time to go and buy??

[hiyatim]

i planted a couple of pepper plants from seed, they are californian wonders and were planted and germinated in march. They are in the greenhouse as thats what the packet says but they seemed to have stoped growing. they made it to about 3 inches and now just sit there doing nothing..is it time to get to the shop and buy a fruiting plant?? (i consider this cheating )

[woodpile]

It could be a cold shock has stunted them, an insect has got in the base and is doing the same, or maybe they were just poor seed. I would go and buy one just to cover your bases though.

[airconednightmare]

re-pot, feed? they should be bigger than 3"

[hiyatim]

no sign of insect damage that i can see, no where near pot bound, in fact roots not showing much at all, i have repotted anyway as i always planned to do, the only thing i could tell that was wrong was the bottom was alot wetter than the top, the top i thought needed watering as it was bone dry however the bottom was wet and a little smelly.

i understand this info would lead to the fact i have maybe over watered them and hence the stunted growth but it has confused me also about watering. i only water when the plants are dry rather than a set routine, its in a plastic greenhouse so rain doesnt get to it

finally the plastic greenhouse they are in does have a torn zip which i assume would mean the temp isnt so great, could this be affecting things??

[Ace]

Originally Posted by hiyatim

. . .the bottom was alot wetter than the top, the top i thought needed watering as it was bone dry however the bottom was wet and a little smelly.

Hi hiyatim

What you said here makes me wonder if you put adequate drainage in your pot? Perhaps there isn't and when you water them they are literally just constantly sitting in a pool of water causing the roots to rot. It's best I think to put some kind of gravel or equivalent material in the bottom of pots and then the compost on top of that so that any water drains out of the compost and leaves the roots moist rather than saturated. If you do have good drainage then i'm clueless I'm afraid

[airconednightmare]

yep sounds like poor drainage could be the soil itself, what 'grow medium' (soil) are you using?

[hiyatim]

ive never bothered with drainage really. i figured the pots have holes in so they are fine and none of the others have had problems. i probably sound really dumb saying i dont use gravel etc as i didnt really think it necessary and the medium is just pure peat free compost

[Ace]

Originally Posted by hiyatim

ive never bothered with drainage really. i figured the pots have holes in so they are fine and none of the others have had problems. i probably sound really dumb saying i dont use gravel etc as i didnt really think it necessary and the medium is just pure peat free compost

No it's not dumb cos it's not obvious really. It's something I learned along the way same as everyone else.

Basic plastic flower pots which have holes in should provide enough drainage so long as they're not being overwatered, however, consider that quite often, esp when plants are still young we tend to stand the pots in some kind of tray. If the trays start to fill with water themselves then the roots are standing in water.

In larger pots the holes are not always that large and I guess can get blocked up by the soil if it is compacted. Often there may only be say 3 holes which isn't a lot in a large pot.

So it's good to put about 1/2 inch of gravel in the bottom first because water drains through gravel quickly and easily and most of plant's root system will sit on top of that gravel and thus never get waterlogged.

This summer I found that Focus DIY stores were selling 20-25kg bags of shingle for jusy £1.70 ish. It was clearly just shingle dredged from a beach as there was still sand on them but it's perfect for the job and you can so 4-5 large pots from each bag. If it's going to keep your plant healthy and vibrant then those few extra pennies should be worthwhile. I've lined every tub, pot, trough and planter I have with shingle even if it's just a thin sprinkle.
But you could use old bits of stone or bricks just as easily. I think this also helps to get air into the roots too.

[hiyatim]

cheers ace

i have a big pile of gravel which i will make use of from now on, i just hope that now ive given them a bigger pot they will improve and maybe even get a pepper towards the end of the season. my tomato plants dont seem to be giving me fruit either, they are about 8 inches tall but not very bushy at all, maybe its the same problem

[airconednightmare]

perlite...ph nutral and inert unlike sand, brick, etc