Help-- transplants aren't happy.

[foo]

Hi,

I've been growing red savina habaneros for a while now and I transplanted them into separate pots and they are wilting (however its only been about 15 hours since i've moved them). I transplanted the entire plant including its roots but they seem shocked. Does anyone have a thought as to why they are beginning to wilt? Is it just initial shock? Will they come back? Sometimes this happens to me. Should I supplement their diet with something like a root growing agent?

Thanks!

[bamboo]

Raise the humidity, keep them out of wind and sun and in a day or two they will be over their transplant shock.

[foo]

Not sure how to raise the humidity. I could put a few open dishes of water near the pots perhaps? Its VERY dry in my home where my growing area is. I immediately turned off their lights and am blocking sun light almost entirely from them.

Thanks!

[Doug Kanter]

First of all, you said you transplanted them "including the roots". This sounds weird, since seedlings should ALWAYS be moved with a ball of soil clinging to the roots. Did you shake off a lot of the soil, or did much of the soil remain intact around them?

While you're figuring this out, get the plants away from ALL SUNLIGHT. Put them in a corner where they'll get no direct sunlight. And, you might want to start some new seeds, in case you have a 100% fatality rate.

Now, please describe the entire growing procedure you used, beginning with the seeds, what type of pots, etc.

[foo]

Hi Doug,

Thanks for responding.

These weren't seedlings. Probably due to my lack of judgment I let the peppers grow for about three months. They have a 160 day cycle generally when I grow them indoors. They are currently about 120 days and I know I should have transplanted them sooner but, c'est la vie.

I moved the entire plant, including root ball and planted them in new soil approximately 4-5" deep in an 8" pot. I let the entire root ball remain intact when I transplated them.

I grew the plants in a large 20-24" (?) clay pot. I grew 7 plants starting from seed. They began in this pot and have flourished wonderfully. Big, full leaves, perfect growth, strong stems, etc. I did check the roots for discoloration (e.g. not white) and they all looked healthy. I used a lot of their existing soil from the large pot to keep things "copacetic". Whether or not that does anything i'm unsure.

Hope this helps the diagnosis!

[Doug Kanter]

Yes. Very young seedlings are more prone to damage than older plants. Like I said - NO DIRECT SUNLIGHT until the plants perk up. Make sure the pots aren't in dishes/trays with standing water. If they have been in standing water, put them on a cookie cooling rack or something overnight so the excess water drains out.

You can raise the humidity by enclosing each plant in a plastic bag. Use some sort of stick taller than the plant to make sure the plastic isn't touching the leaves. BUT, this could also cause the whole plant to rot, so you may need to fiddle with the arrangement so the bags aren't totally sealed. "Just enough", whatever that means.

[sherwindu]

Hi Foo, I think a simple solution would be to take a spray bottle with water and mist them, as needed.

Sherw> Not sure how to raise the humidity. I could put a few open dishes of

[foo]

ooo good idea! I'll mist them now before work!