stunted growth, A well draining soiling and proper watering will help your roots big time! :)
 
What are the plants in? Can't tell from the pics. And yes, fert info, too, please.

Some of my overwinters bit the dust, VERY suddenly. They were big, green, putting out new leaves and even budding, then BOOM. Dead. A couple got hit then managed to recover. No sign of anything. Frustrating, but at least I expect to lose an overwinter or two. Don't expect that of a mid-season plant.
 
I have not been adding any kind of fertilizer. the only additive I've used recently is a Miraclegro mixture in the water. The soil itself is roughly 50% dirt from my backyard, which is almost a clay, and 50% potting soil made for fruiting plants.
 
I doubt that it was the soil as you got really good growth to the point that they died...Is it possible that your Miracle Gro fert was mixed too strong? It is concentrated and it's generally to be diluted to 1/4 to 1/2 strength.
 
Interesting note that I realized I forgot to mention; I planted some seeds shortly before this whole ordeal began for habaneros, tepins, anaheims, and jalapenos. None of them have sprouted (since I planted them close to 6 weeks ago) and I finally decided to dig them up and see if they even took. I found one that had sprouted, but it died before it even broke the surface and ended up as a pale seedling with a withered tip and no roots.
 
Looks like what happen to my pepper Plant, I Think it was Blight, The same thing happen from the begining to the end and the roots were in perfect condition
 
You could always use the search function.......

Flower drop probable causes:

1. Day temp too high >95F
2. Night temp too low <65F
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.
 
Eh, I did. None of them seemed to be quite to be quite the same case. With those it was the blossoms or buds dropping off completely, but there didn't seem to be other symptoms. This the buds dry up and remain on the plant, while the plants themselves have just died off one by one as they shrivel up.

It's possible things have been too hot; it's been getting over 100 a lot lately. However, the symptoms started up before this heat wave, so while it may be contributing I don't think it's the direct cause. I keep them outside so there's plenty of air. There would be pollinating insects perhaps, but the buds never get a chance to even open up before they dry up and die. I've had plants in small and very large pots, and no matter the size of the pot, the plants died off, even when they were just seedlings in a two-gallon pot. I water them generally once a day, since the heat has been making the topsoil very dry, though now that it's cooling down I'm reducing the amount of water I'm giving them until the topsoil is dry.

I appreciate the suggestions. I've run through these possibilities a number of times. I've worried about several others as well, as to whether morning evaporation has brought weed poison from the backyard to the plants or if the predatory mites I bought came with some disease or even if I was putting too much Miraclegro in the water. None of these are consistent (or likely) with all of the plants, which means it was some sort of contagion as far as I can tell.
 
Too hot & not enough water. When it's cooler out you can wait till topsoil is dry but in weather like that the plant consumes water below the top layer fast enough that by the time the top is dry the middle and bottom was already too dry. Try shading them from mid-afternoon and later direct sunlight too.
 
Rabid48: Generally I'll go through the 2-gallon watering bucket, which used to take a day but now takes three with fewer plants, twice before I'd just do regular water in the watering can three or four times.

Dave2000: Alright, I'll take those precautions into effect. That'll at least be one thing then that the plants won't have to deal while they fight off whatever has made them sick in the first place. Thanks.
 
go get some good soil and repot them do not fertilize them and spray them with a mix of 1 cup 3% peroxide, 1 tsp epsom salt, mixed with 1 gallon of water, water them and spray the foliage, since its 2 plants just cut the mix down to say 1/4 total volume, then repeat every 3-5 days till they die or recover whichever comes first. GL
 
Any idea on what counts as "good" soil? Last time I just picked up a bag of fruiting plant potting soil from Wal-Mart (and with as much ambiguity as there is in this whole sickness, for all I know could be the cause. I doubt it, but then who's to say for certain?) But I'll give that mix a try. Thank you.
 
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