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Something is is stripping my plants

Jayman

Jayman

Late last evening I looked at my plants and they were all fine. Got up this morning and something has stripped all the leaves off 3 of my plants. One of my pots was knocked over so whatever it is, it must be bigger then an insect. :(

Orange hab, was finally starting to grow too.
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Serrano.
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Serrano number two, the pot that was knocked over.
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Zimbabwe Birdseye, I have two of these and both were just starting to flower.
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Anyone know what may have done this? Could it be a bird, or a rat? Whatever it is I need to put a stop to it before it destroys all my plants.
 
Damn you weren't lying about them being stripped. Sorry to see that :(
I was going to say deer maybe? I don't live in your neck of the woods though.. That's what they look like when deer get to them up here anyway. If that was a opossum that's nuts! they don't mess around with anything up here. Good luck
 
BigCedar said:
If that was a opossum that's nuts! they don't mess around with anything up here.
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Yeah, our possums here in the Land of OZ are EVIL. It's the main reason I'm forced to do most of my growing at my mum's (possum-free) house. None of the thousand deterrents I've tried have ever done jack (well, except for Rogor--two birds with one stone!--but I'm not using that anymore), and as you can imagine, bringing 100+ pots inside every night and then back outside again in the morning isn't much fun! (Having a bitch of time ATM though with all my babies that need to come inside at night... but at least I have trays.)

If it is possums, J, short of either shooting them, poisoning them, rigging up some kind of protection net/enclosure/covering, or bringing your plants in at night, not much can be done. :(

Your plants should bounce back though, it's just a frustrating as hell step back. Been there, so I know how you're probably feeling.... ;)
 
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The rat bastages will even eat the actual chillies themselves....

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They stripped that plant of pods then decided to have a bit of leaf salad. You can even see a half eaten pod up the top. :mad:
 
Will talk to my old man about it later he maybe able to help me. Maybe he can help me make some kind of cage to put my plants in. He is a welder so I think all I would need is a nice big strong frame and put chicken wire on it. Mine you I don't have hundreds of plants, got about 10 up the yard and about 15 more seedlings. I did read that you can use hot chilli sauce on you plants to deter possums. I do have some sauce with habs in it that I dont really like so I may try mixing that with water in a spray bottle and see if I can deter the little buggers in the short term.
 
gasificada said:
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The rat bastages will even eat the actual chillies themselves....

IMG_1161.jpg


They stripped that plant of pods then decided to have a bit of leaf salad. You can even see a half eaten pod up the top. :mad:
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Damn I'm starting to hate possums right now. Legally if you trap them your not allowed to take them far, in which case they will just comeback.

Was just talking to a scottish woman I work about possums getting into the roof at work and ripping out the insulation. She said to me she had never seen a possum and then asked me if they look anything like a Wallaby? :rofl: How would a Wallaby get into the roof? :rofl:
 
:think:

Looking at some of those photos, it looks like it's possible you may have broad mites too (not that they would cause the strippage--that's definitely wildlife! :lol:).

Have you had a lot of that claw-type curling on the new growth of your plants? And do the affected leaves become quite hard?

Of course, you may not have, but definitely something to keep an eye on....

EDIT:

For comparison, does any of that curling closely resemble this:

IMG_5810.jpg
 
gasificada said:
:think:

Looking at some of those photos, it looks like it's possible you may have broad mites too (not that they would cause the strippage--that's definitely wildlife! :lol:).

Have you had a lot of that claw-type curling on the new growth of your plants? And do the affected leaves become quite hard?

Of course, you may not have, but definitely something to keep an eye on....

EDIT:

For comparison, does any of that curling closely resemble this:

IMG_5810.jpg
Click to expand...

The plants in of of my three gardens are doing this exact thing. I looked up the causes and it said overwatering, which I have cut down on now, with only 2 out of the 15 plants not doing it now though. So seeing this now makes me think I probably have broad mites then.

So my question is, How do I get rid of them? and how do I cure a plant looking like this?
 
novicechilligrower said:
The plants in of of my three gardens are doing this exact thing. I looked up the causes and it said overwatering, which I have cut down on now, with only 2 out of the 15 plants not doing it now though. So seeing this now makes me think I probably have broad mites then.

So my question is, How do I get rid of them? and how do I cure a plant looking like this?
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Sadly, they are a b*tch to get rid off! The damn things are so resilient it's not funny. As far as poisons go, at least in my experience, none of the "safer" ones do jack (e.g. pyrethins, synthetic pyrethroids, confidor, etc). Strong chemicals on the other hand (e.g. Rogor, Malathon, etc) I have found to be quite effective (especially systemic ones that don't require actual contact with the mite) but from what I hear, it's only a matter of time before broad mites quickly become resistant to them also (that's if the particular ones you have aren't already). The downside to using strong chemicals is not only of course health effects but they will also wipe out your good bugs.

And natural/so-called "safest" solutions (e.g. neem, botanical oils, sulfur, soapy water, etc) are semi-effective but be prepared to but a lot of time and effort in using them (and contact with the mite is a MUST. Extremely difficult when dealing with something you can't even really see and is able to hide in the smallest of nooks and crannies).

The trouble with broad mites is not only are they all but invisible to the naked eyed (making it extremely difficult to catch re-infestation at an early stage), but they are also toxic as hell. A very small amount of these buggers can still cause a great deal of damage. By the time you realize you have them or have a re-infestation, their toxin is already in the plant and the damage is done. Back to square one.

Whatever you choose to use, the key is getting in early! Smash 'em before they have a chance to really populate. Minimize the damage! ;)

I'm actually going to do something different this season and try natural predators. Surely something's gotta give!

Oh and how do you "cur"e a plant that looks like that? Not much you can really do except prune the damaged growth.
 
Here's some pictures of of the leaf curl. ATM I'm alot more concerned about whatever it is eating my plants, I need to try make something to protect them.

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You got grasshoppers or locusts down there? Looks like some of my dirt plants this summer. We had grasshoppers and locust by the droves.
 
Ah yeah, nah, that's definitely not broad mite damage. The damage just looked more claw-like in the previous pics.

Whatever it is though, I've been getting it for the first time myself this season. It's driving me mad!
 
Jayman said:
ATM I'm alot more concerned about whatever it is eating my plants, I need to try make something to protect them.
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Temporarily, until you figure out something a little more permanent, covering them up overnight with an old sheet or a tarp or something should do the trick. Your stakes should hold it up so it doesn't crush the plants and then just anchor it down with rocks or something heavy. I even use spare pots to cover them sometimes.

Bringing them inside works too..... ;)
 
novicechilligrower said:
Are you seriously asking if we have rabbits in Australia? That is almost the worst question I have heard. We have them by the millions.
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LOL the worst question? I always like to insult people in these threads. Here in North American we have rabbits, probably more than you Aussies do. My plants are outside they leave my peppers alone. So get out the chicken wire and protect your plants, kill some rabbits, after that its time to throw em on the BarBie.
 
Yeah we have grasshoppers, and think we get locusts too.

I've moved my plants for the time being, in the lower half of my yard. I have 2 metal cages which I've placed over some of my plants. I've spaced the cages out, and placed my other plants in between them. I have a plank sitting on top of the two cages which I can hang a tarp from at night. Also my Jack Russel has access to the lower half of my yard at night.

Glad to hear I don't have broad mites. Personally I think the leave curl is on one part having 3 or 4 days of rain, and my uncanny ability to overwater my plants just after their just recovered from overwatering.
 
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