What is wrong with my Peppers?

[BugNuts]

What is happening to half of my pepper plants (different varieties) Give me you opinions...



[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSCF7223.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02403.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02402.jpg[/img]


Here are my healthy ones

[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSCF7196.jpg[/img]



Whats your ideas?

[cynthia_h]

Good photos; sorry about the peppers.

Have you taken a look underneath the leaves? Photos of the leaves' undersides might be helpful, esp. if they're the same leaves as you've shown already.

Additional possible useful info: what kind of soil/soil mix are they planted in? what weather have you experienced recently? (rain, temps, wind) what sun exposure do the plants/beds have?

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[BugNuts]

Delivered top soil, sunn hemp cover crop planted then four weeks after turning under planted, not much rain, soaker hose with well water, temp 70-80 lows 60-70, 8hr full sun, had a aphid outbreak in sept that was knocked down with neem and Monterey Garden Insect Spray but found this guy today.


[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02401.jpg[/img]

No other bugs found with a 10x lens, underside looks like the top.
My gut is telling me it's a virus


Darran

[DoubleDogFarm]

I agree, a little more imformation please.

Could be,

Over watering or raised bed soil mixture retaining to much water. I've noticed you lined the inside sides of your boxes with plastic.

Low potassium in the soil and or to much nitrogen.

Maybe root nematode damage.

Pepper / Tomato Mosaic Virus. Have you seen aphids?

Eric

[DoubleDogFarm]

Typing at the same time.


Eric

[BugNuts]

I have good drainage and I'm pretty sure I'm not over watering.

I did have allot of aphids that I was trying to battle just with soap before I broke out the neem oil.

I'll dig one up and carefully wash the roots and take a few photos and post them tomorrow if it's not raining. We finally are getting rain.

Is there any thing else that I should be looking for other than a soil test and nodules?

[DoubleDogFarm]

My gut is telling me it's a virus

I'm going with your gut. Virus brought on by the aphids, keep an eye out for spider mites also.


Eric

[BugNuts]

I dug up one plant and carefully washed the dirt off and took some photos.


[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02414.jpg[/img]

This is the underside of the bottom leaf.

[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02409.jpg[/img]

2/3rds up leaf.

[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02413.jpg[/img]




[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02412.jpg[/img]

Green Chili.
[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02410.jpg[/img]

The white rock looking thing was with others it but didn't seem to be attached to the roots. They break up and crumble under finger pressure and it might be something that's just in the soil.

[img]https://i572.photobucket.com/albums/ss162/xplore2c/DSC02407.jpg[/img]

I bagged the plant that I pulled and put it into the garbage bin for tomorrows pickup.



Well what do you Guys and Gals think and what should I do? If it is a virus am I done?

[DoubleDogFarm]

I've been off Island for almost two day, thought someone else would have stepped in.

I did have a lot of aphids that I was trying to battle just with soap before I broke out the neem oil

When you say "soap" what do you mean?

Eric

[BugNuts]

It was a Fels Maptha soap solution that put in a spray bottle and sprayed on the plant and under side of the leaves.

[BugNuts]

I agree, a little more imformation please.

Could be,

Over watering or raised bed soil mixture retaining to much water. I've noticed you lined the inside sides of your boxes with plastic.

Low potassium in the soil and or to much nitrogen.

Maybe root nematode damage.

Pepper / Tomato Mosaic Virus. Have you seen aphids?

Eric

Yeah I did line the sides of the boxes but didn't put plastic on the bottem.

[BugNuts]

wow I was hoping for more responses. Thank you for the help you gave DD. I guess I have the plague that no one other than you wants to touch.

Off to find a Master Gardner.

[HortIQ]

Well I will stick my neck out on this one. My best edumacated deduction from the pictures is..... PMMoV which is pepper mild mottle virus.. it's in the same family as Tobamovirus (tobacco mosaic). It infected about 30% of commercial peppers in Florida about 10 years ago. There is a silver lining if this what is infecting your plants. It is spread by mechanical transmission and by infected seed but NOT by insects. Now the bad news, there is no way of controlling it once the plant is infected, and it remains pathogenic until the plant material is completly broken down, which means any part of an infected plant that makes it into the soil will serve as a source of inoculum for subsequent plantings. Hope this helped. if you have more photos I would like to see them as well. I am in Ohio and am a bit jealous you have the ability to have pepper problems in November .