What is this bug?

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Permalink Reply by Ben Ruesga on July 29, 2008 at 9:33am

I think the top one that looks like a cottony pattern and the bottom picture are 2 different "bugs". The top stuff is harmless unless it gets out of control. it completely stunts your plants if you let it spread to the rest of the plant's stems. You will get leaf drop and sometimes the plant will die. Cut that part off and throw it in the trash. I have tried everything to get rid of it and I get different answers as to what it is exactly everytime I ask at the garden shops. The only thing that has worked to retard the spread of it is Bordeaux powder and I only use it on ornamentals. It loves potato bush (ornamental) the best thing to do is plant woody ornamentals or locals. Luckily it has pretty much left my veggie garden alone. I would like to know what it is exactly too if anybody knows.

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 29, 2008 at 9:38am

Well, I'd love to cut it off but it's the main stalk of the plant.

I guess that would solve the problem, though :).

I have never had a bug problem with anything else... tomatoes, herbs. Just bell peppers. This happened to me the last time I tried peppers a few years ago, too. I just gave up then.

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Permalink Reply by Ben Ruesga on July 29, 2008 at 11:42am

I guess if the plant isn't dying, you are ahead of the game!

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 29, 2008 at 11:47am

Well, technically the plant isn't dead but it sure isn't providing me with any peppers. There must be a dozen blooms on it right now... I'll probably get encouraged and then they will all be chewed off one morning.

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Permalink Reply by Rachel on July 29, 2008 at 2:24pm

I have that all over my bell peppers too. I thought it might be white fly eggs or something since I have a lot of white flies over there. I only have one bell pepper plant that is giving me peppers right now, but it does have LOTS of that fuzzy stuff on the stems, so I don't think that's what's keeping your plants from making peppers. I could be wrong, but just from my experience...

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 29, 2008 at 2:31pm

Rachel - thanks for letting me know that...

I have NO idea what is doing this. I was on the County Extension Agency website/UA today trying to find a pic or description that matched... nothing.

Lots of stuff that rots the peppers or discolors/disfigures the leaves but nothing about some little critter that cuts them off. I even looked up cutworms but I've never seen a worm out there...

Do crickets do this? Ants? Roaches?

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Permalink Reply by BK on July 29, 2008 at 5:45pm

Although I've never seen them hatch I have always worked under the assumption and have been told they're white fly eggs. Fortunately they are pretty harmless. They can produce some scarring on the plant but nothing that should effect the fruit. I have four varieties of peppers growing right now (including bell) and they are also loosing buds. It happens every year at this time. I think its the heat. Most of my plants are flowering but as I have read and learned about tomato plants, even thought they blossom in the hot summer its too hot for pollination do its thing. Its probably true for lots of plants. Right now I'm plucking off any fruit in order to keep the plant healthy so when the weather cools it will be strong and healthy.

As for the white flies. When I see the eggs I just rub them off with my fingers.

A

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 29, 2008 at 6:43pm

Do you just lose buds or are the stem AND bud dropping? Do you also lose leaves?

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Permalink Reply by BK on July 30, 2008 at 9:48am

The stem and bud drop. I figure its a survival technique. Too many resources being used for a futile act of reproduction in this heat. So the plant just drops em'. I went out and looked at my garden this morning. I was wrong, turns out I have a serrano chile thats doing pretty well producing fruit. They're not that spicy though. The leaves of the peppers are doing very well which I take to mean the plant is very healthy aside from not producing. I covered my garden this summer and switched to watering at dusk (instead of dawn which I have done in the past). My entire garden has taken very well to this. In the past my pepper plants have always withered and died by this time and so I pull them. I got sick of it and wanted to have mature plants in place when the heat breaks. So far so good.

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 31, 2008 at 9:58am

Here's another picture from this morning, showing the damage that is being done to the leaves of the plant. I just found another leaf (which has dropped in the past hour).

A few years ago I would discover an entire plant eaten overnight... This only happened to my pepper plants. So, this year I'm faring better but it's still troublesome.

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Permalink Reply by TCarmichael on July 31, 2008 at 10:17am

OMG ANOTHER leaf!!!

This time I am noticing a bit of chewing on the leaf, and some tiny black/brown spots. I'm thinking this may be one of the diseases I saw on one of the Ag extension sites... I'll have to peruse again. Also, I was able to locate a leaf on the plant with those tiny spots and press on it and the leaf just popped off. I tried this on a leaf without the spots and it stayed on.

Hmmm......

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Permalink Reply by BK on July 31, 2008 at 12:46pm

hmmm, that is strange. what's on the leaves in your new pics look like a different sort of problem than the first pic which were likely white flies. I don't think I've see that before. Looks like a nutirent thing or possibly a pest thing being aided by a nutrient thing. Out of curiosity do you ever water the plant from above getting the leaves wet? I noticed the drip line in the pic. Looks crusted with calcium. I know watering plants in the summer can cause the leaves to burn. High calcium in the water only makes it worse. Regardless, it does look like there is some insect at work. Sorry I can't be more help.

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