Apple trees and Cedars

[kkunc]

We have been in our new place about 3 yrs now. When we moved in the two existing apples trees were in very badly need of TLC. They were overgrown, and had some kind of vine just about to choke them out. We have since removed the vine and trimmed the trees a little each year, and each year the trees have started to produce more and more apples, but how do you keep the worms and birds from destroying the apples before they come mature? The apples are very good, but so many of them get destroyed before they get ripe. Also, we had spider mites last year that destoyed 6 of our 20ft cedars, I was just devastated. Besides bagworms, what else do we need to watch for on our cedars. We currently have what our neighbor calls apple rust on our cedars, will that hurt them? What is good to spray on bag worms and this apples rust?

 

[Jay Banks]

You sure do have a lot going on.
1. birds eat apples, you have to beat them to the ripe ones or when your fruit has formed you can cover the tree with a fine net. There sold in garden supply catalogs.

2. Cedar apple rust is a fungus that needs both hosts to complete its lif cycle. If the two trees are in close proximity to each other it will be difficult to break the cycle. Here are a couple of sites:
http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/mod03/01701181.html
http://www.forestpests.org/southern/Diseases/cdrapll.htm
http://muextension.missouri.edu/xplor/agguides/pests/g07870.htm

3. Bagworms can be hand picked. Or a little insecticide soap.

But keep your trees health to fight off some of the effects.

 

[John Paul McMillin]

cedar apple rust is mainly a cosmetic problem on your cedars, prune out the galls is all you can do . use a fungicide on your apples like Dithane or Nova to contol the rust on them. To control bagworms, remove the bags or spray with Conserve or Tempo or Mavrick or Astro in early June. Spray when the Northern Catalpa is in bloom. growing degree day 600 to 900. If you dont know about growing degree days them contact your local extension service at the local university, they will have a newsletter they can send out to let you know what pest is out and what to use .

 

[Nickrosis]

The spider mites are something else in hot weather. You can read a paragraph on them at my site <a href="http://www.crawfordtree.com/resources/insects/top_ten_least_wanted_insects.htm">here</a>. Last summer, I was spraying every day and a half for each new generation appearing that day. It was on arborvitae like yours - <i>Thuja occidentalis</i> - and still ended up causing significant damage but did not kill the trees. Unfortunately for the owner (fortunately for us), it was costly to do that.

Nickrosis

 

[John Paul McMillin]

For spider mites i use oil dormant or avid or kelthane during the growing season, timing is dependent on which mite you have but my arborvitae at work have spruce spider mite which should be sprayed in the spring and fall.