disease Worrying signs on leaves

[FinInGermany]

Just found some of my seedlings looking like this. Could someone please tell me what this is to save me having to search, as I have to prepare for my daughter's birthday party and am a bit short on time? Thanks.

 

[Sulsa]

Aphids!

 

[FinInGermany]

Aphids!

Just found a bit of time, and it looks like you're spot on. Since they're still a bit young and fragile to be blasting with water, I reckon there's nothing else for it but to try the old sellotape trick. Oh well, here goes. Thanks, Sulsa .

 

[FinInGermany]

Well that's a beginner's mistake I won't make again. I had noticed quite a few fungus gnats flying around, and assumed they were to blame for the slow growth of some of my plants. To prevent them getting into the soil, I mulched most of the seedlings with quartz sand. A couple of days later, I saw that some of the leaves were still covered in sand, and just assumed they must have been wet when I sprinkled it on. I guess that must have been the start of the aphid invasion, because I have just finished removing what I would guesstimate to be thousands of the little buggers. There's no way I will have gotten all of them, but at least it gives the seedlings a chance to hopefully recover in the meantime, and I'll just have to check and remove daily until they grow big enough to resort to other measures.

 

[Bou]

Aphids are a real pain when they appear indoor... good luck for the upcoming battle!

 

[CaneDog]

Sorry to hear that. Aphids indoors are a big pain, especially with sprouts. If you have your sprouts each in its own small container you can take them to the sink and carefully rinse them off while supporting the small plant and letting the water pool in your free hand while you jostle and rub the leaves. I hold them sideways and rotate them so I don't get water into the soil or soil into the sink. It's a pain, but it's much more effective than manual removal and it cleans the aphids out of the very center of the growth tips, which is where they do the most and quickest damage to the sprout.

 

[FinInGermany]

Sorry to hear that. Aphids indoors are a big pain, especially with sprouts. If you have your sprouts each in its own small container you can take them to the sink and carefully rinse them off while supporting the small plant and letting the water pool in your free hand while you jostle and rub the leaves. I hold them sideways and rotate them so I don't get water into the soil or soil into the sink. It's a pain, but it's much more effective than manual removal and it cleans the aphids out of the very center of the growth tips, which is where they do the most and quickest damage to the sprout.

Thanks for the suggestion, CD. I'll try that with the few which are alone in their containers, but they are still mainly either in twos or threes, or in a tray with multiple pods in it. Here's a video I followed to get rid of most of them in the meantime. I'll maybe try twisting the tape into a point to see if I can get right into the centre though.

 

[alkhall]

I am not going to say anyone else's methods are not effective, but...

I had an really bad aphid infection on my new (indoor) plants several years ago. I tried spraying with water, insecticidal soap, neem, even vacuuming the little beasts off my plants, nothing worked.

Until, I bought 100 live ladybugs on Amazon. I released about 25 onto my plants, and within a week or so, all the aphids were gone.

Afterwards, I did find a couple ladybugs flying around the house, and a few dead ones some weeks later, but they are harmless to people and pets, so I wasn't worried. The rest of them I kept in the container they arrived in in the refrigerator for next couple weeks (they naturally sort of 'hibernate' when the temperature drops) and released them outside once the weather warmed up.

 

[FinInGermany]

I am not going to say anyone else's methods are not effective, but...

I had an really bad aphid infection on my new (indoor) plants several years ago. I tried spraying with water, insecticidal soap, neem, even vacuuming the little beasts off my plants, nothing worked.

Until, I bought 100 live ladybugs on Amazon. I released about 25 onto my plants, and within a week or so, all the aphids were gone.

Afterwards, I did find a couple ladybugs flying around the house, and a few dead ones some weeks later, but they are harmless to people and pets, so I wasn't worried. The rest of them I kept in the container they arrived in in the refrigerator for next couple weeks (they naturally sort of 'hibernate' when the temperature drops) and released them outside once the weather warmed up.

I had thought about ladybirds, but wasn't sure whether the seedlings could handle being swarmed yet. How old were your plants when you did this?

 

[alkhall]

I had thought about ladybirds, but wasn't sure whether the seedlings could handle being swarmed yet. How old were your plants when you did this?

They were about 8 weeks.

If you decide to use the ladybugs, make sure you get the right species.

Some good reading:

The 101 Guide to Ladybugs, Varieties, Habitat, Diet, Anatomy and More

Your quick guide to Ladybugs, varieties, habitat, diet, anatomy, species, lifecycle, gender, hibernation, migration, legends, and names. With images.

ladybugplanet.com

 

[Voodoo 6]

Afterwards, I did find a couple ladybugs flying around the house, and a few dead ones some weeks later, but they are harmless to people and pets, so I wasn't worried

Unless those ladybugs are from Australia, in that case just start to sprint away from the house.

Cheers!

 

[FinInGermany]

Asked my wife if there were any plans before I go in to late shift today. Her reply? "I should imagine you'll be busy killing triffids!
Kind of puts a new angle on how serious the problem COULD have been in a parallel universe .

 

[alkhall]

Afterwards, I did find a couple ladybugs flying around the house, and a few dead ones some weeks later, but they are harmless to people and pets, so I wasn't worried

Unless those ladybugs are from Australia, in that case just start to sprint away from the house.

Cheers!

Well, everything from Australia will kill you, so...

 

[FinInGermany]

Well despite the fungus gnat and aphid infestations trying to destroy everything I am finally managing to get some kind of growth, so my labours haven't been completely in vain. Although a few of my plants are looking fairly healthy - mainly those in plastic beakers, strangely enough - many still seem to have health issues. Not sure how much of it still has to do with the early infestations, and what might be caused by my inexperience.
As can be seen from photos 3 to 6, quite a few have strongly convex leaves, some of which are turning yellow. Could this indicate a lack of nitrogen, or is it maybe a more complex problem? The last couple of pics show that some seem to be simply wilting. Any ideas here?
For info, all plants have been kept in similar conditions, have been bottom watered, and have been rotated under the lights, depending on whether they looked as though they were needing more or less light. Maybe I just don't have green fingers, but I'm sure I will still have enough fruits at the end of the season to get me through the winter months .

confused.com - wanted to edit the post there wondering why the photos are now in a different order, but during the editing process, they seem to be back the way they were originally . Seems I know even less about computers than I do about growing chilies .

 

[CaneDog]

Seems like you may have - or at least may have had - some root issues too, perhaps with the soil remining too wet. The last picture with the wilt looks like serious root problems, with fungal infection being likely. Unless these plants are simply wilting because the soil's dry, which I'm assuming isn't the case, it looks like they may be lost.

The convex and yellow leaves may not be such serious issues, as long as the plants are recovering, which is typically indicated by improving conditions in the new growth. Root health and wet soil are reasons for leaf convexity and yellowing, so this may be affecting these plants too - just not as badly as the wilting one. Also, aphids can damage a leaf enough that the plant cannibalizes it for nutrients and eventually drops it, so that might be a play here too. When root health is in question, I often re-pot the plants into new soil so their root balls are surrounding by healthier soil. Getting the plants outside should also help, once temperatures permit, as the aphids are stealing some of their strength that they could use to recover. Outside, the aphids will have less impact.

Hope things improve for you!

 

[FinInGermany]

Seems like you may have - or at least may have had - some root issues too, perhaps with the soil remining too wet. The last picture with the wilt looks like serious root problems, with fungal infection being likely. Unless these plants are simply wilting because the soil's dry, which I'm assuming isn't the case, it looks like they may be lost.

Thanks, CD. Given the fact that I had a serious fungus gnat problem, I reckon you are right on the money with that one. Possibly a combination of poor choice of soil and "killing them with kindness". Well hopefully a better starter soil coupled with clear plastic seed trays so I can actually see what's happening in the root department will save me some grief next year.

The convex and yellow leaves may not be such serious issues, as long as the plants are recovering, which is typically indicated by improving conditions in the new growth. Root health and wet soil are reasons for leaf convexity and yellowing, so this may be affecting these plants too - just not as badly as the wilting one. Also, aphids can damage a leaf enough that the plant cannibalizes it for nutrients and eventually drops it, so that might be a play here too. When root health is in question, I often re-pot the plants into new soil so their root balls are surrounding by healthier soil. Getting the plants outside should also help, once temperatures permit, as the aphids are stealing some of their strength that they could use to recover. Outside, the aphids will have less impact.

Hope things improve for you!

We are looking at 20°C and climbing until the latter part of this week, so I can at least start the hardening off process for an hour or so this afternoon and see if that helps . Already had the trays back on the heat mats overnight to try and dry out the soil somewhat, as I don't really want to transplant again so quickly. In the end, it's all just an excuse to keep myself out of the pub and prevent me from spending the money I've saved on chilies .

 

[FinInGermany]

Was lucky enough to find some 300ml clear plastic beakers today, so I turned the flamethrower on some fresh soil to dry it out and hopefully rid it of any eggs or larvae which might be hiding in it. The beakers are large enough that I can fill them to around one third with dryish soil, then transfer the seedlings with almost all the earth in the 3 inch pots, thus barely disturbing the roots.
Logic tells me that gravity should drain any excess moisture from the original soil over the next couple of days, at which point I can lightly bottom water to encourage the roots to go hunting for a drink. Fingers crossed .