Blackish Areas on Pepper Plant

Question

I am a new veggie gardener. I planted a few pepper plants (pimento) and on one of them the new growth at top was badly wilted. At close inspection it seems that something was chewing on the main stem just under this new part. I cut off the wilted area (hope that was ok, as it didn’t seem like it would come back to life) and sprayed plant with soapy water. Today some other leaves are showing a blackish appearance. What is going on?

Answer 1

It is likely sooty mold, which is an indicator of a pest infestation. This article will help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/disease/how-to-get-rid-of-sooty-mold.htm