What's eating my apple?

Apple trees are attacked by codling moth, apple sawfly, woolly aphid, and rosy apple aphid — and browsed by deer and rabbits in garden settings. Codling moth (maggoty fruit) is the number-one pest for most growers. Pheromone traps, pheromone-based granulovirus sprays, and fruit bags provide the best protection.

Pink-white caterpillars tunnel to the core; pin-hole entry points on fruit surface; frass-filled channels; maggoty apples fall early. Hang pheromone traps from late May to monitor; apply codling moth granulovirus (CpGV) spray from mid-June targeting newly hatched larvae; bag individual fruitlets in June.

Ribbon-like corky scars on the outside of developing fruit; infested fruitlets drop in the June drop; internal galleries with sawdust-like frass. Hang white sticky traps at petal fall to catch adults; remove and destroy fallen fruitlets promptly; encourage ground beetles which prey on pupae.

White cottony blobs on bark, especially around pruning wounds and graft unions; branches develop swollen galls; weakens structural wood. Scrub off with a stiff brush; apply insecticidal soap or methylated spirits directly to colonies; encourage earwigs and parasitic wasp Aphelinus mali.

Deer browse shoots and strip bark in winter; rabbits ring-bark young trunks at ground level, which can kill the tree. Fit spiral rabbit guards on young trunks; install deer netting or individual tree guards; erect a 2m-high perimeter fence in heavily grazed areas.