Red pepper autotoxicity threatens crop rotation, Chinese radish emerges as solution.
The study looked at how extracts from different parts of red pepper plants affect the growth of garden pea and Chinese radish seeds. They found that red pepper leaves had the strongest effect on seed germination, followed by the roots and then the stems. The extracts didn't affect Chinese radish seed germination but did inhibit root growth. For garden pea seeds, all parts of red pepper extracts inhibited germination and seedling growth, with leaves having the strongest effect. Based on these results, Chinese radish was chosen as the best crop to plant after red pepper in a rotation.