Bell pepper problem

[Pennyaline]

I've grown bell peppers for years and haven't seen a problem like this one before:

It is a Blushing Beauty, planted in a container as a seedling purchased from a local nursery (and not Home Depot or other big box store... I can't make that clear enough!). In its infancy it looked just like any other pepper, but as time has gone on it has changed appearance.

It has not developed the lush, broad deep green leaves that peppers have. The leaves are narrow. They are uniformly more yellow than green, and they are also uniformly creased deeply along the central vein although not outright folded. I can't detect any new growth on the plant.

I have never grown this variety before, but I can't imagine that it would be significantly different from other peppers.

They nursery people have no idea what could be happening to the pepper. They even had me bring the container to them, so that they could have a look at it (wisely, they made me keep the container in the car and they came out and look at the plant rather than have me carry it and whatever its problem is into the nursery environment).

I have dealt with TMV and the other ordinary afflictions of peppers before, and this is not any of those. I've looked it over for infestation, and have found nothing. I may just be overstressed from one source or another, and I may have to give up on the plant and hope for better luck next year, but before I heft it into the bin I figured I'd ask you guys first. Wish I could provide a picture, but my camera has shrugged off this coil.

Any ideas?

TIA

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Sounds like you're experienced enough to not use any sort of risky soil, so maybe we can rule that out. How about keeping it in shade for a week or two and seeing if that helps? Although peppers theoretically like sun, they also seem to do better (for me, at least) in cooler temperatures. It sounds mutually exclusive, but not necessarily. Give it a rest from the sun and see what happens.

[Jim Marrs]

It sounds like you may have over fertilized the plant. Using too much nitrogen based fertilizer will caust the plants to become stunted as well as develop the deformed leaves. I grow the Blush variety each year and the plants you describe are defininely not normal. If you suspect fertilizer may be the problem, the cure may be a drastic replanting in new potting soil. Wash the roots with water and completely repot and hope for the best.. It may be better to just start over with new plants.

Good Luck.

[Pennyaline]

I don't add fertilizer to newly-placed young plants, and this one is no exception. I appreciate your suggestion, though!

The nursery has offered to replace the plant with a more mature one nearer to blossom, gratis of course. Their only regret is they may not be able to get me a Blushing Beauty. But that's all right with me, and I'm going to take them up on it. Such nice people, with a healthy belief in good business and good will.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

I was thinking you should bring those people some flowers, but they already have enough. Maybe some cookies. :-)

[Pennyaline]

Pennyaline wrote: > I've grown bell peppers for years and haven't seen a problem like this one before:

It seems that the problem has been solved without destruction of the plant!

A few days after I posted this, the nursery asked to see the plant again. They had heard some other complaints about pepper plants failing in the same manner and wanted to see again if mine was a true match. It was.

It seems that all of the plants had buds formed when they were purchased and transplanted, and the purchasers (myself included) were advised to pinch the buds off. All of the purchasers with complaints of failed or failing plants had gotten the same advice and consequently pinched away.

The nursery now believes that they were wrong to recommend pinching the buds, and feel that the pinch back in tandem with removal from the controlled nursery environment and transplantation probably caused setback. One buyer saw his plants through using only enough time to allow the plant to recover. As the nursery talked to more of their buyers, it happened that nearly all of the plants recovered and began to put out new growth.

After I heard about that, I babied my little Beauty and watched it for progress. Within a couple more days, the plant gave me a flush of deep green growth.

The nursery still offered to replace it, if I wanted. But I'll hold out and pull for this little one. It may even have time to ripen fruit.