Pepper catatstrophe

[MontyJ]

I came home this evening and went about the evening chores. Came to watering the plants in the grow chamber and discovered something has eaten and/or cut off all of the leaves from the pepper seedlings! This is a disaster!. I'll start new seeds on Saturday, but they will only be 8 weeks old by May 23. I'll kick them as hard as I dare, and hope for the best.
In the meantime, I'm looking for answers. I've grown my plants in that chamber, in the barn, under lock and key for years and have never seen anything like this before. Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[baymule]

Mice. I am sure they appreciated the salad.

 

[digitS']

Snails or, slugs?

I've had problems with them eating peppers and other things in the greenhouse.

Good Luck, MontyJ!

Steve

 

[catjac1975]

If they merely stripped the leaves there is a good chance that they will bounce back very lushly as if you just pruned them back.

 

[MontyJ]

Could be mice. I'll set some traps. No way slugs or snails could get in there. Cat, I really wish that were the case. All I have now are tiny green stems sticking up.

 

[Ridgerunner]

A master gardener told me beetles will do that too, clip off the leaves. I had something do that to tomato plants I had already transplanted so I treated for beetles and it stopped. Mice sound like a real possibility for you too.

I think I'd resort to chemical warfare for beetles in case it is them and something for mice in case it is them.

Did you see any droppings to help you identify the culprit? Mice and beetles both poop a lot.

 

[catjac1975]

I killed my peppers and eggplant one year fertilizing them with a heavy hand.

 

[Smart Red]

Sorry to hear about your pepper seedlings. That's a big disappointment for sure. Hopefully you will get the right temps for the next batch to speed-grow.

 

[so lucky]

Sorry about your peppers, MontyJ. Even if your new ones are young, I bet they will grow fast once the weather warms up outside.

 

[journey11]

Oh, that is a bummer. Maybe the new ones will grow faster since it's starting to warm up now. Maybe you can rig up something to get them up to 80 degrees or so.