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Brown-spotted peppers cause a lot of headaches for home gardeners. Instead of going through the ripening process with appetizingly shiny skins, the tropical fruits are covered with glassy, brownish necroses before harvest. Stop wondering what to do when peppers are rotting. This guide will inform you about the causes of one of the most common types of damage in the cultivation of Capsicum annuum. Explanations that have been tried and tested in practice illuminate the correct procedure and give tips for effective prevention.
symptoms
Characteristic symptoms - an overview
The evil begins insidiously, long before the fruits are ready to be harvested. The first tissue changes in the form of watery, grey-brown or dark brown appear at the points where the flowers begin necrosis. As it progresses, brown spots form all over the shell. On various types of peppers, the rotten spots sink in and gradually harden. At the same time, it can often be observed that young leaves and flowers grow deformed or clearly lag behind in growth. In the final stage of the dilemma, the peppers fall off after a short phase of emergency ripening.
blossom end rot
Cause: Blossom end rot
If the symptoms described occur when growing peppers, gardeners are confronted with blossom end rot. This is not a typical one plant disease, caused by fungi, viruses or bacteria. Rather, brown spots on ripening peppers result from various deficiency symptoms as a result of neglect in care.
Blossom end rot also on tomatoes
Acute infestation
Acting correctly in the event of an acute infestation - this is how it works
If the first symptoms of blossom end rot appear, there is an urgent need for action. Are the peppers done first? brown necroses affected, these fruits are lost. To what extent they are suitable for consumption is a matter of controversy among experts. To prevent more peppers from rotting on the shoots, use the following strategy.
- Pick off and discard any pods with brown necroses
- Foliar fertilization with a special calcium fertilizer, such as Düngal Calcium, at intervals of 8 to 10 days
- Reduce nitrogen fertilization or stop completely for the time being
- Use the soil test set to determine the pH value
- lime acidic soil with a pH below 5.5
- water more regularly from now on and avoid strong fluctuations in the water supply
lack of lime in the soil and substrate impairs the transport of important nutrients into leaves, shoots and fruits. If you have previously watered your pepper plants with rainwater, please switch the water supply to normal tap water immediately. You can speed up the regeneration process of peppers in a tub by repotting the plant in fresh substrate.
Prevent
Preventing deficiency symptoms - tips for beds, greenhouses and balconies
You take the fear out of blossom end rot in the cultivation of pepper plants if you specifically prevent deficiency symptoms. The following tips summarize the most important precautions to ensure that peppers do not rot in beds, greenhouses and balconies.
- in the bed: A sunny, rain-protected spot in humus-rich, nutrient-rich soil with a pH of 6.2 to 7.0
- in the greenhouse: air daily to prevent excessive humidity, shade in the blazing midday sun
- in the bucket on the balcony: place under a canopy in a sunny, air-flushed location
healthy pepper plant
The key to successful blossom end rot prevention is prudent maintenance. Water the soil in beds, greenhouses and tubs as soon as the surface dries. Drought stress leads to calcium deficiency, as does excessive humidity or temperatures of more than 25 to 28 degrees Celsius. From a nutrient perspective, nitrogen over-fertilization will also cause brown spots and cause peppers to rot within a short period of time. Mineral fertilizers with a concentrated load of nitrogen have no place in the pepper bed. Cover on the other hand organic fertilizers, such as compost, nettle manure or organic vegetable fertilizer perfectly cover the nutrient requirement. Supplementary doses of rock flour or algae lime prevent calcium deficiency and keep the pH level in balance.
brown rot
Cause: Brown rot due to fungal infection
If affected home gardeners can rule out blossom end rot as the cause of brown spots, a dreaded fungal infection into focus. Phytophthora spores are the causative agents of late blight, which makes growing potatoes and tomatoes a risky endeavor. Since paprika varieties also belong to the nightshade family, the fungi do not spare these plants. Rather, with Phytophthora capsici, a subspecies of the fungus genus has formed, which has specialized in infesting pepper plants.
Clear brown rot-infected plants
Fatally, the symptoms are similar to blossom end rot, making diagnosis difficult for the layperson. In private cultivation, potatoes are the first to be affected, followed by tomato and pepper plants. If you are already struggling with late blight in the potato patch, it can spread to your pepper cultivation not be excluded. As a further distinguishing feature, brown spots in combination with white-grey mold growth spread to the leaves and shoots before the fruits rot in the event of a fungal infection. In the absence of effective control agents for private users, pepper plants infected with brown rot should be uprooted and destroyed promptly.
defensive measures
Preventing fungal diseases instead of fighting them - tips for natural defenses
In a sunny, rain-protected location, cunning fungal spores have a bad hand. A balanced water and nutrient balance, as already for the prevention recommended against blossom end rot, also keeps brown rot at bay. In addition to the optimal location and care conditions, you can arm peppers against brown spots with the following measures.
- give preference to resistant pepper varieties
- accompany the cultivation with tonics, such as liverwort extract or horsetail broth
- pull each plant with a maximum of three shoots
- avoid any injuries to shoots and fruits
- Pinch pepper plants regularly for airy growth
- Mulch root discs with straw to avoid splashing water
- Do not water plants
Giant Horsetail, Equisetum telmateia
Small injuries on peppers cannot always be avoided. Treat small cracks or holes as a result of insect bites promptly, no brown ones form necrosis and the pods cannot rot. To do this, leave 20-30 grams of onion skins in 1 liter of boiled water for a few days. When the liquid turns brown, strain the skins. Brush critical damaged areas with the tincture regularly, pathogens have no access to the plant.