Spray Fruit Trees -- NOW

Now is the time to spray your fruit trees so you aren't fighting insects on your trees or later in your harvested fruit.  You need to spray your trees when they have buds, but the buds are not yet open.  Where we live, that time is right now and will soon be too late.  Our apricot tree has already blossomed, but all the others are still perfect for spraying.  

We have had good success spraying a mixture of dormant oil, Malathion and fixed copper.  To prepare, follow the instructions per gallon for each.  Soak each tree until the spray almost runs off.  Soak the entire tree including the trunk and each branch.  Spray in the evenings so you do not harm your local bee population.  This spray will kill the bugs and eggs that are waiting to infect your tree as they come out of dormancy.  This spray is also good for raspberries, blackberries and grapes.  

Spraying your tree is definitely worth the effort.  There is nothing worse than picking beautiful fruit in the fall only to find that it is infested with little critters!

For more information on spraying dormant oil, check out the recent newsletter put out by the Utah Extension Service by clicking HERE.

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Have you sprayed yet?  When harvesting, do you wish you had?

Insect and Disease Newsletters

The USU Cooperative Extension provides free newsletters with current insect and disease issues affecting Utah plants.  We have found the newsletters helpful to know what to watch for and what to do when we see specific bugs or diseases.  You can click here to sign up to receive the free newsletters via e-mail.  This is the website's description for their newsletters:  "Plant pest advisories provide information on current pests in landscapes, fruits, and vegetables, and how and when to manage them.  They are delivered periodically through the growing season to your email inbox as links to an online newsletter."  When you sign up for the newsletters, you choose which newsletters are applicable to you and that you'd like to receive.

Even if you don't live in Utah, you may find it helpful since many things like squash bugs certainly are not isolated to Utah.  The squash bugs are bad in our garden right now and have even killed a couple of our plants.  Are you fighting squash bugs too?  Read how to treat squash bugs in the latest pest advisory newsletter for small fruits and vegetables by clicking here.  

 

Although probably the best attack we've found is giving our boys the job to hunt and squish the bugs!  My boys really don't seem to care, but I give them latex gloves because it just seems like a good mother thing to do!

How do you fight squash bugs?  What resources do you use to learn about pests and diseases?