By Ahmed Hajouj.
Having a steady supply of fresh fruit from your backyard is quite a nice thing. Many people strive to attain this dream. However, many people fail to realize how easy it is to obtain a fairly serious infestation of worms in their fruit. I can’t think of anything more unpleasant than biting into an apple off of the tree you’ve slaved over for so long, only to find that you have not been diligent enough with your pesticides.
Even though it seems like a hassle to always be spraying pesticides, it is something that you should never overlook. Spraying pesticides is a fairly quick and easy process, and you shouldn’t have to do it very often at all. Believe me; it is worth it to just get out there in the yard every couple of weeks and spray.
Spraying can seem like a time consuming process. After all, you have to go out and buy all the supplies, mix the chemicals, apply them, and clean up everything you used in the process. Sometimes you’ll even need a ladder to reach all segments of the trees. The entire process can take as long as four hours if you have several large trees. Doing this every 2 weeks can get very tiresome and irritating. However, you should always persevere. Usually being adamant in your regular spraying will help prevent infestations of such things as moths, but sometimes it’s just not enough.
Usually you can recognize of moths have laid eggs on your trees by the ends of the branches. If you notice something that looks like a cluster of moth eggs, you should immediately prune the branch you found it on and destroy it. Check the rest of the tree very thoroughly. If the eggs were to hatch, you would have a huge amount of moth larvae crawling around through your tree and into your fruits. I don’t know about you, but the very thought of this makes me wretch.
I once had a friend who was dealing with a very bad moth infestation. He couldn’t find a single fruit on his tree that didn’t have a worm inside of it. He ended up having to cut down the entire tree (the stump was a wriggling mass of white larvae. I threw up when I saw it. Damn my weak stomach!) and have the stump professionally removed to get rid of all traces. Having to start completely over on a tree you’ve worked on for so long is an absolute travesty.
I myself live in the same area as that friend I just mentioned, and I have never had a problem with moths. This is because every Saturday during springtime, I make it part of my schedule to go outside and spray down my entire tree. Preventing the infestation of unwanted guests is much better than having to cut down a tree and start completely over just because of a little laziness.
If you have not thought of spraying pesticides in the past, you should head to your local gardening supplies store today. Find out what pests are most prevalent in your area, and buy the appropriate pesticides to prevent them from ever visiting your trees. I urge you not to brush this off, as it will save you lots of trouble in the long run.
