Hot pepper plant - deformed leaves

[guilleo]

Not sure what's going on with my hot pepper plants... they all seemed to present the same symptom, leaves are curled and deformed. Watering is consistent, I've feed the plants a couple of time with tomato food plant from miracle grow, no aphids and or bugs (at least of what I can see), nevertheless I sprayed the plants with insecticide as a precaution, but nothing changed. 

I'm living in a tropical country, its summer and the temperatures are around 100 F. These plants are 3-4 years old so they been fine a couple of summers without any issues.

Any help appreciated.
 

 

[Wiriwiri]

I'm  going to offer a few suggestions...since you  looked them over for pests/bugs ..that was what I would think..what about the pot size,
they could be root bound and the  heat could do a number on them...
 
If they were mine  I would  get some fresh soil,trim them back & repot them in bigger pots...wait a little before feeding them..when new growth
is  noted.Given the weather you should notice growth soon...Just my  2cents...others may  chime in with a different take.Good  Luck.

 

[Masher]

Will second what wiriwiri said.

Bigger pot, it's probably root bound.

Twisting leaves and spots could be calcium deficiency and/or over watering.

Give it a good trim to promote new growth, replant into larger pot, break up the roots a lillte if its root bound.

Good luck, happy growing

 

[outlaw]

My immediate reaction is bugs - have you looked with a magnifying glass or scope? 

 

[guilleo]

Will second what wiriwiri said.

Bigger pot, it's probably root bound.

Twisting leaves and spots could be calcium deficiency and/or over watering.

Give it a good trim to promote new growth, replant into larger pot, break up the roots a lillte if its root bound.

Good luck, happy growing

 
Thanks Wiriri and Masher..... I'll give a try your suggestions. So every time I have root bound I have to move in to a large pot? I was planning to keep my plants in these pots, I think they are big enough otherwise they will get too big. Would root pruning work? (in summer?)

 

[guilleo]

My immediate reaction is bugs - have you looked with a magnifying glass or scope? 

 
No I haven't... I've read somewhere that there are some tiny bugs that could cause this... any idea what should I look for?

 

[MuyPicante]

 
No I haven't... I've read somewhere that there are some tiny bugs that could cause this... any idea what should I look for?

 
Small white specks on the underside of the leaves. They move rather quickly for their size. They are called broadmites and are the spawn of the devil. They could be the culprit, although they tend to curl leaves downward, unlike your plant. But it wont hurt to look.
 
Good Luck!

 

[Wiriwiri]

Thanks Wiriri and Masher..... I'll give a try your suggestions. So every time I have root bound I have to move in to a large pot? I was planning to keep my plants in these pots, I think they are big enough otherwise they will get too big. Would root pruning work? (in summer?)

 

First off,how big are these pots & have these plants been in these same  pots  for the 4 yrs?
You could flip the plant out of the pot and see if  you have mostly roots.
Si,Si Si... you can reuse the pot...again assuming you noted no bugs   do wash the pots thoroughly..plants that are root bound
are deprived of food/nutrients and the water just seeps out of the plants as there is no soil to retain moisture..

Root bound symptoms above the soil are hard to pinpoint and often look like symptoms of an under-watered plant. The plant may wilt quickly, may have yellow or brown leaves, especially near the bottom of the plant and may have stunted growth.Once the plant is out of its container, examine the rootball.to prune the roots, start with a pair of scissors or sharp knife. Cut around and under the plant’s root ball, removing both roots and soil. You can be pretty aggressive, cutting away both large and small roots.,,plants  recover well,not to worry.
 

Get ready to repot the plant by adding potting soil to the bottom of your container. Add enough soil so that the now smaller root ball will sit on the soil and the top of the plant is about an inch below the rim of your pot. You always want to make sure that the crown of the plant (where the plant stem meets the roots), is at soil level.


 


Then place your plant in the pot and add soil around the newly trimmed root ball.  Water generously when the repotting is done and add additional soil if needed. Make sure to keep your plant well hydrated for a few weeks so it can recover and thrive.Do not feed right away,wait till you see new growth ..in other words give it sometime to  adjust,once you see new growth then proceed.
If you're unsure  just repot ONE plant & see how it takes to repotting,..peppers are VERY forgiving plants & do excellent with repotting,so go for it.
Then you can do the others...your plants will reward you with lotsa pods.
 
 
 
BTW...I have spent time in South America and can relate well to the weather/sun...reminds me of Texas in Summer..hotter than hot.
How this helps you...also you can save some seeds & get new plants going...food for thought.

Buena suerte!
 

 

[Major Pain]

I had a Black Pearl last year that was root bound, and it looked a lot like that.  Leaf loss, curled/ deformed leaves.. nothing I gave it helped until I looked at the roots.

 

[CDNmatt]

Poor little bugger is in rough shape eh...Hope ya gitter figured outs

 

[guilleo]

Quick update:
 
But first thanks to everybody for the knowledge and the comments, much appreciated.
 
Took two of the worst looking plants to verify the root bound thing... I'm including pictures below but I think that might not be the case based on the pictures, I'm not an expert on the issue but it doesn't seem to be the case.
 
Also, looking once again to the plants I've noted these little whitish marks or some sort of texture as noted in the picture below and I proceed to scratch it with my fingernails and they whore off
 
I'm inclining to believe in the bug hypothesis, not sure if this could fall under any specific type of aphids or something... nevertheless I'll start to treat the plants to see if there is any improvement! 
 
 
 

 

 

[TrentL]

That soil looks like it's compacted and has been waaay too wet for waaay too long.
 
Dump a couple quart bottles of H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide, 3%) down in each pot (approx 1 quart per gallon of soil - use catch trays under the pots the nasty crap will run through the pot). The soil will churn and bubble up, aerate, and any hostile fungus, bacteria, and other nasties will be killed off. Then the next day hit it with mycorrhizae to re-start the biologic processes. You'll be right as rain. The H2O2 breaks down in to water and oxygen, the plant roots will love you for it.
 
I had overwinters look that bad back in 2013, they were rain-soaked when I brought them inside, never properly dried out, and got real nasty within a month. The above process is how I solved the issue.