Any gardeners that can help me?

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I have a red bell pepper plant, in a pot, that I'm growing this year...at least, that's what the tag says. Several peppers have grown, they aren't huge, but a good size, however, they never turn red and the peppers literally fall off the plant while they are still green. Admittedly, I am not good at gardening, this year is my first attempt, so it may be something I am doing wrong. Or, could it be that the plant was mislabeled at the store and I really bought a green bell pepper plant after all?
 
There are lot of reasons why they may not ripen. Not enough minerals in the soil, wrong light conditions. The variables are just to wide to hazard a guess im afraid. However there are a number of websites on the net, that can point you in the right direction. Good luck. I hope you find out what the problem is.
 
How big is the pot. The smallest is often used in store, usually with the instruction/expectation that you move it to a larger pot.
 
I have a red bell pepper plant, in a pot, that I'm growing this year...at least, that's what the tag says. Several peppers have grown, they aren't huge, but a good size, however, they never turn red and the peppers literally fall off the plant while they are still green. Admittedly, I am not good at gardening, this year is my first attempt, so it may be something I am doing wrong. Or, could it be that the plant was mislabeled at the store and I really bought a green bell pepper plant after all?

Generally speaking green peppers are unripe red ones so they should turn red. Are they outside? Can the bees pollinate them? The soil shouldn't be too wet or too dry, they do need heat so maybe they should be in a greenhouse or conservatory.
 
LIke what @classic33 said, you have to check if the pot can accommodate the roots of a big plant, much more a flowering or a fruiting plant like that bell pepper. With the premature ripening, it may lack sunshine and since it is in a pot. you can move its location to get good sunshine. Additionally for the soil, put some fertilizers like the water you used to wash fish and meat, a very effective fertilizer. I hope that serves your bell pepper well and the fruits would turn from green to red in a few days.
 
Thanks, guys, for all your advice. I did re-pot it when I brought it home into a larger pot that I thought would be big enough, but maybe I'll double check that. I think it's getting adequate water, but I'll check the soil and maybe try moving the pot to a sunnier spot in the yard. I thought it was getting plenty of sun, but it's worth a try!
 
If a pant is casting its fruit it's because it doesn't have enough energy to continue supporting it. You may need to add fertilizer to the soil, perhaps on a regular basis to sustain the plants growth.
 
the peppers literally fall off the plant while they are still green
Exactly how are they falling off the plant? Can you show a photo? I'm curious as to if it is the stalk shrivelling up or the actual pepper flesh itself that has rotted and dropped off the stalk. How the pepper has dropped off will control what is wrong with the plant.
 
@ReadWriteLearnLove Do you have a garden center nearby that might be able to help? I don't know if they do things like soil testing, but I know pet shops will do water testing for free usually, so perhaps a good garden center would be able to test the soil for you? As @Lullabelle said, my understanding is that red peppers are ripened green peppers, just picked at a different stage of development.
 
I'm away from home for the next couple of days, but I'll see if I can get a picture from my husband or take one when I get home. From memory, the stalk doesn't seem to be shriveling, I just go outside and find the peppers on the ground as if they've just fallen off. I had only one start to turn red before it fell off, but it had already started to rot by that time and had a large hole in its side. This year, as I said, is my first go at it, so I'm keeping track of what I'm doing right and what I'm possibly doing wrong so next year I can do it again!
 
I'd be tempted to take a picture of the peppers, for use later.
You can then use them to check for pests and/or disease.
 
I'm away from home for the next couple of days, but I'll see if I can get a picture from my husband or take one when I get home. From memory, the stalk doesn't seem to be shriveling, I just go outside and find the peppers on the ground as if they've just fallen off. I had only one start to turn red before it fell off, but it had already started to rot by that time and had a large hole in its side. This year, as I said, is my first go at it, so I'm keeping track of what I'm doing right and what I'm possibly doing wrong so next year I can do it again!

I'm no expert gardener, but I wonder if perhaps it's getting too much sun. I believe that's the issue I had with mine years back when I planted it, but I was living in an apartment complex back then, and someone actually stole a good number of my plants, so I didn't end up with the bounty from my work :(.
 
I have a red bell pepper plant, in a pot, that I'm growing this year...at least, that's what the tag says. Several peppers have grown, they aren't huge, but a good size, however, they never turn red and the peppers literally fall off the plant while they are still green. Admittedly, I am not good at gardening, this year is my first attempt, so it may be something I am doing wrong. Or, could it be that the plant was mislabeled at the store and I really bought a green bell pepper plant after all?
So what was the cause, and just as important, the solution?
 
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