What's eating my quince?

Quince (Cydonia oblonga) is closely related to pear and shares several of its pests. Codling moth and leaf miner are serious fruit and foliage threats. Aphids attack new growth, woolly aphid colonises bark, and quince leaf blight spreads via insects. Wasps and birds target ripe fruit. Codling moth is the single worst problem for the crop.

Caterpillars tunnel into developing fruit to the core; entry hole is ringed with brown frass; affected fruit drops early or is inedible at harvest Hang pheromone traps from late May to monitor and time treatment; apply kaolin clay barrier spray; use Bt at egg hatch; band corrugated cardboard around trunk to trap pupating larvae

Curled, distorted young leaves and shoot tips; honeydew dripping onto fruit causes sooty mould Apply winter tar-oil wash for eggs; spray neem oil or insecticidal soap from bud burst; attract and protect ladybirds, lacewings, and hoverflies

Sawfly larvae skeletonise upper leaf surface leaving brown papery patches; leaf miners create pale blotch tunnels in the blade Spray with insecticidal soap or neem oil at the first sign of skeletonising; pick off badly affected leaves; remove fallen leaf litter in autumn

Fruit skin pierced and flesh hollowed as quinces ripen in autumn; wasps enlarge damage started by birds or mechanical splitting Pick fruit promptly when ripe; net smaller trees if bird pressure is high; remove fallen fruit daily