Do pepper plants need to be put in a wire cage like tomatoes to help them stay upright?
If necessary, you can in fact stake them as you would tomato plants. This article will help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/pepper/stake-pepper-plants.htm
My pepper plants that already have several peppers on them are dying. I don't know why since everything else in the garden is thriving. Could too much water from recent rains cause this? Too much heat maybe? The days here in south Florida have been 85 plus for the past two weeks.
What is happening to the peppers, in terms of symptoms? If we know what the symptoms look like, we can better diagnose what is causing it. In the meantime, give them more water with a bit of sugar, as it's possible they are suffering from transplant shock.
I live in Redding, CA. It gets HOT, over 100 degrees. I have very healthy looking bell pepper plants, but as the small bells begin to develop, they fall off the plant. I don't over water and I don't get water on the leaves or flowers. Is it just too hot here to grow bells?
You may simply have a pollination issue. Pepper plants can shed the newly formed blossoms/fruits if the growing medium becomes too wet, too dry. Pepper blossoms are even more sensitive to temperature fluctuations during pollination. When night temps fall below 58 degrees or daytime temps rise above 85, the blossoms or fruit can fall off.
The jalepenos do better, but the peppers are small and round. Bell peppers stay small and deformed.
Cool soil can do this to peppers and bells tend to be more affected by cool soil than hot peppers. Ideally, the soil (not the air) needs to be above 55F before you plant peppers. The warmer the soil, the better they grow. There are even some who believe that if peppers are exposed to temps under 50F, they will not produce well.
You may want to wait a bit longer in the future before putting them into the ground.
You can also try giving the plants some potassium and phosphorous. Soil lacking this can create stunted and deformed fruit as well.
Planted pepper seeds outside in the garden. It's been three weeks and they're not coming up. Should I disregard them and plant something else in their place?
Depending on the variety, you may see your first sprouts in about 7-14 days, but some peppers can take as long as a month or more to come up. Pepper seeds are notorious for taking their time to germinate, or germinating at different times. Also, peppers won't even attempt to sprout if temperatures are below 60 degrees F. So don't give up!
In recent years, when I just get my pepper plants growing good, something chews the stalk about half the way up the plant. They don't eat the top of the plant because the top is lying right beside the plant. I don't believe it's rabbits because it only affects my pepper plants. What could be causing this and how do I prevent it this year?
It is likely a rodent of some kind, possibly rabbit. They would not be going after the leaves of the plant, but rather the flowers. Does this happen right as the plant is flowering? Peppers are nightshade plants, so the leaves are poisonous to most animals, but not the flowers and fruit.
I would treat the issue as a rodent problem. You may find these articles helpful:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/how-to-keep-rabbits-out-of-gardens.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/animals/garden-mouse-control.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/animals/vole-control.htm
Why do the small pepper buds always fall off either after the white flower or when bud is small, and they never grow. Am I watering too much and what individual brand fertilizer is best? I grow them next to my tomatoes. Does the tomato fertilizer hurt the pepper plants?
It sounds like it may be a pollination problem. Give your peppers a little shake every few days to help loosen up the pollen and also avoid using blanket pesticides, as these can kill both the good and bad bugs in the garden.
Whatever you are using on the tomatoes is good for the peppers. Tomatoes and peppers are from the same plant group and are related.