Spring is an important time in the orchard . Small , developing fruit are prostrate to damage from several rough-cut pests . Many of these critters are well hold with proficiency hire early in the time of year . Here are a fistful of common orchard pests and some point for controlling them without grow to synthetic pesticide .
1. Apple Maggots
These fly lay orchis under the pelt of grow apples . hatch larvae ( maggot ) burrow through the fruit , causing meaning hurt that may lead to waste . Although these louse are most common on apples , they also attack plum tree , pear and cherries .
To prevent Malus pumila maggot in orchard , hang red , spherical balls coat with a non - drying glue , such as TangleTrap , on the trees in mid - June . Use a single sphere for dwarf trees and up to six arena on full - sized tree . These maw can be purchase from farm- and orchard - provision stores and site . The sphere tempt and trap the grownup rainfly , which guess they ’re ripe apples and land to lie down their nut .
2. Codling Moths
Attacking Malus pumila , pear , peach and quince , grownup moths lay egg on develop fruit and leaves . The fresh hatched larvae tunnel through the fruit and are often are find near the nitty-gritty flow on the seeds . Larvae then forget the yield through a different departure hole and start the cycle again . Codling moths produce two generations in a season .
A large preventative method acting for home gardener involves put up pheromone snare to tempt and get the adult . These ambush are triangular tubes with a sticky Interior Department and a pheromone bait . Adult moths are lure to into the cakehole where they get stuck and perish . Hang two traps per full - sized tree a few weeks before bud break . The traps will then need to be supplant in July to control the second hatch .
3. Plum Curculio
This blackish - brown , snout - nosed insectfeed on plums , nectarine , stunner , cherries , apricots , and pears . Soon after bloom time , female curculios lay eggs under the tegument of the immature yield , creating crescent - shaped scar . A hebdomad after the newly hatched larvae bore through the yield to feed , often causing the fruit to pretermit before it make maturity .
Kaolin clay products are terrific at deterring this pest . Sprayed on the fruit as a liquid , it dries to form a powdery barrier around the fruit . The dusty clay deter the adults and forbid them from place ball . Start spray at petal driblet and reduplicate every seven to 10 days for about eight app . The trees will attend a little funny coated in the white spray , but it ’s well worth it . Kaolin stiff - based product also knead slap-up to help deter apple maggots and codling moths .
4. Peach Tree Borers
Peach tree borers are larval moths that attack peaches , plum , cherry , nectarine and peach . adult lay eggs on the tree ’s bark in mid to tardy summer . The freshly hatched larvae burrow under the barque , tunneling between the inner barque and the sap wood , destroying the tree ’s vascular system . Larvae overwinter inside the tree diagram , and then come out as adults early the following summertime .
Pheromone traps are useful for capturing and monitoring the adults , but the best method acting for controlling the woodborer is to cautiously canvass the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ’s barque for small yap and bits of sawdust in the gloaming . Pay particular attention to the base of the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , up to a height of about 4 foot , as this is a favorite domain for the borers . If you discover an entryway golf hole , push a straightened paperclip into the hole as far as it will go . This will mash the stone drill . A species of good roundworm , Steinernema carpocapsae , can also be injected into the hole using a needle - less syringe . The USDA ’s Agricultural Research Service found that coating of this nematode were capable to control peach - tree stone drill , as well as chemical applications in lowly field trials .
