Pests on fruit trees are a problem for many a hobby gardener. Our little guide tells you what they are and what you can do.
Fruit from the home garden is the pride of every gardener. But as popular as apples, pears or cherries are with us humans, fruit trees are also popular with pests. Now it would be nonsensical to want to protect the fruit trees against pests in advance. On the other hand, every tree has its own characteristics that cannot be covered with a single measure. It is also in nature that fruit trees protect themselves in a certain way. This happens, for example, when the leaves fall off and rot. This creates natural humus, which gives the tree the nutrients it needs.
Despite self-protection, it is often unavoidable that pests settle on fruit trees. Caterpillars, mites and aphids make up a large part of the pests. But you should distinguish between real pests and less dangerous critters before you tackle them.
Small and large winter moths
The winter moth is one of the most dangerous caterpillar species. A precise distinction is made between the small and the large winter moth. The most dangerous for fruit trees is the small winter moth. If a fruit tree or other woody plant is attacked by the small winter moth, in the worst case it can become bare.
To deal with the pest infestation, you can put up great tit nest boxes. Frost moth caterpillars are a favorite dish for birds. If you can't get rid of the winter moth naturally, wrap rings of glue around the trunk. As soon as the sticky effect wears off, the glue rings must be changed.
Leaf Bug
Although the leaf bug harms neither humans nor animals, it is definitely harmful to our fruit trees. Leaf bugs are between five and ten millimeters in size, have wings and are a mixture of yellow, green and red. They feed on the sap of the plant and thus ruin the tree. The infestation is recognizable by the holes in the leaves and malformed fruits.
Bugs love warmth, which means that if it gets colder and wetter, they disappear on their own. If that's not enough for you, stayprobably just a fight with agents containing paraffin oil.
Codling moth (fruit maggot)
The fruit maggot is a pest that not only affects apple trees or apples. Pear and quince as well as stone fruit, figs and walnuts are also colonized by the pest. The females lay eggs, from which the caterpillars hatch. The gluttonous little animals then unabashedly help themselves to the peel of the apple right down to the pulp.
To give the codling moth no chance, wrap a wide strip of corrugated cardboard around the tree trunk. The space in between in the corrugated cardboard is used by the fruit maggots to lay eggs. At the end of July you can remove the cardboard and dispose of it along with the codling moth.
Other pests
But there are far more pests on fruit trees than those mentioned here. Small animals such as the leaf flea, the gall midge, the hazelnut borer and the raspberry beetle also cause damage.