Knowledgebase

Apple damage #867201

Asked May 06, 2024, 10:53 AM EDT

Last year, almost all our apples (2 trees) had a lot of small holes in them early in the season causing them to not grow very much and grow deformed. By season end, most were riddled with small holes and so small and deformed that nothing was edible. We are in Golden Valley Mn. Any help on pest control recs would be appreciated. Haraldson and Honeycrisp trees. Picture is not our apple, but what they looked like.

Hennepin County Minnesota

Expert Response

You've described the damage caused by apple maggots, the most serious pest on apples in Minnesota.

Apple maggots can be managed with regular applications of pesticides, starting in mid June and continuing through the summer.  They can also be managed by "bagging" the apples: enclosing the apples in plastic sandwich bags in early to mid June.

Read here about how to manage apple maggots:
https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden-insects/apple-maggot
Dennis in St. Louis Park Replied May 06, 2024, 1:30 PM EDT

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