Why Are My Pepper Plants Stunted?

Pepper plants grow easily and produce abundantly.

Peppers come in hundreds of sweet and hot varieties and are second in popularity to tomatoes in home gardens, as cited by the Colorado State University Extension. The plants grow easily in warm, fertile soil and produce prolifically. A viral disease leads to stunted plants.

Identification

Pepper plants are susceptible to the curly top virus caused by the beet curly top geminivirus, BCTV. The sugarbeet leafhopper transmits virus to peppers and a number of other vegetables, weeds and crops.

Damage

The virus infects the internodal area of the plant. Internodes are the stem areas between the nodes or where the leaves and fruit grow. This damage results in short internodes and extreme stunting of growth. The lack of internodal length gives plants a rosette-like look. Foliage rolls and is light green to yellow in color. Fruit is small and upright. Younger infected plants die.

Control

Since there are no resistant pepper varieties, the best management option is to control the virus transmitting disease vectors near pepper plants, as cited by the University of California Extension.

References

• Colorado State University Extension: Growing Peppers is Fun, Easy and Addicting
• University of California Extension: Curly Top
• Arizona State University Extension: Plant Parts and Functions