Grafted pepper doing not so well

Hello.

I know, my posts are all about plants suffering, but I promise, one day I will post an image of an healthy one (taken in my neighbour's garden, presumably, but anyway..).

So..
Weeks ago I received three grafted pepper plants from Suttons Seeds, they are called Orange Kiss:
Pepper Grafted Orange Kiss (3) at Suttons Seeds
They came as plugs and, having never seen a plug before, I hurried planting them outdoors, because, you know, I am smart like that and unencumbered by gardening knowledge.

One did not like to be planted vertically, I guess, and after trying hard for two weeks, simply separated from the root stock. I initially blamed some animal but the cut is way too surgical.
The second one is on top of the planter, severely overcrowded but still alive and seemingly in good health, albeit small.

The third one is the topic of my question.
The stem just over the graft seems to have some severe issue, along with one leave. Being the main stem in such bad shape, I guess I can kiss to goodbye to Orange Kiss..

Still, I would be curious to learn what the problem is.
Perhaps sun scortching again, like with my poor tomato plant from Ikea?

Thanks for any advice and sorry for the bad photos, hope they are clear enough

 

Oh no, Think you have planted out too soon.
Personally I would only bother growing those as greenhouse plants, peppers have never done well for me as outdoor plants, not even when planted out at a good size in June.
I'm guessing you are in the UK?

 

Yes, I live at the outskirts of London, or in Surrey, dependently on the point of view

I see your point about those being greenhouse plants.
The info on Suttons' website was a bit scarce, to be honest.
But after asking them for advice about my new tomato plugs, they sent me more detailed guides about grafted plants.
And those leaflets pretty much say it clearly that both their aubergines and peppers are meant for greenhouses, and that plugs need potting in a sheltered place anyway.

While I am definetely clueless at gardening and I do not expect them to explain the basics on every product page, to be honest that specific plant could do with a bit more information and perhaps a more realistic photo of it, rather than one sitting cheerfully in a pot surrounded by grass, trained over a fence and bursting with peppers

But then, I guess, they have to keep products attractive. And admittedly the plants looked very healthy on arrival. I should have asked for more guidance before purchasing, rather than after.
Good to know for the future

 

Thanks John!
The planter is partially raised, but I see that ants have managed to reach it, so it could be slugs then..
I will make some taller legs for it, hoping that limits the problem. I have covered all exposed soil with horticultural fleece, in the hope to dissuade pests from exploring, but I guess that they are determined little buggers.
At first I thought of some nematode I read about, which eats young stems from the inside eventually causing them to break, but I am not sure which plants it affects specifically.

I read your posts about grafting in other threads and found them very interesting, thanks for sharing all your experiments. While I would not try my hand at it, I can learn a lot about already grafted plants from them.

Actually, if you can, I have a question.
Does it make sense to pot grafted plants so that most of the rootstock is covered by soil and can sprout more roots?
I am thinking particularly about grafted tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers (well, pepper, only one left only I fear), given that is what I am planting this year.

 

@Aldo , dont give up, put it down to experience, I know it costs money though.
As you say, those that sell plants will tend to show you what they think you want to see.
Be wary of anything that looks too good to be true, like a photo of a plant against a fence with 12 ripe peppers on it,, its not likely to happen in the real world.

Suttons used to be better than that, maybe they have employed someone from Thompson and Morgan, or J. Parkers, the kings of misleading pictures.

But most are jumping on the bandwagon these days.

 

Thanks!
I was thinking of planting the cucumbers in self watering baskets (acqua lock), but if they do not take well to shifts in humidity and temperature, maybe I should try something more reliable and portable, if I realise the position is not good.
I might try and cobble up self-watering pots with two buckets stacked, which seems to be popular online. They look quite awful, but dead plants do not look very pretty either..

 

Thanks for the encouragement Pete, much appreciated!
It does cost money, it is true, but it is also my fault for reading advertising blurbs and taking them at face value, I guess
I think, with online sales and all of that, most companies are trying to fish for impulse buyers.
The fact that they pretty much have one single description for all the grafted plants (disease resistance, higher productivity, plant it right in the soil, it will make you tea) should have made me cautious.

But then, it is all experience and I am enjoying learning a bit more, even if through mistakes.
And I am very lucky to have found this forum, honestly.

 

Well, we are human after all, and advertisers specialize on selling dreams to humans

I think I'll try and place the top section of plastic bottles on the two surviving peppers for a few days, and see if that makes them a bit more confortable.
Not quite a green house but perhaps it will help them grow a bit more.

I am tempted to also put a tube around the damaged stem, and cover it in soil. That would give it more support and perhaps lead the steam to develop more roots (or perhaps peppers are not like tomatoes, and will not sprout more roots from the stem, not sure).