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davidguss

Codling Moth Traps

davidguss
11 years ago

I have had a lot of success with homemade codling moth traps. These are very easy to make and inexpensive. Just pour a cup of vinegar (doesn't matter if it's apple cider or just plain old vinegar) plus one cup of sugar into a gallon milk jug. Fill the remainder with tap water. Get several empty gallon milk jugs. Make a circular or square hole on the side of the jugs (a couple of inches or so above the liquid). Punch a couple of holes near the top and run a wire or clothesline through them. Shake your sugar water mixture well and pour about 2 cups into each milk jug. Hang jugs from the trees. A shaded places works best
because there is less evaporation. It's best to hang these out early (before the trees bloom). You'll catch the first
moths that emerge and they won't lay any eggs. You'll have to replenish the liquid frequently after it gets hot. The jugs attract both codling moths and yellow jackets. Honeybees are not attracted to the mixture. If you get too many bugs in the jugs you'll have to scoop or strain em out. However, I've noticed that they don't mind drinking the liquid even when it's full of dead bugs. Some sites suggest adding molasses or ammonia. Don't bother. You'll get just as many with my easy recipe. I usually hang one jug or two per tree. Keep them up all summer and you should make a significant dent in your worm population. They are also good to use for monitoring and timing of sprays.

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