Five Cent Peppers

[so lucky]

I waited too long to purchase sweet pepper plants, and all the greenhouses and garden stores I go to are out of sweets; they only have hots. So yesterday when I was at Buchheits getting some stuff, I saw that they had all their 2-pack veggie plants priced at 5 cents each. They looked like they were worth about 5 cents, too, but at least they had a few sweets left. Dried up, roots showing, scraggly, deformed, pale leaves. Well, I bit the bullet and plunked down my nickle, big spender that I am, for a two pack of Big Bertha. Now we'll see if I can : 1) keep them alive 2) help them thrive, and 3) get edible peppers off the plants. I had my DH take a picture of them, so if I am able to figure out how to work this, I will try to post before and after pictures. I always made fun of my mom for taking in all those half-dead miserable-looking plants, to try to nurse them back to life. Now I have done it, too.
Anyone have some sure-fire suggestions?

 

[desertlady]

I soaked them in water with vitamin B liquid and pray !

 

[Nyboy]

Good tip on vitamin B, can you dissolve a pill in water?

 

[vfem]

What about soaking them in water with a dissolved crushed asprin?

 

[thistlebloom]

I use liquid seaweed on all transplants, it helps with the shock and also has over 60 micro nutrients. During the season I also use it as a foliar spray.

Isn't it odd how we do things our moms did, and we used to think they were nutty?

 

[nittygrittydirtdigger]

Try some fish emulsion diluted to less than 1/2 of what it calls for on the bottle. I've had remarkable results with fish emulsion, even in my very alkaline soil.

 

[lesa]

If they are not too far gone- just getting them in garden dirt and watering should make a world of difference. If they were inside (and not out in the air and sunshine) make sure you harden them off. It would be a shame to kill them from sunburn, at this point! Good luck!

 

[digitS']

Don't leave them root-bound, if they are.

At best, tease out some of those roots.

At worst, tear the root ball as much as half-way up from the bottom.

Steve

 

[desertlady]

So lucky, how did the plant turned out?

 

[so lucky]

Well, I soaked them in water, teased the roots apart and planted them in the garden with some worm castings mixed in the soil. Then after I watered them in, I watered them again with half-strength fish emulsion. Can't tell yet whether they are going to thrive, but I'm pretty sure they will live. Stay tuned.............