Trinidad Scorpions: Weird Overnight Die Off

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

Here's a poser. I started my Trinidad Moruga Scorpions from seed in May (late, I know). Seeds were from last year's Scorpion harvest. Of 64 of the best-looking seeds, I was able to germinate 48 new plants, and only 6 of the seedlings failed, leaving me with 42 apparently healthy plants that were growing quite happily, each in its own large terra cotta pot with a 5:1 mixture of garden soil and composted cow manure. Good drainage, good sun, irrigated every other day or so. All plants apparently healthy and green until yesterday, when I came outside to find 3 plants, side-by-side, not only completely wilted but drained of color. Overnight. Remaining 39 plants on either side seem perfectly healthy, but it's like these 3 got hit with microwave radiation from a UFO or something equally weird. The white areas are not powdery mold or mildew, it's like the color has been bleached out of the leaves and stems. I'm attaching photos of the healthy plants versus the dead ones. Keep in mind, this happened overnight... Anybody had experience with this? It's the first time I've seen it.

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Comments (7)

the_northeast_chileman
9 years ago
Good morning & sorry for your loss!
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I had this happen to a number of plants last season, I could have sworn I had pix but can;t find them. I have no clue as to the cause but a theory. As it didn't happen in 2015 nor this year the only difference is we had a drought last year and I watered almost exclusively with city water, I collect rain water & use that as much as possible and that's the only thing I can come up with as a potential issue?
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I'd be interested to hear if anyone else experienced it an if a there is a known cause.
User
9 years ago
Clearly you have plant vampires sucking their juices.

Root rot? Overwatering?
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MikeUSMC
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
How long ago did you transplant them? I'm wondering if it's your potting mix. You said you used garden "soil" and manure. "Soil" isn't recommended for container gardening, and it's better to use potting "mix." Soil really tends to compact and will choke out the roots. Did you add any perlite/vermiculite for added aeration? Also, "irrigated every other day" sounds like a LOT of water

What (and how much/often) are you using for fertilizer?

(sorry, it's hard to see your pics on my phone. Still haven't found a "desktop" version for a mobile device here)
Charles Austin Miller
Original Author
9 years ago
It's been about 2 months since I transplanted. No vermiculite, but commercial garden soil with a little composted cow manure. Same thing I used last year. I usually water them every 2 to 3 days.
Charles Austin Miller
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I'm going to do an autopsy (or a botopsy, or whatever it's called) by removing the dead plants from their pots and examining the root systems. Whatever did this came from the inside, I'm pretty sure, because the bleaching effect seems to have originated from the main plant stem and moved upward and outward to the leaves. The outermost parts of the leaves were still green, but the bleaching is centered on the leaf stems and the main plant.
Charles Austin Miller
Original Author
9 years ago
If it was root rot from over-watering, I would expect to see syptoms in the other 39 plants. But the rest seem quite healthy.
Charles Austin Miller
Original Author
9 years ago
Examined the root systems of the dead plants, and now I'm more puzzled. The roots were extensive, spread out all over the soil in the pots from top to bottom. Could it be that these large terra cotta pots are actually TOO SMALL for the roots?