Will plants that overcome difficulties as seedlings (ext. over water/over fertilize in the early stages of growth) produce less fruit or be prone to more problems as mature plants? I had some difficulties right out of the gate but they seem to have corrected themselves and are now on the right track. I’m just wondering if these early problems that I had will affect the plants later on down the line when it comes time to fruit, even though the problems were corrected and the plants appear to be healthy now.
-
If you need help identifying a pepper, disease, or plant issue, please post in Identification.
seeds Will plants that overcome difficulties as seedlings put out less fruit?
- Thread starter jswieton
- Start date
I suppose it depends on what you mean. They are probably just as capable of producing as well as any other plant (depends on what happened and if they are truly recovered) -- however, if you keep them as annuals, they're going to be set back a little, maybe a couple of weeks or so. That means they're going to be a couple of weeks late for production and you won't get as much from them because you'll have to pull them up sooner.
Plants that have a hard start of it or even a slowdown or setback in mid growth are fully capable of producing a good crop, even a bumper crop, if the conditions improve for them.
I've had some plants with a wet cold spring and early summer that I thought I might even lose that later did fantastic with an improvement in conditions later in the season. It is not for certain of course but the potential is there.
I've had some plants with a wet cold spring and early summer that I thought I might even lose that later did fantastic with an improvement in conditions later in the season. It is not for certain of course but the potential is there.
Intentionally stressing plants is a technique that growers of different crops have used for years to actually encourage fruiting.
.
You can induce flower setting by abusing a plant. For citrus trees - especially those that may be on their last productive year(s) - a common trick, is to beat the trunk with hardwood axe handles. The idea being, that if the plant "thinks" that it's near the end of its lifecycle, it will then give priority to fulfilling its biological mandate. And, it certainly does work. The season after a good beating, a citrus tree will put out bushels of flowers - even if it was in poor health, prior to the beating.
.
I don't know if that works with peppers, but I see no reason why it wouldn't. I'm not suggesting that you abuse the plant - but if you can get it to recover, or correct the limiting factor, the plant should set fruit aplenty. After all, from a scientific perspective, that is the sole purpose of the plant. To reproduce.
.
You can induce flower setting by abusing a plant. For citrus trees - especially those that may be on their last productive year(s) - a common trick, is to beat the trunk with hardwood axe handles. The idea being, that if the plant "thinks" that it's near the end of its lifecycle, it will then give priority to fulfilling its biological mandate. And, it certainly does work. The season after a good beating, a citrus tree will put out bushels of flowers - even if it was in poor health, prior to the beating.
.
I don't know if that works with peppers, but I see no reason why it wouldn't. I'm not suggesting that you abuse the plant - but if you can get it to recover, or correct the limiting factor, the plant should set fruit aplenty. After all, from a scientific perspective, that is the sole purpose of the plant. To reproduce.
They'll be fine once summer gets here , don't over think it my friend , 
Yup. My tomatoes and anaheims try to kill themselves with shock on dirt day every year. They actually take about a month to really recover from the various and sundry environmental changes I inflict.
Then I'm overwhelmed with production.
I've thought about conditioning the 8th acre to be more accommodating to transplants, but then I might lose the overwhelming aspect of the harvest.
Then I'm overwhelmed with production.
I've thought about conditioning the 8th acre to be more accommodating to transplants, but then I might lose the overwhelming aspect of the harvest.
I have a feeling a figured out what my problem was. I added worm castings to my seed starting mix to all of these plants except one. The plant that is doing well I started two weeks later, and I did not add the worm castings to. The castings must have over fertilized my other plants from the get go. Hopefully my other plants will overcome my bone head mistake over time.
That is not an accurate diagnosis, at all. It would literally be impossible to "overfertilize" with worm castings. What you have actually done, is created poor structure in your potting mix. You've made it harder for small plants to push roots, and you've decreased the amount of oxygen in the root zone.
How much, exactly, did you add?
How much, exactly, did you add?
^ agreed
Your older seedlings have that yellowing that can be caused by soggy soil, worm castings can do this based on my experience. As Solid7 said the roots can not get oxygen..
Probably better to give them worm juice to feed them with and stick to the potting mix you have given your new plant.
Edit: I would re-pot your old seedlings in the new mix. They should recover just fine.
Your older seedlings have that yellowing that can be caused by soggy soil, worm castings can do this based on my experience. As Solid7 said the roots can not get oxygen..
Probably better to give them worm juice to feed them with and stick to the potting mix you have given your new plant.
Edit: I would re-pot your old seedlings in the new mix. They should recover just fine.
Sorry, but that is just the wrong advice, for the wrong reasons.
.
Worm castings will not have any detrimental effect on a seedling, from a nutritional standpoint. As stated before, the negative effect, will be on the structure of the potting mix. Worm castings produce an almost "muddy" substrate. They are not considered "high nitrogen" amendments.
.
As far as availability is concerned, blood and bone meal, particularly, will not likely be of much use to a seedling. They both require microbial activity to break them down to a usable form, and there usually isn't much of that in a seedling size container. Seedlings have on-board nutrition until they start to develop leaves, so not sure what you are referring to when you say that "the can only process certain things".
Bone meal has been used for thousands of years to develop strong roots and provide phosphorus and calcium for seedlings. Rather then trying to prove who's right or wrong I will simply allow the readers to browse the below resources that explain how it's beneficial for seedlings and how to use it so they can all make there own decision.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_meal
http://www.the-organic-gardener.com/shrub-fertilizer.html
https://www.maximumyield.com/bone-meal-basics/2/1310
https://www.smilinggardener.com/organic-gardening-advice/bone-meal-for-plants/
https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/organic/downloads/Effect%20of%20Bone%20Meal%20Soil%20Amendment%20on%20Corn%20and%20Bean%20Seedlings.pdf
http://extension.psu.edu/business/start-farming/vegetables/factsheets/potting-media-and-plant-propagation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_meal
http://www.the-organic-gardener.com/shrub-fertilizer.html
https://www.maximumyield.com/bone-meal-basics/2/1310
https://www.smilinggardener.com/organic-gardening-advice/bone-meal-for-plants/
https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/organic/downloads/Effect%20of%20Bone%20Meal%20Soil%20Amendment%20on%20Corn%20and%20Bean%20Seedlings.pdf
http://extension.psu.edu/business/start-farming/vegetables/factsheets/potting-media-and-plant-propagation
It's a myth that phosphorus stimulates root development.
https://puyallup.wsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/403/2015/03/bonemeal.pdf
Bone meal is just a nutrient. A required one, but nothing magical that gives any advantage in anything other than usable levels. And it's not available from the moment you've planted. The smaller the container, the more this is true.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2808250
Bone meal is great stuff - if you've got some time on your hands. It's a complete waste of time in seed trays.The study said:
Grow some with liquid fish and seaweed vs dry amended bone, blood meal, and kelp, and see for yourself.