How to save your chili plant after "stem rot"

Stem rot do occur on chili plants. This happens when chili plants (not hardened) are watered excessively or are being exposed to rain. A hardened chili plant stem will be brownish in color instead of green. Hardening process will take about 2-3 months in duration. During this process, the stem will change its color from green to brownish color gradually from the bottom of the stem and make its way to the top.

And if so happen that your chili plant leaves starts to droop and with a little checking, you spot a blackened stem at the middle of the stem. No worries, by using a pair of scissors or a blade, gently cut of the bottom of the blackened stem ( about 1 centimeter below the blackened part). Now, you're left with a chili plant stem with no leaves. Apply some cutting gel to the wound (freshly cut portion). With a little bit of a luck, your chili plant will start growing new leaves from the bottom of the cut stem. This process is very similar to back budding in bonsais.

At times, when your chili plant leaves start to droop. And you can't seek out the blackened part f the stem. This normally means that you have a root rot (damping off) instead of a stem rot. At this stage of infection, there is nothing much you can do about the plant. Just discard it. To prevent root rot is to have a sterile medium or soil. I must admit that its hard to achieve this given that soil are not always sterile. So, for prevention, it is at best to keep your soil/medium moist (not wet) , a little on the dry side will do no harm.

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Date: Feb 04, 2009
Today's weather: cloudy
Stem/Root Rot : Yes
Pest : no sign yet
Harvest : no harvest today
Chili Peppers : 3/4 of my collection infected with stem rot. Started with second germination for 2009 season.
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