please help me!! black streaks are killing my pepper plants

10 years ago

Needing some advice regarding what looks to be some sort of disease/fungus which is slowly killing my plants.

I originally thought it might be black soot, but this "fungus" doesn't seem to scratch off and I can't feel it so I think the blackness is coming from within. It is only just recently even visible on the tips of a couple of the most affected leaves.

On the other hand, it only seems to affect the newest parts of the plant at the top - it has completely destroyed every buddling and flower from one of the plants and it is just now starting to get to the plant shown in the pics. They are more or less all happy and are all otherwise standing tall and green.

It should be mentioned that I live in South Florida and that these are pepper plants (capsicum chinense - 'charapitas') from the Peruvian Amazon. They are in pots in a nice shady spot under some palm trees.

To this point, I have tried a copper based fungicide and I also give it a spray of miracle grow once every 10 days. I was also told that I should water it daily, but I want to avoid root rot, so I just give it a good watering 3 times a week. I'm not sure what other info might be needed for a good diagnosis, but I am hoping it is recognizable from the pictures that I have attached.

SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP!!

Comments (2)

smokemaster_2007
10 years ago
Pic isn't clear for me to see what I'm looking for so here is a guess...

Do your stems have lots of black dots on them that turn into long black lines,eventually turning the stem black?
If so I have some kind of sucking insect that seems to spread a virus that starts out as a bunch of black dots on the stem,turn the whole stem black-not sun purple.
Sometimes it ,most times it effects only the branches the bug got to.
I've had all but a couple branches get messed up and eventually die.
If it's what I had,it doesn't seem to effect the branches without the bug bites.But the bug bites are not just 1 or 2 per plant/branch.
The bug bites are a bunch at a time,close together.

If it is a fungus,try Sulfur.
Whenever I use Copper it seems to do more harm than good.

There are several fungusides out there with 10-14% sulfur.
Just NEVER use it with an oil or during the day.Spray it EARLY morning or sunset.
If you use it withing a month of using NEEM or similar oils you can kill your plants(been there,done that).
Oil reacts with sulfur to make a plant poison/Toxin under different conditions.

I think some bug leaves a toxin that causes what I'm talking about since when it starts out it mostly effects the branches that were bitten.
I've seen a plant bie except for a couple branches that didn't get the bites marks.

Here is a link that might be useful: oil and sulfur
ezericko
Original Author
10 years ago
Thanks for the advice smokemaster.

The description that you give sounds about as close to what my plants have as anything I have heard so far i.e. starting as spots, turning to streaks then the entire tip of the branch.

It is also true what you say about only some (most) of the branches being affected. I would think if it was a fungus, that it would affect the entire thing wouldnt it?? I probably have 2-3 branches on each plant that seem totally healthy and green still but the rest are tall and healthy and green until the tips where the black stuff creeps over them and kills all their flowers and buds.

Somebody had already recommended Sevin to me, what do you think about that?? I may try out the sulfur instead.

My plant #3 has none of the blackness whatsoever but is instead suffering from a different problem altogether. It could be over-fertilization as it is the only one that has some yellow in some of the leaves - but I haven't added fertilizer to its soil for at least a couple months. Will it just grow out of it with time?

Once again, thanks a ton - much appreciated!!