White spots on peppers?Do you have peppers with white, rotten spots on them this year? We seem to be having a lot of this on some of the chile peppers on our plants – we suspect it's sunscald combined with the super hot and dry weather we've been having! Regardless, we chop off the bad part and throw it in the compost, and use the rest of the pepper in all sorts of recipes. Nothing goes to waste!
Preventing sunscald on peppers:
You can plant Bush Beans around your peppers to provide side shade that can help prevent sunscald on your peppers, plus get the added benefit of the beans fixing nitrogen in the soil and feed your peppers!
Providing some shade for your pepper plants during the middle of the day when temperatures are high and the sunlight is strongest can also help (such as with shade cloth). Y But we usually just let them be, if the plants are bushy enough, usually most or all of the peppers will be sufficiently covered to avoid sunburn. And, don't worry if your peppers have these sunscald spots, you can still use them, make sure to cut off the bad or rotten area and use the rest. And don't forget to compost the scraps!
Pepper plant leaves turning white?
If you have recently transplanted or brought your pepper seedlings outdoors and put them in full sun, their leaves may turn white.
Leaves turning white on pepper plants is usually caused by sunscald – which is quite common with seedlings that have been recently put outside. It is important to harden off seedlings first to prevent sunscald, but sometimes, it still can happen if it's super hot and sunny the day after planting.
Learn more about white pepper leaves »
