I have grown Red Capsicum from Seeds and am facing 2 problems:

(1) Leaves are turning slightly yellow and Falling

(2) New / Young Leaves curling down and Falling

Below is a brief of the plant:

- Growing Medium is a mix of Red Soil + Cocopeat + Vermicompost + Perlite.

- I have been watering the plant regularly. The soil is usually dry on the top 1-2 inches and quite moist below.

- The plants sit on a window that gets a good amount of sun for 4-6 hrs daily.

- I Fertilize using NPK 19-19-19 once a week and every 15 days spray it with compost tea.

Please guide me.

A picture of the yellowing leaf is given

NPK 19-19-19 once a week

Plus way over-fertilization which only contributes to the mite problem as they thrive on all the excess fertilizer. Spraying with compost tea, unless it is extremely well diluted first can also damage leaves.

Dave

I will look up solutions to tackle spider mites. I have been using solution which is a mix of dishwashing soap + Neem Oil + Water and spraying over the plants but either it doesn't seem to work or I may not be spraying it enough times.

Should I discard the plant or continue the sprayings?

It is one thing to spray plant leaves when the plant is outside exposed to the elements but indoors the spray coating only builds up and plugs the leaf pores.

And dish soap sprays unless carefully mixed and very weak can kill plants all on its own.

Instead just make up a diluted Neem and water mix in a bowl and gently wipe the underside of the leaves with a soft cloth dipped in it. That wipes off the mites at the same time.

But please understand that mites are very difficult to control/eliminate unless you use the chemical pesticides that are effective on them. So the plant may be a lost cause.

And yes, if you have other plants that are not yet infected, then I would toss this plant before the problem spreads.

Dave