What's eating my braeburn apple?

Braeburn Apple is particularly susceptible to codling moth and wooly aphid, and its late-ripening season (October–November) means extended exposure to pest pressure. Aphids, apple scab, and mildew are consistent problems. Deer and rabbits target young trees in winter. A combination of pheromone traps, winter wash, and good pruning covers most threats.

Caterpillars bore into the core of ripening fruit; exit holes with frass; maggoty apples Pheromone traps from late May; codling moth granulosis virus spray at petal fall and 2–3 follow-up applications; collect fallen fruit daily

White woolly colonies on bark and around pruning wounds; galls and canker susceptibility increases Scrub off colonies with soapy brush; targeted spray with fatty-acid insecticide; promote earwig and parasitic wasp populations

Tightly curled young leaves in spring; stunted shoot growth; misshapen developing fruit Dormant plant-oil winter wash; insecticidal soap spray at bud burst before leaves curl

Shoot tips browsed in late winter and spring; bark rubbed and stripped by antler velvet fraying Install deer-proof fencing (minimum 1.8 m); use individual tree guards; check for damage after storm or frost when deer pressure increases