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health What's wrong with my chilis?

Ph for chiles is 6.5. 5.6 is wayyyy too acid.

Control of Ph and EC is critical in hydro.....get meters as there's no guessing correctly.
 
willard3 said:
Ph for chiles is 6.5. 5.6 is wayyyy too acid.

Control of Ph and EC is critical in hydro.....get meters as there's no guessing correctly.
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I had no idea that chili wanted higher pH than other plants. The customer service of the nutrients I use told me that I should aim for a pH varying from 5.5 to 6.3. And that's what I've read is when plants nutrient uptake is optimal.

I got pH-meter and I check it regularly. I still think that an EC-meter isn't crucial, as long as I change the nutrient solution regularly. But I will buy one in the future.
 
I was wondering about the pH level. When you said 5.6 and WC Australia didn't say anything, they seem to know a heck of a lot more than I do, I just let it go. Everything I've ever read indicates peppers like it neutral, 6.5, just as willard3 wrote.

Good luck to you nauti.
 
nauti said:
The customer service of the nutrients I use told me that I should aim for a pH varying from 5.5 to 6.3. And that's what I've read is when plants nutrient uptake is optimal.
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Do you know that pH is graded on a logarithmic scale, which means that 5.5 is ten times more acidic than 6.5?

The only plants I've ever grown in "hydro" are the plants in my aquarium, and I'd shit bricks if the pH of the water was below 6 there;-)

Välkommen till THP förresten!
 
I am having this problem with some of my young plants. I have tried adding magnesium sulfate but so far no improvement. I have had them outside here and there in sun and it was breezy and colder than in the house, so maybe that shocked it. I hope she don't die....
 
when one or another old leaf gets totally yellow, soft and falls, especially during flower/fruiting i wouldnt be worried, its normal.

välkommen
 
Wildfire Chilli Australia said:
Something else for you to read through

There are 9 possible reasons why
your plant's leaves are turning yellow

1. The "Good News" reason is that leaves naturally turn from green to yellow then brownish and dry and shriveled

All plants?

Yes



2. Sudden unexpected cold

If a plant is used to suitable conditions then cold comes in, leaf yellowing and leaf drop is common

What to do?

Usually nothing, except with potted plants. If you expect more cold, shelter your plant indoors in a warm, bright area where people are comfortable



3. Heat

Many plants comfortable in moderate temperature conditions can "complain" by dropping leaves with ongoing excess heat. The time from green to yellow to drop can be very fast

What to do?

Consider if a better location is possible for this plant. For example, rather than a full sun location, a spot with afternoon shade could be your permanent solution

3. Too wet

Too much water chokes roots and very often causes leaf yellowing

In the case of potted plants, you control the water



4. Too dry

If water is needed and not available, a plant can not "hold" all its leaves. In defense plants shed leaves. In this case the green to yellow to drop process can be very fast

What plants want is consistent water for best growth and daily happiness. Of course, that amount varies by the variety of plant





5. Your new plant suddenly is getting sick fast. Yellow leaves are developing rapidly and leaf drop is scary

This situation is very common. We call this "decline" and yellow leaves are the first symptom. We have a separate article on this subject

6. A change of location

Virtually 100% of the time, if you move a plant to a new location, you will see leaf yellowing. Unless the new location is more suitable than the old location, your plant needs to adjust/adapt to the new location so leaf yellowing is part of the process

For example, if you move a plant into more sun, the leaves may be stressed. The plant "knows" the current leaves can't withstand the increase in sun sun and so, in defense, grows new leaves that can handle the new exposure

Moving to a location with less light//sun/hours/intensity, the plant can no longer "hold" the same amount of leaves so starts to shed leaves trying to balance light and leaf quantity

7. Fertilizer, especially liquid chemical fertilizers

Folks tend to use fertilizers in excess. Too much fertilizer, especially liquid chemical fertilizers, create a toxic situation and rapid leaf yellowing (burn) is the result

Fertilization is a very important subject and so we have a separate article on fertilization

8. Disease

There is virtually no technology for plant diseases. Scientists study causes but the "cures" side of the equation is almost zero

Your best defense is promoting plant health especially with proper feeding

9. Damage

Improper maintenance, often via your lawn man, can cause plant damage, like when using a weed whacker. You may not see (because you don't look closely) where equipment may have hurt your plants. Be sure you know how to manage your lawn man for starters

Damaged plants may be able to heal themselves. You may be able to do some pruning to assist. The main point is to avoid the damage in the first place
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Please don't just copy and paste something from another website because half of these things do not even apply.

Well back to topic...

I have about 16 plants under a high output T5 fluorescent and 4 plants by a window. THe plants by the window get soaked every other day, so I don't think your problem is overwatering. Also, when i water my window plants I always fertilize too, so I don't think your problem is overfertilizing.

All 4 of my window plants are healthy while my artificial light plants all have your plants' condition.

THe problem is not root oxygenation because both my healthy window plants and my unhealthy light plants are in soil.

Finally, my artificial light plants are sprayed with epsom and my window plants are not.

JUst wanted to let you know because I'm jsut as eager for the answer.

- Not overfertilizing
- Not overwatering
- Not lack of root oxygen
- Not Lack of epsom
 
MrArboc said:
Do you know that pH is graded on a logarithmic scale, which means that 5.5 is ten times more acidic than 6.5?

The only plants I've ever grown in "hydro" are the plants in my aquarium, and I'd shit bricks if the pH of the water was below 6 there;-)

Välkommen till THP förresten!
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Yes, I know that. But that's the recommended pH range from what I've read. I just checked my "Hydroponic basics" book and it says "Most hydroponic plants grow well within a pH range of 5.5 to 6.5." Then the coco is pre-buffered to 5.8, so it can't be that bad :P But of course, chili can prefer a higher pH, but that was new to me :)

By the way, I'm starting to suspect that it's thrips that does it, even though I can't see any damages from them. Someone told me that they larvae spend some time of their life inside the leaf. I don't know if it's true but I've seen that they've multiplied during the last week. So I'll try to fix that, and not by spraying at them while the lights are on as someone here said I shouldn't :P
 
just a thought....

phchart.gif


source: thechileman.org
 
nauti said:
I just checked my "Hydroponic basics" book and it says "Most hydroponic plants grow well within a pH range of 5.5 to 6.5."
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Key word here would be "most". Peppers prefer it on the high end of that recommendation.

I know it doesn't sound like much of a difference 5.8 as opposed to 6.5 but as MrArboc said "...pH is graded on a logarithmic scale, which means that 5.5 is ten times more acidic than 6.5". Your 5.8 is seven times more acidic than it should be. That can stop a whole lot of nutrients from being used by the plant.

Good luck to you.
 
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