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kittymoonbeam

Borers again

kittymoonbeam
10 years ago

Every so often my neighbor complains that borers killed a peach just when it was starting to produce well. He is about 4 houses away. I lost an old peach about 8 years ago and a plum 3 years ago. I am thinking that the borers are hatched out and looking for a new home. I have a large peach and 2 plums that have just started to get large enough to fruit well. What can I do except water well and feed them? Another neighbor on another street showed me his old nectarine that looked terrible with yellowy leaves and sap running out of the trunk all up and down. I thought that tree looked like it was going to die soon. We also had borers kill some street trees a few years ago but I blamed that on the people letting the parkway dry out and stressing the trees. My neighbor is so down about losing this latest peach and I fear for my adolescent trees as well.

Comments (5)

  • gator_rider2
    10 years ago

    Fruit citrus & vegetable insect control. Put this out one month before bores come after fruit off is good time. I use it every year.

    Here is a link that might be useful: borer control

  • meredith_e Z7b, Piedmont of NC, 1000' elevation
    10 years ago

    I paint the trunks with 50% white latex paint and 50% water/borer mix. I use spinosad (organic) at the rate used for one application, but if anyone knows a different application rate for painting, please let me know.

    I haven't had my trees long, so I'm not sure whether my mix will cut it over time, keep in mind! We do have intense borer problems here, and it's been great so far. We'll see ;)

    I spray spinosad a couple of more times during the year, too, for other pests, and I make sure to get the branches and trunks really well. Get the base, too!

    The mixing with latex paint is supposed to make it last longer, and a paint covering may help prevent borers as well according to what I read. (It also helps sunburn).

    Again, I'm still in the experimental phase myself, lol, but maybe it helps give ideas. I hope the spinosad cuts it because its toxicity is pretty great regarding beneficial insects. I get a lot of mileage out of spiders, preying mantises, ladybugs, etc, in controlling other pests in my little orchard so far, and I hope I can keep that part up if possible.

  • kittymoonbeam
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Yes, I worked hard to build up my beneficial insect populations too. I read that the imidacloprid will kill earthworms. With the lack of rain, trees are stressed all over. I'm sure that the borers are increasing their numbers this year especially.

  • alan haigh
    10 years ago

    Exterior white latex paint has been shown to be as affective as strongest insecticides (Lorsban is best) at controlling borers on apples and it is probably a safe assumption that it works as well for peaches. An annual application thickly painted on bottom foot of trunk should be adequate- do not dilute. Pull and brush soil away to point where roots emerge and recover when paint is dry.

    Here is a link that might be useful: painting to control borers

  • Michael
    10 years ago

    I had borers last year for the first time on my peach tree. This year I tried painting the trunk from the soil up to and including the scaffolds with a mixture of Surround @ 3 cups/gal.. No sign of borers this year and there is still a trace of the Surround on every surface I applied it to. It rains little here compared to other parts of the U.S. so reapplication might be needed in rainier areas, in fact, it might not be worth having to do all the reapplications in wetter areas.

    Maybe Surround is just the modern and far more expensive equivalent of hydraulic cement + milk :)