Wormy Cherries and Peaches

What should I be doing to my cherry and peach trees now, or in the near future to avoid having wormy fruit. You know, the little white worm close to the pit.... I can't stand it. It used to be I'd occasionally find a worm, each year it has progressively gotten worse, so I want to do something, if I can, to stop it.

For starters, you could spray lime sulphur before blooming or Kocide 2000 before full blooming to cut down on fungals like brown rot.

Some spray chemicals all season. Another option is bagging the fruit with either nylon footies or ziplock bags shortly after fruit set.

Thanks Indy--I'll look for the Kocide2000 and the lime sulphur. Bagging the fruit isn't an option we have too many for that.

Melissa. Both Sulphur and Kocide are fungicides. They will do nothing for your Worm problem. The major cause of wormy peaches is the oriental fruit moth. http://www.biconet.com/reference/InsectvsInsect.html and the plum curculio . http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC2210.htm. The standard home orchard spray if applied in accordance with the instructions will control most insect and fungal problems. There has been some research using botanicals and biologicals .. Jury is still out on effectiveness.

Thanks Farmerdill, I don't know, that is why I asked. :-)

besides the above vice
we spray with kaptin and imadaine(sps)every 7 to 10 days all season long

when dh gets home he will correct my spelling!

I have also heard to apply Tanglefoot to the trunk of the tree to keep these pests off the tree.

I just planted 2 peach trees in Feb. When do I start treating them?

I planted 2 other peach trees in Sept. and they have got 3 little pink blooms on them already. Do I need to treat these trees this young, or just wait until they are old enough to produce some significant fruit ? I don't think the blooms are going to amount to anything this year, it's too early, we still had a freeze afterwards.

Rule number 1: Never spray a fruit tree in bloom. You endanger your pollinators. Peggie, you should not allow your peaches to fruit this year, it puts too much stress on the plant. After they are stablished next year, you can start a spray program for summer insects after petal fall. Follow directions provided with the insecticide/fungicide. I would also reccomend a dormant oil spray just before they break dormancy next winter. If you have peach borers, they need to be treated just as the buds began to swell, contact your extension agent for recommendations for your area.