Of all of the fruit I have grown in Idaho, my favorite is the apple - not just any apple, a 'Criterion' apple picked fresh off the tree. Biting into one of these juicy, bursting with flavor apples is an orchardist’s delight.Ironically, for any orchardist, commercial or small- scale operations in which this blog is dedicated to comes with a cost. And for many of those seasoned apple growers, significant cost of time, energy and resource is essential for the perfect marketable fruit. Ideal size (Goldilocks proportions), right color, superb taste and no blemishes. Now if we were living in the Garden of Eden, no problem, but we do not, so comes the consequences of a need for disease management, climate control, soil balance, branch and trunk care, and the dreaded pest control.
For this article, I am only going to address pest control: one pest in particular that stands head and shoulders of all the other apple pests, the Codling Moth. This moth is a member of the Lepidopteran family Tortricidae. Interestingly, codling means “an unripe, half-grown apple”. Now add a small worm to this scenario and you have the perfect storm of total destruction of a normal apple. And, just as one perfect apple can bring delight to the dedicated orchardist, it can also bring a grown man to tears when he discovers as he bites into that prospective delicious apple that a black headed cream-colored worm has riddled his sweet meal with several blackened distasteful tunnels…worthless to the core! For the untrained eye an outward examination of the suspect apple may puzzle the human consumer for even though many apples may bare the evidence of the unwanted worm that stings and eventually penetrates the skin of the apple many worms find it more convenient to enter through the “calyx end” of an apple.
Because these worms have such a voracious appetite for apples, the small-scale fruit grower may become discouraged and find it not worth the effort to put up with these pests and so depend on the fruit stand or grocer to be their provider of these sweet worm-less treats. But for the fruit grower who holds to the tenants of religiosity, tenacity and creativity… and who has a plan in place (while these moths are in hibernation) there can be hope and there can be success! One educational source that has done extensive research on the control of the codling moth is Washington State University Research and Extension Services. Several practical approaches starting with a better understanding of the life cycle of the codling moth can be helpful in winning the battle of the worm. WSU’s website has numerous charts ranging from life history of the moth to the pesticide spray schedule when the moth is most active throughout the year. I have in the past used my own method of monitoring moth activity through the use of a molasses-based milk jug traps. I found at a local organic nursery who recommends this method along with some other valuable advice using a more “organic approach”.
This is a key component of worm control in your apples. The idea is to know exactly or at least within a couple of days when the moths are on the move and are ready to lay their eggs on strategic apple tree locations to raise their offspring.
What I like about this website is they take on more of a biological approach in controlling this moth by using pheromone traps and parasitoids I have had little success with these methods but have found a product named Spinosad to be fairly effective if used appropriately with the spray schedule for this area. I have just recently signed up online for the Pacific Northwest Pest Alert Bulletin. I highly recommend this site if you are really committed to being timely with your spray routine which could be several times throughout the life season of the moth. As mentioned, Spinosad is my pesticide of choice and has some interesting history. In 1982, a distinctive soil dwelling bacterium called Spinosad was discovered on this Caribbean island. Spinosad has become a unique pesticide used in organic gardening. This year I will be adding another product that meets OMRI standards, an all seasons horticulture oil with Spinosad. This product is considered an excellent fungicide, miticide and pesticide that can be used within 24 hours of harvest.
The above links have some excellent additional advice on how best to control this nasty moth’s offspring appetite so we gardeners and orchardists can better reap the benefits of our fruit tree husbandry.
Here is wishing you a juicy worm-free apple of your choice this summer. (even though Criterions are the best!)
