Chilli Plants

[Wormella]

genreally a lack of water.

We had to go away, and we were away longer then we'd previulsy hoped and our chillis have suffered because of it a little.

[The Chili Monster]

If it's the leaves that are curling, then it's lack of water.
If it's the peppers, then it's probably genetic disposition if there's no obvious sign of infection.

[Cheezy]

I've checked CM's wiki guide, can't find anything directly relating to this problem so here goes.

I've got two varieties of chilli, ones I sowed and they are Cayenne

(see here http://www.seedsofitaly.sagenet.co.uk/peppers.htm)

I've grown these for a few seasons and they are doing well. And two "peppers" a mate gave me. These are thought to be chillie, BUT could be peppers!. They are slightly shorter than my cayenne (Cayenne at 50cm these around 40cm)but the stem is twice as thick.

One of these I've notice this morning that all the flowers and the stem that the flower is on have shriveled up and gone brown. The other one is still flowering no problems. I have my cayenne outside sat next to these and they are flowering and showing signs of setting. I haven't paint brushed them , since I have them out side (south facing full sun) and there are plenty of insects around at the moment.

I am keeping everything well watered, and apart from the flowers they are looking fine :

any help on the shrivelled flowers, and how I can tell what it is I'm actually growing!

[Kitty Ballistic]

If it's the leaves that are curling, then it's lack of water.
If it's the peppers, then it's probably genetic disposition if there's no obvious sign of infection.

The leaves are OK, if a bit pale. A couple of the peppers have curled, the rest are straight. The plants look relatively healthy otherwise. Thanks.

[Kitty Ballistic]

Actually, that's a bit of a fib. The plants have started to look a bit yellowy, but with no other signs of problems. I've read that yellow leaves can be caused by low temperatures, but could too high temperatures also cause yellowing of the leaves?

[The Chili Monster]

Hi kitty B

The yellowing is usually a sign of:
(a) lack of light - if it's the odd leaf ( and/or a lower one) and you are growing your peppers in pots, then rotate the plant.
(b) Magnesium ... magnesium is to (green) plants what iron is to humans ... the (in)organic route (source of an earlier discussion) is good old Epsom Salts. Seaweed extract works well as an organic alternative.

Out of interest, what type of chilli pepper are you growing, Kitty? I've found that the chinenses are especially vulnerable to this ... a good feeding and removal of the leaves (where very weak) often helps.

[The Chili Monster]

Hi Cheezy

One of these I've notice this morning that all the flowers and the stem that the flower is on have shriveled up and gone brown.

Guess you already know ... just remove the area ... rest of the plant'll be OK ... if at all concerned, treat with Bordeaux Mixture (But strictly as a precaution only, most of the time the pepper plants are just sulking).

Cheezy also wrote:

I've got two varieties of chilli, ones I sowed and they are Cayenne

Cayennes are an excellent choice of chilli to grow ... Scoville Unit 7 (hotter than Jalepenos) ... heavy croppers (in southern UK > 90 peppers per year) ... perfect for drying (which is why I alway grow at least two) for winter.

I'd like to learn more about growing them in your neck of the woods, Cheezy ... to update the Wike site.[/b]

[Kitty Ballistic]

Hi kitty B

The yellowing is usually a sign of:
(a) lack of light - if it's the odd leaf ( and/or a lower one) and you are growing your peppers in pots, then rotate the plant.
(b) Magnesium ... magnesium is to (green) plants what iron is to humans ... the (in)organic route (source of an earlier discussion) is good old Epsom Salts. Seaweed extract works well as an organic alternative.

Thanks for the info. The plants are in a small greenhouse and should be getting enough light. So I guess they're after magnesium. Not sure if Epsom salts or seaweed extract are available here in Holland though.

Out of interest, what type of chilli pepper are you growing, Kitty? I've found that the chinenses are especially vulnerable to this ... a good feeding and removal of the leaves (where very weak) often helps.

I don't remember. I'll have to go and dig out the seed packet.

[Shirley]

I've got flowers on my chili plants... wooohoooo I'm so excited...

Thanks for your help CM - I did as you said and they started to branch out very quickly after that.

[Wormella]

How long can I expect my indoor chilli plants to live. are they worth keeping once they've produced crop or is it just a wasted endevour and plant them anew next year

[Cheezy]

Hi Cheezy

Cayennes are an excellent choice of chilli to grow ... Scoville Unit 7 (hotter than Jalepenos) ... heavy croppers (in southern UK > 90 peppers per year) ... perfect for drying (which is why I alway grow at least two) for winter.

I'd like to learn more about growing them in your neck of the woods, Cheezy ... to update the Wike site.[/b]

CM,

I can't remember exactly when I put the seeds in it was around April I think. I use one of those Root Trainer propagators (un heated), I plant at the same time my tomatoes, parsley and Aubergines this year into the same propagator.
And these go into the only Greenhouse I have which is a very small lean-to against my garage, which is East facing.

I pot on into 2 inch pots then into 4 inch. Normally I have left the chillies in the green house along with basel,and tomatoes, but due to the weather this year I have half in and half in the sun south facing. Interestly the ones in the green house are further on (east facing) than the ones south facing. Green fly are usually a problem, but not this year due to the high number of hover flies and wasps. i encourage the hover flies with lots of marigold planting (including in the green house.) I find they do keep the numbers down.

From memory I think I would not expect to see chillies until the end of August, and I've got a good crop already (green) the longest so far about 3 inch.

I am about to get my first tomato off as well (sun gold cherry) and these are also about a month earlier than usual.

I would get around 20 to 30 chillies/plant in my green house, I expect more this year, I'll let you know. I also dry them (put in a paper bag). Once dry I use a grinder and convert some to cayenne pepper for my indian cooking.

[jonc]

I've had about 4 chillis from each of my plants (on windowsills), which I've been well chuffed with :) Not sure whats going on at the moment though, as all the chillis have stopped growing and no new ones are apprearing. I'm guessing either too hot or they've exhausted the nutrients in the compost. Strange they should all stop at once though?

[diver]

mine are in a small plastic green house some one gave me...bell peppers and organic jalpeno ones that I planted from seed ( from the organic gardening society) and I am already eating both types. I collect seaweed from the beach and put it in the compost and then feed the plants on liquid manure made from sheep sh*t suspended in an onion bag in a barrel of water....pretty disgusting but it works well.....although collecting the sheep muck from the hills is a bit of a pain!...and it does stink

[The Chili Monster]

Wormella wrote:

How long can I expect my indoor chilli plants to live. are they worth keeping once they've produced crop or is it just a wasted endevour and plant them anew next year

Chilli plants are perennial. However we have a much shorter growing season in this neck of the woods. It's fully possible to overwinter. Typically UK growers are restricted by the size of the plant and indoor space. See here for more details:
http://www.selfsufficientish.com/chilipepper.htm

Diver wrote:

collect seaweed from the beach and put it in the compost

Yeah, I have started doing that this year ... it's also good for mulching.

jonc wrote:

Not sure whats going on at the moment though, as all the chillis have stopped growing and no new ones are apprearing. I'm guessing either too hot or they've exhausted the nutrients in the compost. Strange they should all stop at once though?

Heat is one explanation, but I think it's far more probable that they need additional feeding ...CHILLI PLANTS ARE GREEDY. Another reason for a slump in growth is that they need potting on. BTW, don't be afraid to repot if flowering or fruit is present - I've done it loads of times and so long as you don't harm the roots or stem the plant will start to flourish.
If you are restricted by space, and repotting is really not an option, you could pinch out the growing tip so that the plant bushes out.

[The Chili Monster]

Thanks for the info, Cheezy.