Gravenstein apple tree - Ask Extension
I have a gravenstein apple tree with a virus which I understand is not curable. I won't be able to have the company come and cut it down until Monday ...
Knowledgebase
Gravenstein apple tree #900531
Asked May 07, 2025, 6:18 PM EDT
I have a gravenstein apple tree with a virus which I understand is not curable. I won't be able to have the company come and cut it down until Monday possibly next Friday. Is there anything I can do to prevent it from spreading to my other gravenstein apple tree and my two Bartlett pear trees? The virus is the one that starts out with blotches on the leaves that you can see when the light shines through the leaf and then the blotches turn yellow, the leaf turns black and then falls off the tree.
Multnomah County Oregon
Expert Response
I am not entirely convinced you have a virus. The image shows an apple branch (in and out of focus), an immature apple fruit and some leaves that are normal looking and others that have various areas of yellow and green. The leaves with the mottled appearance seem to be in the shade. There is a virus disease called apple mosaic but this does not have the same symptoms: https://pnwhandbooks.org/plantdisease/host-disease/apple-malus-spp-apple-mosaic
What it looks like from the single image is that these are leaves that have formed early, are now in the shade and are being cast by the tree. It is a normal condition as the tree lets these poorly preforming leaves go in favor of other leaves with more sunlight and much more efficient for the tree.
What it looks like from the single image is that these are leaves that have formed early, are now in the shade and are being cast by the tree. It is a normal condition as the tree lets these poorly preforming leaves go in favor of other leaves with more sunlight and much more efficient for the tree.
