Okay, what is killing my habaneros?

ivplay

ivplay

I have an habanero plant in between a Yellow Bhut, Red Savina, and Trinidad 7-pod.  The habaneros keep showing up with 'bruises' that spread into soft spots, turn colors and then the whole pepper rots.  I threw three of them over the fence before I thought to take a picture of the softened/rotted ones, but did get a pic of a few that are turning colors and softening.  Is this a fruit fly that is doing this?  If so, why only the habs?
 
IMG_0850_zpsde693cd2.jpg
 
Looks like blossom end rot to me.
 
Usually happens when you over water or by watering at irregular times.  Saying that, I find that typically the first set of pods got this despite regular / correct watering.  Seems to phase out after 1 or 2 pods and then the rest come good.
 
I'm inexperienced though, so there might be other reasons I'm not aware of.
 
[SIZE=14pt]If you see a dark, rotting spot on the bottom of your peppers, it’s blossom-end rot. This problem, caused by a calcium deficiency, can be solved a few ways. [/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=14pt]Peppers need calcium for healthy development. When tomatoes, peppers, melons, and eggplant can’t get enough from the soil, the tissues on the blossom end of the fruit break down. The calcium shortage may be because the soil lacks calcium, or calcium is present but is tied up in the soil chemistry because the pH is too low. Also, drought stress or moisture fluctuations can reduce its uptake into the plant. Another reason is that too much fertilizer causes the plant to grow so fast that the calcium can’t move into the plant quickly enough.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The best way to get around all this:[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Start now by testing the soil.[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] Although most peppers do well with a soil pH of 6.2 to 6.8, for those with blossom-end the pH should be 6.5 to 6.8 to free more calcium in the soil chemistry. Test results will indicate the amount of lime to add. Even better, lime also contains calcium. Work the lime into the top 12 inches of soil. Use a lime labeled “fast-acting,” which is better than ground limestone unless you have weeks to wait for the lime to react in the soil. If the pH is already correct, the soil test will recommend a different calcium source, such as gypsum.  Also, add crumbled egg shells to your compost or bury them in your garden over time to help maintain the calcium levels. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Don’t over-fertilize.[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] Too much nitrogen during early fruiting, especially with nitrogen made from ammonia, ties up calcium in the soil chemistry.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Avoid moisture stress.[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] Use mulch to keep the soil evenly moist. Peppers need about 1 to 1 1/2 inches of water a week while fruiting. The best way to water peppers planted in the ground is with a soaker hose. In hot climates it is especially tricky to keep big pepper plants in pots watered well during the summer. Make sure to water them daily or set them up on a drip system with a timer.[/SIZE]
 
Agree - blossom-end rot (BER). Note that although the name refers to the end opposite the stem, BER symptoms may well appear on the side walls of the pod, as your examples show. And as BSPH noted, calcium is your primary defense. Generally, as soon as my plants start setting pods, I switch to using CalMag by Botanicare as primary fertilizer. Other products made for tomatoes often work, too, if you can't find CalMag, just check the calcium content.
 
Rainman nailed it. Blossom end rot is usually due to inconsistent watering. Dolomite lime is the best cal/mag there is, and it will fix your pH if thats the problem. Mix a 1/2 cup into a gallon of water and water your plants with it.
 
I have not had blossom end rot on peppers, I have some experience of it in tomatoes.  Basically a few of the first flush of tomatoes seem to suffer from it and then it comes right each year.
 
To me however this does not look like blossom end rot.  It isn't originating at the blossom end and isn't black like the typical necrotic tissue.  Is there any chance it is sunscold from watering during the day?  Your problem looks more like this:  http://www.gardenstew.com/about23395.html
 
ivplay said:
I have an habanero plant in between a Yellow Bhut, Red Savina, and Trinidad 7-pod.  The habaneros keep showing up with 'bruises' that spread into soft spots, turn colors and then the whole pepper rots.  I threw three of them over the fence before I thought to take a picture of the softened/rotted ones, but did get a pic of a few that are turning colors and softening.  Is this a fruit fly that is doing this?  If so, why only the habs?
 
IMG_0850_zpsde693cd2.jpg
Click to expand...
Did you cut them open to check for maggots?
 
I understand it is unpopular going against the general concensus but generally adding calcium is NOT an effective short term treatment of BER.  If it is BER, which I doubt, dumping calcium into the mix will not fix it.  There are a large number of scientic writings on this subject.  That said correcting pH and mulching to improve soil moisture content are potential treatments for numerous ailments including BER which will do your plants no harm.
 
Thanks to everyone for your assistance.  I will mix some epsom salts and spray them all tonight.  It seems strange that I would have blossom end rot on the habanero, but nothing else.  If it was a calcium deficiency, I would have thought it would affect all the plants in that area.  However, I have the epsom salts and they are not real expensive, so no biggie.  Regarding the watering, we were gone for a week and the neighbor was watering for me every other day due to the heatwave we are in right now.  It very probably was that the neighbor came over in the middle of the day, and not at night or morning.  But again, why wasn't it on all the peppers?  Strange.  Thanks for the help, and I will spray them with epsom salts. 
 
Different strains like different amounts of nutrients and water.  My Jalapeños required more water and on a regular basis than the other peppers.  I got BER on some of my mexi-belle peppers, but only on the first set of pods, the second and third sets were fine - same nutrients, same watering schedule etc.  Sometimes it just happens like that apparently.
 
Epsom salts is worth a try, but make sure you dilute it well enough or you can get some serious salt burn on the plant's leaves.
 
Not real sure what you are trying to accomplish with the epsom salt. There is no Calcium in there, just magnesium.
 
 
Keep an eye out for over watering. I had a few plants get BER from time to time when we had a ton of rain. check your soil pH and correct if necessary. Add calcium. In that order. Although adding calcium just to do it isn't going to hurt anything.
 
I think the post above from BSPH about sums it up.
 
ivplay said:
Thanks to everyone for your assistance.  I will mix some epsom salts and spray them all tonight.  It seems strange that I would have blossom end rot on the habanero, but nothing else.  If it was a calcium deficiency, I would have thought it would affect all the plants in that area.  However, I have the epsom salts and they are not real expensive, so no biggie.  Regarding the watering, we were gone for a week and the neighbor was watering for me every other day due to the heatwave we are in right now.  It very probably was that the neighbor came over in the middle of the day, and not at night or morning.  But again, why wasn't it on all the peppers?  Strange.  Thanks for the help, and I will spray them with epsom salts.
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Take a photo of the group of plant, focussing on the foliage, and post it here. Are the leaves of the Habanero yellowing in comparison to the adjacent plants? If the leaves are yellowing then try following the flow chart in Nutrient deficiency symptoms (on flairform.com) .

Epsom salt is Magnesium sulfate heptahydrate (MgSO4.7H2O). The sulfate (SO42-) will bind with available Ca2+ to exacerbate any Calcium lock-out issue by producing the very slightly soluble Calcium sulfate. A visual example of the result may be seen in the thread Epsom Salt Burn.

I too, like Rainmain, have observed different strains performing differently when given the same solution of water and nutrients. If the Habanero is in the ground adjacent to the Yellow Bhut, Red Savina, and Trinidad 7pot then there is also the possibility that the other plants are out-competing it for nutrients.
 
I was away for a few days and am now back at the house.  The good news is the habanero is looking good now, with some very nice sized pods coming along and no sign of the cancer.  The bad news is that I had three pods on the red bhut jolokia showing signs.  I cut them all open and didn't find much of note other than some rot inside at the dark spots.  In the third one, however, I found a little maggot looking thing.  Some pictures:
 
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You can see the worm crawling in about the center.
 
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Again, near the center:
 
feab93dd-4e5f-4c4e-adac-7273c0efda6e_zpse235c667.jpg

 
Here he is next to the stem, on the cutting board.  He was bunching up getting ready to jump!  Yes, that is right, he would bunch up like an inch worm and then release, hopping quite high in the air.  I squished him shortly after.  There were two of these.  Any ideas?
 
ivplay said:
I squished him shortly after.  There were two of these.  Any ideas?
Click to expand...
 
Well, the second one is going to be pissed.
 
If action movies have taught me nothing else (and they haven't), it's that you need to hire a bunch of inept guards with machine guns to perform inefficient patrols around your house so that second worm can pick them off at his leisure, leading to one final, bloody showdown in your garden.
 
Check out this thead: http://thehotpepper.com/topic/17355-maggots-in-my-peppers/ especially the photo of the fruit fly like critter, try to see if you have them in your garden. Knowing your enemy will likely allow you to better arm yourself. I have no personal experience with battling these, so can't offer any advice based on experience sorry. This could be the guy:
 
http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG295/html/pepper_maggot.htm
 
This final link suggests that a good control would be apple maggot fly sticky traps
 
http://www.plantdex.com/index.php/pests/163-controlling-pepper-maggot
 
They are pepper maggots.
 
Life History - Pepper maggots overwinter as pupae 5 to 10 cm below the soil surface. Flies emerge from late June through August and mate. Soon afterwards, females insert eggs just beneath the skin of young peppers. Eggs hatch about 10 days later depending on the growth rate of host peppers. At this time the peppers are usually 2/3 to fully grown. Larvae feed within the peppers for about 18 days. When fully grown, each larva cuts an exit hole, emerges, and drops to the soil to pupate. Only one generation occurs each year.
They are very hard to get rid of. i lost a lot of peppers a few years back that is why i started to grow the wild varieties hoping they would go away. They did not go away. I can not even grow Jalapeños or any other thick walled pepper. Good luck.
 
Hi Dale,  there are no pepper maggots where I live but if you haven't given up fighting them I had a few ideas. I bumped into some posts of yours from '07 on this topic so know you have probably considered all this but here goes:
 
If none of the peppers ever carry the maggots to the ground I would have thought you would been in the clear.  Would taking a season off growing any peppers potentially see you right?
Would a very thick layer of wood chip mulch prevent the pupae from getting into the ground and back out?  I am thinking 2-3 inches
Did you try a predator species i.e. Heterorhabditis bacteriophora for the pupae in the soil?
 
Before we say definitely ivplay has pepper maggots it would be a good idea to remember with sufficient rot other types of maggot will make their home in peppers.  Are these specific maggots the cause or a result of the rot. Is the pepper maggot even in Australia?
 
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