Long time... back

[Straticus]

Well, I was just away for a week down in Ocean city and I came back to my plants and there ... has been some problems. I had someone taking care of them and everything, and the tomato plants are looking completely amazing, but it now seems I have a real problem with my pepper plants, mainly my bhut jolokias. 3 of the 4 remaning ones, have completely fallen over, and its not due to a water problem as they appear perfectly healthy and full, just completely fallen over. The stems are white at the bottom, and appear like... really really thin right at the soil line and when I pulled some out the stems were like from thick above soil... to like almost completely gone at the soil, then thick below the soil? What little bastards are causing this problem? And why hasnt it effected even my tomato seedlings? Is it not enough air movement or is it a pest? There appears to be no sign of any pests.. but I still have some reason to think that something is chewing on my little babys. They each had a good 5 or 6 pairs of leaves on them as well... so I'm a little confused Thanks....


Dan

 

[imaguitargod]

I had the same problem back in LA once or twice. Never could figure it out.

 

[Straticus]

I was reading about something called cutworms, that chew and eat around the stems of young seedlings... yet I've examined the soil endlessly, and still cant find any sign of anything. Maybe I'll try putting some tin foil around the stems of my remaining young seedlings, any suggestions anyone?

 

[klyth]

I was reading about something called cutworms, that chew and eat around the stems of young seedlings... yet I've examined the soil endlessly, and still cant find any sign of anything. Maybe I'll try putting some tin foil around the stems of my remaining young seedlings, any suggestions anyone?

This is EXACTLY what happened to my bhuts.

I was told it was damping-off... Basically, they looked healthy, but were fallen over. When I pulled one of them up, the stem/root area was withered away to nothing right at the soil line - just a brown strand left of the healthy stem.

"Seedlings that have emerged are usually attacked at or below the soil line. The organism can easily penetrate the young soft stem tissue. The infected stem portion becomes discolored and begins to shrink. As this occurs, the supportive strength of the stem's invaded portion is lost, and the seedling topples over (see figures 1 and 2). The fungi continue to invade the remaining portion of the seedling, resulting in death."

You can try to treat them with 2-3 tbsp hydrogen peroxide per gallon of water. That will act as an anti-fungicide. Unfortunately, mine were too far gone. I was only able to save 1 of the 18 I planted.

BTW, lack of air circulation is one of the contributing factors to damping-off.

 

[chilliman64]

here's another option...

isn't damping off more likely in very young plants ie seedlings? damage to older plants is usually only minor - apparently. I don't know how old the plants in question are, however I've not heard of the stems being "white at the bottom" as a symptom of damping off.

could it be that you have white mold (aka sclerotina rot)? do your plants have buds/flowers on them - as this is when WM is usually first detected? water soaked lesions often appear on stems. brown lesions appear which turn whitish in younger tissues. damage may also occur inside pepper stems. water soaked dull green spots form on infected fruit. the initial attack usually occurs at the soil line.

WM occurs in cool, damp weather with a temp range of 15-21C being optimal for its development, high humidity is also essential. the spores require 16-72 hours of wetness in order for the disease to develop significantly. poor air circulation will also aid WM. the disease can be more severe in close-growing plants. white mold is known to affect other crops including tomato to a greater degree. the spores can survive for many years in soil. a broad spectrum soil fumigation treatment will help to control soil-based spores however windborne spores can still cause damage.

having said all that, I'm no expert.

 

[Pam]

I was reading about something called cutworms, that chew and eat around the stems of young seedlings... yet I've examined the soil endlessly, and still cant find any sign of anything. Maybe I'll try putting some tin foil around the stems of my remaining young seedlings, any suggestions anyone?

Cutworms are an outdoor pest. Is the white at the stem dry plant matter, or is it fungus? Does it look chewed or strangled, like the stem narrows at the soil line?

 

[Straticus]

No, its not damping off at all, I've had that happen to several newly emerged seedlings and they just shrivel up and die before they even form their first true leaves. Its not a white like substance on the soil, its just like an inch of white on the bottom of the stem near the soil line, and yes the stem narrows at the soil line, and is thicker above soil line and below as well. I also know its not damping off because the plants are still flush, and full and like completely healthy, just completely tipped over. I wish I had gotten a picture before I threw them out, but I wasnt thinking. The only thing I could find about this was cutworms... but if they are truly an outdoor pest, then I'm at a loss of exactly what this is. I picture the stem as like... a beaver would chew the inside of a log... if that makes any sense at all.. chew the very middle very thin and leave the outsides normal.

And I also forgot to say.. the plants are only a few months old.. and were only a few inches, not nearly close to budding or fruiting.

 

[GrumpyBear]

i'm pretty sure damping off refers to more then one fungi, could've looked different because of that. well, if you're going to use soil from the same source on future plants i'd bake it (which stinks, btw...) or treat with hydrogen peroxide just in case. it's so weird that it didn't happen to the tomatoes tho, i'm assuming you used the same soil.