Pepper buds falling off?

[6StringFire]

Hi folks,

I have a Jimmy Nardello plant with a couple nice but still immature peppers and a ton of developing buds. There's quite a few newly formed pepper buds that are dropping off.

The ratio of fallen to potential peppers is quite low so I'm not overly concerned but I feel like it's trying to tell me something.

Sorta guessing, sorta gut telling me they need some food to support all those peppers on a plant I question will hold them all.

If you agree it's nutrition related, I've got plenty of liquid ferts to choose from and not enough experience to use them properly... can you lend a hand? Prefer something organic if you have an idea. I'm learning the art of restraint with over-tending to peppers plants and they've thanked me for it. Would love to get the prescription right so they may continue to enjoy my absence.

If you think it's non-nutrition related, would welcome any suggestions.

Thanks!!!

 

[Phil]

Lots of folks seem to have this problem every year... and resolutions are bountiful here on THP. Using the search function I was able to find the best list of common possibilities for flower drop, posted tirelessly by Willard. Try this link:
 
http://thehotpepper.com/topic/43814-flowers-falling-off/?p=917722

 

[geeme]

Willard's list is an excellent one. Still… your post gives me the impression you aren't fertilizing at all. Is this accurate? If so, you should start using fertilizer. Chiles need calcium and magnesium, and both in soluble form. Some people crush (powder) egg shells then mix with water for the calcium, and use epsom salts for the magnesium. Epsom salts can visibly perk up a plant in no time. However, IMHO the vote's still out regarding the availability of calcium to the plant from crushed egg shells. Some people believe they add calcium to the soil only as they decompose - meaning it takes a while. Others believe it has a faster effect. I don't know, as I don't use them. Instead, I use CalMag by Botanicare. You don't have to use that - most fertilizers intended for tomatoes have an appropriate mix of calcium and magnesium - but I know my plants love the stuff.
 
Why fertilize and why focus on calcium and magnesium? Any fruit-bearing plant uses a lot of nutrients in order to produce that fruit. Chile plants are susceptible to blossom-end rot (BER), which is seen when the pods get mushy on the blossom end (opposite the stem end) and, if left on the plant, may turn brown or even black. Bye bye pod. So if you're not fertilizing, now is a good time to start.

 

[6StringFire]

Thanks for the link to Willard's list.

The pots they were placed in were fairly light on nutrients due to a miscalculation on my part. I've been a little more aggressive with the feeding regimen and all the pepper plants have responded positively. However, both Nardello plants (I have 2) are exhibiting the same symptoms whereas the jalapeño and poblano look spot on.

It's my first time growing sweet peppers and it looks like they have slightly different requirements. All the pepper plants have recently been top dressed with Tomato-Tone and watered with Earth Juice. The Nardellos have responded well to this but they are not as strong as the other varieties. Comparatively speaking, they're a little less green, a little more wilty and they're dropping pods.