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pics RIP Bhut Jolokia seedlings - I've done all I can. Pics inside.

Kwest13

Kwest13

Hey all. Please read before viewing the pictures.
 
I've posted on occasion about these little buggers and the problems i've been having, but now I feel all hope is lost.  :rolleyes:
 
My bhut jolokia seedlings are now nothing left but tiny dark brown stems with no leaves. I've tried the following over the months: Watering, watering with filtered water or rain water, backing off on the watering and letting them dry out more, full sun, filtered sun, shade, no sun, and fluorescent light. The only thing I have not tried is fertilizing; but i've always read plants this small should never be fertilized. 
 
Some people may want to blame the soil, but I had ordered some super hot live plants awhile back that looked pretty bad. I potted them up in the same soil and they are doing awesome. Pics of those as well below.
 
Also posted a pic below of my pepper sprouts tray that has a variety. They are in the same area as the others but are in a seed starting mix. They seem to be doing ok. All these plants are in the same area (screen enclosed with partial sun). Also this is in summer of south Florida.
 
 
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Any replies would be great.  :surprised:
 
The soil is fertilizer free. I mix it with perlite. Here is the information:
 
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I don't use the Miracle Grow perlite because it has fertilizer. I use the the perlite in the big green bag.
 
they died because you watered too much, gave them too much sun, gave them too little sun etc.

I did the same thing, you have to leave them alone for a long time to see what works and what doesn't.
 
Trying to get results by changing things so often would be like trying to see what the best diet/exercise regimen is best by having toddlers and adults do different exercises/eat different things every week
 
cactusMD said:
they died because you watered too much, gave them too much sun, gave them too little sun etc.

I did the same thing, you have to leave them alone for a long time to see what works and what doesn't.
 
Trying to get results by changing things so often would be like trying to see what the best diet/exercise regimen is best by having toddlers and adults do different exercises/eat different things every week
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Hmm.
 
Agreed with the other posters, they have the look of overwatered plants, or watered very inconsistently, yellow or light green leaves. Your larger plants may be in need of nutrition also.
 
Could be the soil too. Twice i've purchased some off-brand potting mix and the plants in those pots never thrived, even with extra perlite which i always add. It still packed up tightly.
 
I am definitely leaning towards over-watering. The perlite on top has got what I call the "nasty brown", which usually happens when the perlite is saturated for a really long time.
 
The soil that they are in gets completely bone dry. How many days should I allow it to stay that dry?
 
Again, this is in south Florida and it's summer. I've heard there is a different set of rules for growing down here because of how how and humid it gets.
 
Kwest13 said:
The soil that they are in gets completely bone dry. How many days should I allow it to stay that dry?
 
Again, this is in south Florida and it's summer. I've heard there is a different set of rules for growing down here because of how how and humid it gets.
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It's the time of the year that is working against you. The rules are different in Florida for us. You have two choices, A. Start your seedlings indoors under artificial light and transplant outside in October or November. B. wait till November to start your seeds on you screen porch.
 
davidestesfl said:
It's the time of the year that is working against you. The rules are different in Florida for us. You have two choices, A. Start your seedlings indoors under artificial light and transplant outside in October or November. B. wait till November to start your seeds on you screen porch.
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Summer is working against me, but i've been willing to do the extra work it takes to help the plants thrive under these conditions. I have A LOT of different pepper plants, and most of them are all doing great except for these bhut jolokia seedlings. I'm just not sure what is hurting them.
 
Agree with everyone above...you over watered. To make matters worse, I would be willing to bet that soil is a soggy mess toward the bottom even when the surface was dry as a bone. Manure and the other goodies in there will just wash down through the sand base and pine chunks of that soil. If you want to continue using it add some peat and it will work a little better and stay evenly moist. Do you have fungus gnats??? Good luck, you could probably be fine picking a good spot that gets 4-6 hours direct sun this time of year and stick some seeds in the dirt in FL...I direct sowed out here in Cali with good luck last year. 
 
Hope the next round works better for you.
 
It was clearly the sun, and the soil mixture. It cannot be stressed enough to not grow them in direct sunlight the first several weeks of their life. They do very well in shade with indirect sunlight a small portion of the day until they set a couple sets of true leaves. I had excellent success this year  with over 200 seedlings. If you want to see the progression and what I used I document it on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152681437735487.1073741825.824165486&type=1&l=f3a6df76de For starters the best seedling mixture I have ever used is the Miracle Grow Seed Starter Soil. Its sort of expensive but I cannot stress enough how effective it is.
 
stc3248 said:
Agree with everyone above...you over watered. To make matters worse, I would be willing to bet that soil is a soggy mess toward the bottom even when the surface was dry as a bone. Manure and the other goodies in there will just wash down through the sand base and pine chunks of that soil. If you want to continue using it add some peat and it will work a little better and stay evenly moist. Do you have fungus gnats??? Good luck, you could probably be fine picking a good spot that gets 4-6 hours direct sun this time of year and stick some seeds in the dirt in FL...I direct sowed out here in Cali with good luck last year. 
 
Hope the next round works better for you.
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I haven't really had too many problems with insects or fungus. When I had my seed try seedlings under indoor light I started to see what looked like damping off fungus, but it disappeared when I moved them outside.
 
I'm just still a bit confused as all of my other plants in the same soil and treatment are doing fine.
 
Kwest13 said:
I haven't really had too many problems with insects or fungus. When I had my seed try seedlings under indoor light I started to see what looked like damping off fungus, but it disappeared when I moved them outside.
 
I'm just still a bit confused as all of my other plants in the same soil and treatment are doing fine.
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If damping off is a problem indoors then your soil mix hold to much water. Either that or your not running a fan for air circulation.
 
The pepper fields in Jamaica (scotch bonnets) and Assam (India) are both closer to the equator than south FL/CA but they still get a good crop without high tech dirt/too much water.
 
davidestesfl said:
If damping off is a problem indoors then your soil mix hold to much water. Either that or your not running a fan for air circulation.
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I usually test the water level by sticking my finger and inch or two down to feel the dampness. Maybe I should check the bottom of the soil to see if it's holding too much moisture?
 
If you want to know when your plants need water all you have to do is simply look at them every evening a little while after the direct sunlight has gone off of them.
Are the leaves still wilting? If so, then water. Only then. Done. Easy.
You'll be amazed how little water they need.
 
scrufy said:
If you want to know when your plants need water all you have to do is simply look at them every evening a little while after the direct sunlight has gone off of them.
Are the leaves still wilting? If so, then water. Only then. Done. Easy.
You'll be amazed how little water they need.
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Sounds good. I will work on testing this out.
 
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