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Pepper Emergency, Who Knows CPR?!

Vbkid

Getting There...
So, despite my instructions, my dad decided St. Louis was warm enough to put my ghost pepper outside already and today my mom sent me a pic showing how terrible it looked. It made it through all winter with lots of green, healthy leaves, and a few days of cold and rain have reduced it to what you see below. Any advice whatsoever on how to handle it from here? It's back on the windowsill inside, but I have no idea whether it can pull through or not...
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/hugh-jass/8708339639/" title="20130504_121519 by kwalton, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8275/8708339639_dcc75b942e.jpg" width="240" height="320" alt="20130504_121519"></a>
 
Depends on just how cold you're talking here. If they had frost then it is possibly toast. If it has warmed up in their area, I'd probably put it back outside (with instructions to your mom to tell your dad to bring it in each night until the night temps stay in the upper 60s/70s). The fresh air movement outside will help the soil to dry out a bit if too much rain (really wet soil) has been part of the problem.

Did your dad put it in full sun without hardening the plant off first? That could have compounded the problem as many of the leaves would have gotten "bleached out" or burned which can also lead to a lot of leaf drop.

If temps were in the 50s, I wouldn't worry. The plant may sulk a bit having had such an extreme change in growing conditions, but it if was a strong plant to begin with, it should recover without much problem. I'd still say put it outside by day and inside by night until night temps warm up. While outside, a warm bright spot with some sun but no afternoon sun until it hardens off. (And any new growth should harden off easily outside.



 
Just give it the conditions you normally would. It'll take some time to get acclimated but as long as it didn't get frost it should by okay.

If they had frost then it is possibly toast.

It probably wouldn't be toast. Maybe it would be a chilly pepper.
 
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