Bell peppers opening at the stem
by
AMamani
+7
I'm a bell pepper newbie. My pepper plant gave me 4 good peppers and then nearly doubled in sized. It is just short of 3 feet tall now and has 7 good peppers developing on it.
I just found that on the three largest peppers there are small openings just under where they attach to the stem. One pepper obviously also has a small hole as well. In that one pepper I found a few ants, but none on the other two so I'm unsure which is cause and which is effect. My little garden is totally organic but in pots on a patio so there are very few bugs.
Can anyone tell me what is going on with my peppers and how I can help the rest?
I just found that on the three largest peppers there are small openings just under where they attach to the stem. One pepper obviously also has a small hole as well. In that one pepper I found a few ants, but none on the other two so I'm unsure which is cause and which is effect. My little garden is totally organic but in pots on a patio so there are very few bugs.
Can anyone tell me what is going on with my peppers and how I can help the rest?
8 answers
-
Slugs could be a possible culprit. Cage your peppers for support and trim lower stems and leaves that touch the ground. We use diatomaceous earth on the ground around the base of each plant.
Sue Hagerman
on Feb 10, 2015
-
Possibly corn borers? They often enter peppers near the stem end. @Catherine Smith do you have any thoughts?
Douglas Hunt
on Feb 11, 2015
-
If I understand you correctly, these plants are in pots in a sheltered area? I think you main problem may be aphids. The smallest pepper on the left shows discoloration on its right side as well as the dark areas around the stem. That's usually sign you have aphid problems. As for the one with the hole, it could be almost anything, but I'm betting on a tomato hornworm. Since you are using organic methods, I suggest you start by spraying the plants with a strong blast of water. Follow up with some insecticidal spray. If you have room, put in a couple of pots of marigolds in and around your peppers and other plants. Use the African type, you want smelly. Marigolds act as a natural repellant to many insect pests. All in all those peppers look pretty good otherwise. You can always cut out the bad spots. :)
Catherine Smith
on Feb 11, 2015
-
Sounds like aphids to me too. I too have had them along with the ants (Florida, the buggy state) I hold the pepper in my hand and power spray with the hose, cross your fingers that they don't come back. If the peppers are big enough, just pick them, cut them up and cut off the bad parts and store them for when you need them.
Jayne
on Feb 11, 2015
-
Thank you everyone for the suggestions! I have roses on the other side of the patio that I occasionally find aphids on, but I've never seen any on the bell pepper plant (I just double checked every single leaf!). I've cut up and used two of the peppers now and have realized that these openings do not go all the way to the interior of the pepper. Since it is in a pot, I wonder if the plant could be lacking in any nutrients that might cause the peppers to form this way?
AMamani
on Feb 11, 2015
-
Maybe erratic watering?
Janice Victoria Hart
on Feb 13, 2015
-
Or over watering and not enough sun. Peppers don't like to be fertilized and they thrive in hot sun. Do you have a dept. of agriculture there? Your 'bugs' may be different in your part of the world. They might have a better idea of what made that obvious hole.
Nana101
on Feb 13, 2015
-
I have some in containers & riser. slow to Blossom, in sun/pt shade. Dont get to big either Help
Susan M Jensen
on Feb 14, 2015
Sign Up to Answer
