on a few of my seedlings there is something eating around the base of the stem. This isn't the first time I've seen this and it isn't a huge concern since i have a lot of plants that are fine......just wondering if anyone knows whats eating them? slugs? the new leaves are also coming out a little mutated.
-
If you need help identifying a pepper, disease, or plant issue, please post in Identification.
seeds seedling help
- Thread starter FROG DOG
- Start date
Need pics
Yes, need pics, but most often with new growers (to fairly new growers) with seedlings, such a problem isn't actually that the stem is being eaten but that there is a fungus in the soil (which is commonly called "damping off".) This is caused by overwatering or letting the surface of the soil remain too wet for too long. The best approach, of course, is to prevent damping off from starting in the first place. You can do this by either keeping a fan on the plants (if they're indoors) or ensuring they're in a place outside that gets some wind. The air circulation is important as this is what helps keep the surface of the soil dry. The other helpful thing is to bottom-water. Assuming you have drain holes in the bottoms of the containers, fill a sink (to a depth needed, depending on the size of the containers) then dip the containers into it to water, but don't let the moisture reach the surface of the soil.
If this soil fungus is the problem with your plant, you need to take measures to first eradicate it - simply switching to adding air circulation and bottom-watering likely won't be enough. Sometimes spraying the surface of the soil with a mix of hydrogen peroxide and water is enough, if the weakness at the base of the stem isn't too bad. However, for a more aggressive approach, I suggest that you remove the plants from their containers and repot with fresh soil. You'll still want to clean as much of the old soil off first, and spray the stem with a mix of hydrogen peroxide. When repotting, put the plant deeper into the soil to ensure the weak spot is well below the surface. Plants with this weakness that are kept above the surface often fall over at the base and ultimately die. So putting them into soil deeper helps keep them from falling over, though they may or may not survive.
Again, this is most often the cause of issues at the base of the stem for newer growers, or at least for growers who are new to starting plants indoors. Pics will help us determine if it's damping off or actually something eating the stem.
If this soil fungus is the problem with your plant, you need to take measures to first eradicate it - simply switching to adding air circulation and bottom-watering likely won't be enough. Sometimes spraying the surface of the soil with a mix of hydrogen peroxide and water is enough, if the weakness at the base of the stem isn't too bad. However, for a more aggressive approach, I suggest that you remove the plants from their containers and repot with fresh soil. You'll still want to clean as much of the old soil off first, and spray the stem with a mix of hydrogen peroxide. When repotting, put the plant deeper into the soil to ensure the weak spot is well below the surface. Plants with this weakness that are kept above the surface often fall over at the base and ultimately die. So putting them into soil deeper helps keep them from falling over, though they may or may not survive.
Again, this is most often the cause of issues at the base of the stem for newer growers, or at least for growers who are new to starting plants indoors. Pics will help us determine if it's damping off or actually something eating the stem.