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Purple/dark leaves?

Kritter33

Kritter33

Ive searched and havent seen pics of leaves this dark. These are a couple chiltepin plants from Chileplants.com. One is the mcmahons bird and the other is Pima bajo. They werent dark when I got them. Soil is cheap miracle grow potting soil. Havent fed them anything. Thinking about putting them in FFOF that I have for my other plants. Anyone have some clue as to why they are doing this? I thought maybe sunburn so I kind of stuck them in between my other ones so they have alittle shade but it hasnt changed as far as I can tell.

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Both peppers look like varieties with anthocyanin in their leaves.  Anthocyanin is analogous to melanin in people and causes the leaves to darken when exposed to sufficiently intense sun. Not all peppers have it and not all that have it have the same amount, though.  The one on the right seems to have a lot - I'm guessing it's the Pima Bajo, as that should have dark pods too.
 
I don't see any significant issues with them; I think they're just adjusting to the more intense TX sun.  It also appears the more recent growth has smaller/thicker leaves, which is common with changes to hotter/brighter conditions. My best guess is the conditions they were grown in previously simply weren't intense enough to color them up. Good idea to give them a little shade for a bit as that should help as they adjust. 
 
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